“I swear they choose me, I’m not choosing them,” Carpenter writes.

By Chloe Kowalyk

Pop sensation and global superstar Sabrina Carpenter has just released what many regard as the next summer anthem.

The buzz comes after Carpenter released the single “Espresso” last April. The song subsequently became *the* song of summer 2024, peaking at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and winning a Grammy for Best Pop Solo Performance.

With last year’s success of “Espresso” and her newest album “Short n’ Sweet,” the anticipation (and perhaps even pressure) was on for Carpenter’s next project.

The singer first teased a new single on her social media with a silent video of her trying (and failing) to hitchhike on the side of the road, wearing jean shorts, a tied top and heels, with a voiceover at the end of her saying “Oh Boy.”

The next day, Carpenter posted the album’s cover photo with the caption “this one’s about you!!” alongside release details.

The singer’s newest single, titled “Manchild,” was released on Thursday (June 5) on all major streaming platforms.

Following the release of “Manchild,” Carpenter revealed on her social media that she wrote the new single with songwriter Amy Allen (who has co-written many of Carpenter’s songs) and songwriter and producer Jack Antonoff “on a random Tuesday.”

“Not only was it so fun to write, but this song became to me something I can look back on that will score the mental montage to the very confusing and fun young adult years of life,” Carpenter wrote online. “It sounds like the song embodiment of a loving eye roll and it feels like a never ending road trip in the summer!”

The song’s music video was released on June 6th.

REVIEW

“Manchild” opens with Carpenter saying “Oh Boy” as teased on social media, along with a very synth-pop intro that is common in any of her songs. It’s a light, bouncy beat with a flirtatious undertone.

To me, it sounds similar to “Good Luck, Babe!” by Chappell Roan, but is not out of character for a Sabrina Carpenter song. It matches the vibe of the intros of her other releases, such as “Please Please Please.”

Carpenter’s vocals in this piece are airy, yet powerful. She sings with a very feminine flair as her voice builds while she primes the audience for the first chorus.

Her singing is calm, yet sassy, as she sings directly to men, referring to them as a “manchild.”

What’s a manchild?

It’s a direct dig to the men in her life who have been subpar. Carpenter refers to them as “incompetent” and “dumb.”

Throughout the song, she describes them as not being able to dress themselves, performing poorly sexually and being downright dumb.

While the description of Carpenter’s angry lyrics sound like they’d fit a Riot Grrrl bill, the song is surprisingly light and delicate.

This is on par for Carpenter, as the juxtaposition of hostile songwriting and gentle singing and instrumentals can be found woven into a variety of Carpenter’s music, such as her song “Taste,” which criticizes an ex’s new partner.

Carpenter’s mixed emotional soundtrack almost serves to emphasize her message. She’s subtle in sound, but loud in her writing. If you listen close, you can hear innuendos and digs that you might not hear casually listening to the song on the radio while driving.

While the sound is light like a feather (pun intenteded), there is a clear country inspiration that can be heard in the instrumentals of “Manchild.”

This seems to be in line with Carpenter’s new style, as “Manchild” is the first release since she collaborated with female country icon Dolly Parton on a re-recording of “Please Please Please” earlier this year.

This isn’t the first time Carpenter has released a western-themed song, as she also put out the song “Slim Pickins” on her Short n’ Sweet album last August.

The “Manchild” music video plays off of a similar setting to the “Please Please Please” music video, as Carpenter finds herself in the country, as a Clyde-less (and carless) Bonnie figure who travels across what seems like the wild west.

She is pictured with a variety of men as she travels around through different vehicles, visiting different diners and locations. The contrast of Carpenter’s glowing beauty and the less-than attractive men she’s paired with in the music video emphasize the lyrics in the song.

These men can’t dress and don’t seem to take care of themselves.

The video is seemingly purposely ambiguous as odd images of animals are intertwined in scenes as Carpenter hops between men’s cars.

The “Manchild” music video also continues Carpenter’s recent pattern of Hollywood references in her music videos, as is shown in her video with Parton.

The bridge of in “Manchild” is the catchiest part, as the cadence of rhyming “I like my boys playing hard to get” with “And I like my men all incompetent” leaves a memorable mark in the listener’s mind.

In the same section, Carpenter shifts the blame of failed relationships off of herself, singing the lyrics, “I swear they choose me, I’m not choosing them.”

Carpenter’s male misfortune and the subject matter of her music makes her relatable to her younger, largely female audience. She touches on the common experience young people have of dating a man who treats them less than ideally.

In an age of female empowerment and challenging the patriarchy, songs like “Manchild” serve as powerful anthems standing up to less than ideal men.

By releasing music like this, Carpenter is able to instill a bit of confidence in her listeners. It’s almost as if she is saying “Hey girls, it happens to me too!” And if Carpenter, the current icon of lust and feminine beauty has these problems, then maybe her audience doesn’t have to feel so bad for how their “manchild” treated them.

Is “Manchild” the song of the summer? Give it a listen and see what you think.

I leave you these words from Carpenter:

“thank you always and forever for listening
and thank you men for testing me!!🐷🤍”