On April 11, pop-singer Sabrina Carpenter released her new single titled “Espresso,” and it’s a quick two minutes and 55 seconds. Carpenter released the album “emails i can’t send” in 2022 and then released the album “emails i can’t send fwd” in 2023. The 2022 album included tracks that made it on my personal playlist such as “because i liked a boy,” “nonsense” and “Feather.”
I am a fan of her. I have been a fan of her since her Disney channel days when she released “Can’t Blame a Girl for Trying” way back in 2015. She has released hit upon hit of good music over the years that I have loved, and people are calling “Espresso” the song of the summer, but I just don’t get it.
The song immediately starts with the chorus, which like, no hate, but where is the intro? The intros to a lot of her songs are so iconic. The intro to “Feather” crosses my mind at least once a day, but with this there is no catchy little ditty to lead into it.
The lyrics of the chorus honestly eat. They’re the kind of catchy-get-stuck-in-your-head lyrics that she is known for. Then, we get to the first verse and it’s fine. It’s honestly chill, but it doesn’t catch me as much as her other music. However, the pre-chorus is really where the lyrics just totally lose me.
“Too bad your ex don’t do it for ya
Walked in and dream-came-trued it for ya
Soft skin and I perfumed it for ya (Yes)
I know I Mountain Dew it for ya (Yes)
That morning coffee, brewed it for ya (Yes)
One touch and I brand-newed it for ya”
Seems like Carpenter played a game of how many times can we say “ya” without getting sued by Ariana Grande. When I heard the lyrics “I know I Mountain Dew it for ya” I literally rolled my eyes. It just isn’t good. It just seems like Carpenter and her team got bored writing this song and decided to throw whatever in there. The coffee line is good though, especially with the whole chorus of the song it hits. I know Mountain Dew has caffeine in it, but like the song is “espresso” – give me more coffee vibes.
She sings the chorus again, and then verse two is what has gone viral.
“I’m working late ’cause I’m a singer
Oh, he looks so cute wrapped ’round my finger
My twisted humor make him laugh so often
My honeybee, come and get this pollen”
This part of the song is the only part that really sticks out to me. This seems like what Carpenter wrote down initially and then was like, “we need to make a song around this” because it’s the only thing that sticks out. She sings the chorus again… and then the song is over.
Modern mainstream music today is so short. I feel like we never get a good long song. Carpenter has produced some really good music, but this just seems like a corporate drop trying to be “the song of the Summer” which every TikTok artist advertises in their cars like they’re a hot artist.
Her music video is all beach themed and fits the vibe of her music. She has a very specific vibe, and the song fits it, but it just isn’t as good as I wanted it to be. The music video is fun, but it isn’t anything really interesting.
A lot of people compare Carpenter to Taylor Swift. Genuinely, I think the only reason is because they’re both blonde. They have completely different styles of music: Swift is more detailed and careful about every little thing she writes, and Carpenter is more girly pop. They’re both wonderful artists, but they aren’t comparable at all.
“Espresso” is good, but I just expected more instead of a corporate throw-together of a song. In the future, I’d love to see songs with more of her character. There is so much music now that is just describing vague feelings and situations trying to cater to as many people as possible. Her previous work has been heartfelt and soft, and this just isn’t what I was looking for.
