Man’s Best Friend, Sabrina Carpenter’s follow-up to her Grammy-winning album, Short n’ Sweet, released on Aug. 29. As with her previous albums, songs are rumored to be about her former flames. One song in particular, “Go Go Juice,” might be about three — Shawn Mendes, Dylan O’Brien, and Barry Keoghan.
On first listen of “Go Go Juice,” you might miss the subtle reference to her famous exes. In the song, Carpenter sings about her calling people while drunk post breakup, and mentions the names John and Larry, who aren’t past lovers of the singer — or even rumored. “I’m just drinking to call someone / Ain’t nobody safe when I’m a little bit drunk / Could be John or Larry, gosh, who’s to say? / Or the one that rhymes with “villain” if I’m feelin’ that way,” she sings. But on second listen (and a special note on those “rhymes” she mentions), she could be hinting at her past lovers by rhyming — John rhymes with Shawn (Mendes), Larry rhymes with Barry (Keoghan), and villain rhymes with Dylan (O’Brien). Since Carpenter is basically known for her wordplay, it’s not too far off to imagine this is the case.
“Go Go Juice,” doesn’t just reference her dating history, but other songs she’s released. The song begins with a reference to “Don’t Smile,” as she sings about drowning in her sorrows after a breakup. “Love when happy hour comes at 10 a.m. o’clock on a Tuesday/Guess a broken heart doesn’t care that I just woke up,” she sings. The next line references her drink of choice and lover, singing, “Got a soft spot for a bev and a boy that’s fruity.” Carpenter admits next that this breakup hasn’t been easy on her: “Can’t lie, whole week’s been tough.”
The pre-chorus references another Carpenter song, “15 Minutes,” with the line, “No party invitations, not goin’ to the club,” calling back to, “Where did all these parties come from?”
Aside from the Shawn, Dylan, and Barry reference at the start of the chorus, it continues by Carpenter singing about how she is using alcohol to deal with her breakup blues. “Oh, I’m just drinking to call someone / A girl who knows her liquor is a girl who’s been dumped / Sippin’ on my go go juice, I can’t be blamed / Some good old-fashioned fun sure numbs the pain.”
The second verse has Carpenter calling one of her exes, missing them, and being annoyed they don’t reciprocate and aren’t interested. “Ring, ring, ring, yeah, it’s super important (How many shots in an ounce?) / I might have double vision, but that is irrelevant right now (Answer me, baby, um, are you in town?) / I miss you and I think about you every minute / If you’re still disinterested in me, well, f**k / Just tryin’ different numbers, didn’t think that you’d pick up.”
Carpenter gave us a two-for-one with “Go Go Juice”: a song that cleverly shades her exes, and a relatable banger about being a mess after a breakup.