Sabrina Carpenter Says ‘The Powers Above’ Questioned Her Choice to Release ‘Espresso’ as a Single

Sabrina Carpenter claimed that she got some pushback about making “Espresso” the lead single from her upcoming album.

“I was completely alone in wanting to release ‘Espresso.’ Not so much from my immediate team. But when it came to ‘the powers above,’” Carpenter, 25, said in an interview with Variety published on Tuesday, August 6. “There was a lot of questioning behind whether it made sense.”

While the unnamed forces were seemingly unsure about Carpenter’s thought process at first, they “trusted” her in the end. Her vision was proven right as “Espresso” has become the song of the summer.

“I was happy that I believed in myself at that moment,” Carpenter gushed.

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Carpenter released “Espresso” in April, shortly before her Coachella performance, and the tune instantly went viral. Two months later, the track claimed the No. 1 spot on the Billboard chart. Many stars including Adele, Katy Perry and more have since confessed that the song has gotten stuck in their head.

“Espresso” marked the first single from her album Short ‘n Sweet, which drops August 23. Last month, Carpenter’s success continued with the record’s second single, “Please Please Please,” which also soared on the charts.

“I’m so happy I finished this album before any of the songs came out,” Carpenter said of her new album. “Not that I think I would have let [the singles’ success] get in my head. But I really do think sometimes you can’t help but write from a different perspective after experiencing certain life events. I’m trying to avoid calling this ‘my dream album,’ because I don’t think I would have been able to dream up this set of songs a couple years ago.”

The singer referred to Short ‘n Sweet as her “second ‘big girl’ album,” which will serve as a “companion” to 2022’s Emails I Can’t Send. Carpenter earned critical acclaim for her previous album, which included tracks “Nonsense” and “Feather.”

“It’s not the same,” she told Variety of her two big pieces of work. “When it comes to having full creative control and being a full-fledged adult, I would consider this a sophomore album.”

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“Espresso” has surpassed more than 1 billion streams on Spotify, but some critics have complained about its lyrics, especially when it comes to the line “That’s that me espresso.” While appearing on Hot Ones in July, Carpenter addressed the feedback and explained her perspective on the lyrics.

“So much of what I like is the punchline,” Carpenter told host Sean Evans. “If people don’t know the punchline, it’s like, waste. That’s how I feel about ‘me espresso.’ I’ve heard a lot of people that were like, ‘She should’ve said, That’s that blonde espresso, duh.’ And I’m like, ‘Well, yes.’ That is another song as well that deserves its spot in the world, but this one for me … ‘me espresso’ just felt like the right thing to say, and it rhymes with the line before it.”