Sabrina slayed the house down in Austin.
ACL Live March 26 was poppin’.
Woke up this morning and thought I’d write about it.
How quickly can this go viral, pop quiz?
Sabrina Carpenter performed during her “emails I can’t send” tour at Austin City Limits at the Moody Theater on March 26, 2023. Let me tell you, she killed it.
One of my favorite things about Sabrina is she connects with her fans. She connects through her lyrics, her stage presence, and by simply being unconditionally herself. Sabrina is vulnerable about her heartbreak in her songs, yet she somehow manages to make them energetic. Her unfiltered sorrow and anger compel her fans to scream along to her music.
When you’re a Sabrina fan, you feel united as one, and that’s exactly what Sabrina wants you to feel like. She even listens to her fans’ personal experiences, like at the concert when she gave a girl the mic to tell her a complicated story about a guy she likes. If you’re reading this Christina, listen to Sabrina and don’t text him.
To open up the concert, Sabrina played Taylor Swift’s “All Too Well” 10-minute version, which of course the audience loved, considering Taylor and Sabrina are in a similar music bracket. While waiting for Sabrina to come out everyone was singing along, and on the stage, you could see Sabrina’s famous heart arch, an enchanting balcony, and on the side a bench and lamp post. When Sabrina opened the show, she walked in on the balcony.
Here are some of my favorite songs Sabrina performed live in no particular order:
Sabrina opens with “emails i can’t send” which is soft but holds deep raw emotions. The song is about her relationship with her dad, and how he has had an effect on the way she loves. Seeing this song live was so surreal, especially with the audience all singing along, I could feel the heartbreak in my bones.
Next is “Vicious,” which is by far my favorite to scream and rage to like I’m angry at my ex (I’m not angry at my ex). When she sang this song the concert turned into a rager full of resentful girls. The chorus is incredibly catchy and I find myself singing it all the time.
“Bad for Business” is also a really catchy song I love, but it’s different from most of her typical heartbreak songs. There’s even a lyric in the song she sings “If I’m just writing happy songs, will anybody sing along?” Sabrina, I’m definitely singing along, especially at your concert. Mid-song she grabbed a pink cowboy hat off the head of a girl in the front row and wore it during the song, which is another way Sabrina made her fans feel special during the show.
Three songs I’m equally in love with are “opposite,” “things i wish you said,” and “decode.” Sabrina captured the anguish in these songs perfectly during her performance. When she sang “opposite” and looked into the heart mirror at herself, I wanted to sob my eyes out. She sang “things i wish you said” sitting on the bench, which made it feel as if she was at a park pouring her feelings out. Finally “decode” is incredibly beautiful and brought my friend to tears. Sabrina sang this while sitting on the balcony, which felt magical. The entire audience was deeply immersed in this song.
Honorary mention to “Tornado Warnings” and “skinny dipping” because I only have so many words I can type before this becomes a five-page tribute to Miss ‘Brina.
I bet you were wondering when I’d mention “Nonsense.” “Nonsense” is Sabrina’s most popular song on the album due to her famous outros. This was my favorite song to see live, but I have to admit Sabrina I’m disappointed you didn’t mention UT in your outro. Although, I still loved it. Her Austin outro was:
“We should do more kissing and less talking
Boys are like a buffet, I want options
I heard the hottest people live in Austin”
I agree Sabrina, Austinites are hot.
Finally, Sabrina closed with “because i liked a boy,” which the audience had been waiting for. I screamed this song with my whole body. Sabrina definitely ended with a bang with this electric performance. Her energy, the flashing lights when the beat dropped, everything. When she finished, heart balloons fell from above and onto the audience. This was so magical.
Overall I give this performance a 9.5/10, love you, Sabrina.