"Artist knows better than their record label"—Fans react as Sabrina Carpenter reveals she pushed for 'Espresso' to be her first Short n' Sweet single

Pop singer Sabrina Carpenter recently revealed her label, Island Records, didn't want Espresso to be the first single on her album Short N’ Sweet. In her cover story feature with Vogue magazine, released on Tuesday, February 11, 2025, the songstress discussed the project and its success.

Carpenter said that her label wanted Please Please Please to be the lead single instead of Espresso, the album's breakout song. She explained:

"There’s something about this song that, if I’d never heard it before, and I heard it live for the first time, I would understand it."

Referencing the time when she debuted this single live at Coachella 2024, just days after its release, Sabrina Carpenter mentioned:

"I was definitely being swayed in another direction, but I knew deep down that it was this song. I was afraid of disappointing people for, like, five minutes. And then I was like: No."

As the interview went viral, netizens were quick to react. One wrote on X:

"Another example that an artist knows better than their record label."

A comment reacting to the news (Image via X/ @PopCrave)

Many commented in favor of Sabrina Carpenter and other artists having creative freedom. Some of the comments on X read:

"And this is why artists need their creative freedoms because this was the right push," one wrote.

"She chose right cause Espresso was one of the biggest songs released last year," a fan commented.

"This is proof most of these labels rlly don’t be knowing better!! cuz now everyone want their ‘espresso’ moment," another stated.

Others noted that both the label and artist were right.

"Yes but sometimes they need a guidance… Madonna didn't plan to release Vogue as a single, it was thanks to the record company that it saw the light, the rest is history," one expressed.

"Fascinatingly weird that both sides were right because Espresso is the better song and her breakout song but Please Please Please was her first #1 (even tho it should've f**king been Espresso)," another added.

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"This is still such a huge part of me"—Sabrina Carpenter about writing Espresso

Sabrina Carpenter accepts the Song of the Year award for Espresso at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards (Image via Getty)

Released on August 23, 2024, Short N’ Sweet marked Sabrina Carpenter's sixth studio album and second with Island Records. The project debuted atop Billboard 200 Albums chart and became her first platinum-certified album. It earned the songstress a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Album.

Short N’ Sweet was preceded by the singles Espresso and Please Please Please. While the lattermost became Carpenter's first Hot 100 song, the former peaked at No. 3 on the chart. Moroever, Espresso currently has 1.9 billion streams on Spotify, while the other song has garnered 1.2 billion so far.

Elsewhere in her interview with Vogue, Sabrina Carpenter explained that Espresso and an unreleased single Dumb & Poetic were two songs that influenced the album. Her co-writer Amy Allen told the outlet they were "two massive goalposts" in creating the album. Carpenter added:

"I was writing all these sad songs, and ‘Espresso’ was like the one breath of fresh air. In the midst of all of it, I was like, This is still such a huge part of me — this mentality and the sense of humor and the playfulness."

The singer also noted that Short n’ Sweet was a reflection of her, adding there were no "alter ego(s)." She stated that it was an "emphasized version" of her.

For the unversed, Sabrina Carpenter rose to fame starring as Maya Hart on Disney Channel's Girl Meets World. She began making music after signing with Disney's Hollywood Records till 2019. While discussing her early records, she said during an interview with Variety on August 2024:

"For the people who love those early records and listen to them, I love you for that. But I personally feel a sense of separation from them, largely due to the shift in who I am as a person and as an artist, pre-pandemic and post-pandemic."

In 2021, she partnered with Island Records, dropped her fifth album, Emails I Can't Send (2022). The project dealt with themes like coming-of-age and relationships that were inspired by events in Sabrina Carpenter's life.

Talking to the outlet about Short N’ Sweet, Carpenter highlighted that it was her "second ‘big girl’ album."

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Short N’ Sweet is available to stream online.