A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
Singer Sabrina Carpenter has had a pretty big year. Two of her singles have hit the Top 10 this summer, including the very catchy "Espresso."
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ESPRESSO")
SABRINA CARPENTER: (Singing) Now he's thinking about me every night, oh. Is it that sweet? I guess so. Say you can't sleep? Baby, I know. That's that me espresso. Move it up, down...
MARTÍNEZ: On Friday, Carpenter released a new album, "Short N' Sweet." With us to discuss it is Stephen Thompson from NPR Music. Stephen, for those who don't know Sabrina Carpenter or maybe just know a song or two, tell us her story.
STEPHEN THOMPSON, BYLINE: Well, Sabrina Carpenter has blown up this year, but she's been in the public eye for more than a decade. She starred in the Disney Channel series "Girl Meets World." She's acted in movies like "The Hate You Give." This new album, "Short N' Sweet, " is actually her sixth album. So she's been training for stardom for a long time, and she's proven to be extremely versatile. And as an actor, she's done comedy and drama. And I think that's really helped inform her music, especially if you watch the videos she's put out this year. She's got great comic timing and a way of really pulling listeners into what she's saying.
MARTÍNEZ: So give us an example.
THOMPSON: OK. So there's a song on "Short N' Sweet" called "Dumb & Poetic." It's, like, a two-minute song and it lays out a description of a certain kind of bad boyfriend, a guy who takes himself super seriously and is kind of pretentious but also is stupid and ridiculous.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "DUMB AND POETIC")
CARPENTER: (Singing) Save all your breath for your floor meditation. You're so empathetic. You'd make a great wife. And I promise the mushrooms aren't changing your life. Will you...
THOMPSON: So save all your breath for your floor meditation.
MARTÍNEZ: (Laughter).
THOMPSON: Those eight words managed to fit a lot of very specific resentment. It's mocking and specific, and it does a lot of work in laying out who this guy is and why he's terrible. And what I love about it is - OK, so Taylor Swift put out a record this past spring. It's, like, two hours long, breaking down her relationships with boyfriends who ended up disappointing her. And to me, this song does that same work but in two minutes. It's very efficient and really funny at the same time in, in many cases, lines I cannot always quote on the radio.
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah. It's short, like Sabrina, right?
THOMPSON: Exactly.
MARTÍNEZ: It's short and sweet, right? There you go.
THOMPSON: Yes.
MARTÍNEZ: Now, OK, she also hit the top of the charts with the song "Please Please Please." Tell us about that song.
THOMPSON: Well, in some ways it's like the prequel to a breakup song, and it fits the themes of the record perfectly. It's essentially a plea to a bad boyfriend, like asking him to be less embarrassing. And in the music video, that boyfriend is played by the Irish actor Barry Keoghan, who's been rumored to be Carpenter's real-life boyfriend. And it's all very clever and meta in the way that it packages this relationship in a way that gets people talking without revealing anything real that she doesn't want to reveal. And everything about it is Sabrina Carpenter in complete control, which is just a joy to behold really throughout "Short N' Sweet."
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah. And if anyone hasn't seen her new video, the one with Jenna Ortega - "Taste" is what it's called. I mean...
THOMPSON: Yes.
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah. That one is so over the top but so kind of funny that it's really a fun watch. It's really a fun watch.
THOMPSON: Yeah. If you've ever seen the movie "Death Becomes Her"...
MARTÍNEZ: Yep.
THOMPSON: It's clearly referencing that. It is not for the faint of heart, but it does also showcase her acting chops.
MARTÍNEZ: Goldie Hawn and Meryl Streep in that one. Stephen Thompson, thanks a lot.
THOMPSON: Thank you, A.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE")
CARPENTER: (Singing) I know I have good judgment. I know I have good taste. It's funny and it's ironic that only I feel that way. I promise them that you're different. And everyone makes mistakes, but just don't. I heard that you're an actor, so act like a stand-up guy. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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