Getting to be a pop star is relatively easy. A person finds a talented producer, has someone write a catchy tune, and has a single. That's nice, but the money made is not usually that much since one has to pay the producer, and everyone else.
Maintaining a highly successful pop career is so much harder, and there will be ebbs and flows. Right now, Carpenter is definitely on an ebb. But she is not an overnight sensation, as her most recent album, the massive-selling Short n' Sweet, was her sixth studio album. She had a lot of failures before her breakout record.
The singer announced this week that a follow-up to Short n' Sweet is on its way. Man's Best Friend will be released on August 29. The album's lead single, "Manchild," was released last week. Carpenter very well might have her second successful record in a row, but she might already be taking some missteps that curtail her long-term success.
Sabrina Carpenter opens herself up to all kinds of criticism
One of the issues is the pushback she is already getting from the cover of the record. In this era of pop divas also being alpha bosses, such as the extraordinary Taylor Swift, Carpenter's image might be a throwback, and not in a good way.
The cover art featured her in a submissive pose with her knees and one arm on the ground and her other arm reaching out for a man's leg. Meanwhile, the man (we assume it's a man) is pulling her hair. Not exactly a photo of a woman in power. Carpenter also has a wry smile on her face so she seems to enjoy not being in charge.
Reaction on her Instagram page has been rough. One commenter said, "It’s so bad...girl stand up." Another added, "this album cover is lowkey degrading to women i can’t lie." It just goes on from there.
The fact is that both posters above and many others like it on Carpenter's page are correct. There is no way that one can view the image any other way except that one person is being submissive.
There is also no argument that the pop star is trying to sell her perceived sexiness and looks as part of her marketing scheme. She appears on the July/August Rolling Stone magazine cover nearly fully nude. As part of the marketing for "Manchild," she released a clip of her trying to hitchhike with short shorts that reveal much.
As part of the Rolling Stone interview, she pushes back against those arguing she intentionally only sings overly sexualized songs in concert, and that people post photos from those songs.
She says, "If you come to the show, you’ll (also) hear the ballads, you’ll hear the more introspective numbers. I find irony and humor in all of that, because it seems to be a recurring theme. I’m not upset about it, other than I feel mad pressure to be funny sometimes."
She certainly can't be upset about the criticism because she has opened herself up intentionally to it, and it's only going to be worse once more people see her new album cover. But maybe Carpenter is just taking advantage of her star turn of late, as shallow as her marketing might be.