You might know Sabrina Carpenter from the viral videos of her creative endings to her song “Nonsense,” or maybe from her hits “Espresso” and “Please Please Please,” which took over the summer of 2024.
This was no easy feat, though — her career didn’t blow up overnight. Through years of hard work and finding her landing in different areas of the entertainment industry, Carpenter is much more than just a singer. She is an actress, a celebrity personality, a style icon, and a comedian. No matter how you know her, she has made her mark wearing many different hats, but right now, she is blowing up as a pop princess.
Carpenter has cemented her spot as a pop legend as she “joins a very exclusive club of women who have managed similar showings [on the Billboard Charts] in 2024 as she holds onto control of the highest spot on the tally,” according to Forbes.
Don’t be fooled, though — she is no overnight sensation. The timeline of her career not only demonstrates the years of work she has put in but also the variety of work she has done.
She began by singing on YouTube, posting videos to the platform in 2009 (when she was just 10 years old!), had an acting career on Disney and other hit films such as The Hate U Give and Tall Girl, and around the same time, her music career debuted.
emails i can’t send is arguably the album that launched Carpenter’s musical career in 2022. Following some drama that previously took place, this body of work has amassed hundreds of millions of streams. Some notable songs include “because i liked a boy,” “Nonsense,” and “Feather,” which was featured on the deluxe album.
What stands out most is the versatility of her voice throughout the tracklist. Carpenter can play around with different tempos and beats to communicate her very vulnerable thoughts and experiences. She credits this to a very deep and personal time in her life.
She opens the album with her soft and gentle voice, playing around with her higher register and falsetto. The album then shifts to songs with more rhythm. And obviously, there are her upbeat, pop hits that act as anthems of self-empowerment. All of this is to say that before she transformed into the pop star we know now, she first had to break personal barriers and show off her artistry in this album.
What came after probably wasn’t what Carpenter expected. After starting her emails i can’t send tour (which she took around the globe), her outros to “Nonsense” became a hit. Every show would go viral just to see what wordplay would come out of each city — creating several viral clips. This is also how she became a style icon. Night after night, she came on stage with her corset tops, mini skirts, high-heeled platform boots, blown-out hair, and blushed cheeks — a now iconic look for the pop star.
After her own tour, she joined Taylor Swift’s Era’s Tour and opened many international arena shows. Even more clips of her opening set started to take the world by storm. Her rendition of “Hopelessly Devoted To You” started taking over TikTok’s For You page, which is no surprise considering how amazing she sounds.
It doesn’t stop there. In April 2024, Carpenter released “Espresso,” which is undeniably this year’s song of the summer. Following that, “Please Please Please” was released, and it did not disappoint. Her catchy, upbeat, girl-power songs set the tone for the good vibes of the summer. “Espresso” stayed on the Billboard Charts for 22 weeks and “Please Please Please” for 14 weeks, peaking at number one.
In late August 2024, Short n’ Sweet saw the light after much anticipation. It’s safe to say it did not disappoint. The reactions to Carpenter’s album were filled with surprise to hear hit after hit.
With just 12 tracks, she was able to share her feelings from some of her relationships, and how some of them were the shortest she’s ever had, and they affected her the most, she explains in an interview with People Magazine. Songs like “Good Graces,” “Taste,” and “Bed Chem” are trending on TikTok, boosting her streams even more.
Carpenter performed a showstopping set at the VMA’s mainstage earlier this month, performing her hit songs “Espresso,” “Please Please Please” and “Taste.”
This is big for the star because she performed on the side stage last year, and many people thought she should hit the main stage instead. All eyes were on her as she floated above the crowd to then take over the stage with her theatric set and outstanding choreography. She left the award show with the Song of the Year award to make the night even more memorable.
Sabrina Carpenter has shown us time and time again that she has the ability to put on a good show, produce hit songs, and do it while pulling some iconic looks. She proves that she is the Jack of all trades — she is the embodiment of a Pop Princess, and her career is set to continue growing from here.