Sabrina Carpenter has done it again. And this time, she’s not just serving vocals, eyeliner, and Tumblr-core attitude. She’s serving dog. Literally, the cover of her upcoming seventh studio album Man’s Best Friend, arriving August 29, has thrown the Internet into a tailspin of confusion, adoration, think pieces, and feminist dissertations. Carpenter herself kneels on all fours in stilettos and a slinky black dress while a mysterious hand pulls her by the hair.
Yes, you read that right. She’s not just barking up the pop star tree. She’s burning it down, pissing on the ashes, and reclaiming the leash.
The Cover That Launched a Thousand Tweets
The moment the album art dropped, the Twitter timeline lit up like a bonfire on Venus. Opinions flew faster than Carpenter’s ponytail in the Manchild video. Some praised the cover as a subversive genius. Others saw it as problematic performance art dipped in dominatrix couture. And naturally, a few simply didn’t get it. Which, honestly, might be the entire point.
Let’s sample the buffet of unfiltered, tweet-length takes, shall we?
“I can’t be the only one who likes this album cover,” one brave soul declared, clearly bracing for impact.
“You are a very slow person if you take this album cover and album title at face value. That’s all I will be saying on this matter,” snapped another, who clearly moonlights as an adjunct professor in Feminist Visual Semiotics.
“Maybe this is a bad take but I fear we have ‘stop doing things for the male gaze’d’ ourselves back into expecting women to be modest and shaming them otherwise, and it’s Strange,” another philosopher chimed in, leaving the group chat stunned and slightly aroused.
“Hands down my fav album cover, sorry to all y’all sensitive ppl out there who can’t handle a bad bitch,” wrote one unapologetic stan, likely with a Manchild ringtone and a 2009 Britney poster still taped to their ceiling.
But the pièce de résistance came from the users who connected the dots like they were drawing conspiracy diagrams in lipstick on a mirror:
“Y’all are stupid, so let me explain. She released Manchild, a song belittling men both in the lyrics and in the music video. She then impersonates a dog here. It’s a reference to how women get called a bitch too. It’s a critique of how society treats women, not an endorsement.”
Oh, to be mansplained feminist symbolism by another fan account with a Jungkook profile picture. The Internet stays undefeated.
The Title? Ironic. The Pose? Provocative. The Message? Sit Down, Be Humble (And Fetch).
Man’s Best Friend is, if nothing else, a linguistic sucker punch. It’s a title loaded with feminist subtext, high-gloss sarcasm, and enough double meaning to make Lana Del Rey blush. It references dogs. It references “bitches.” It references women being treated like loyal accessories to mediocre men. And it does it all while Sabrina Carpenter struts around in heels higher than most people’s IQs.
The album’s opening track, Manchild, dropped on June 5 and immediately became a rallying cry for anyone who’s ever dated a man with a podcast. With synth-pop beats, lyrical venom, and an aggressively unbothered music video look, baby blue heels, micro shorts, and a white button-down barely containing her midriff, Sabrina made it abundantly clear. She’s not here to coddle male fragility. She’s here to cash in on it.
From “Short n’ Sweet” to Man’s Best Friend: The Evolution of a Pop Provocateur
Carpenter’s last album, Short n’ Sweet, was a pastel-glazed Trojan horse. It hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200, birthed hits like Espresso, Please Please Please, and Bed Chem, and established her aesthetic as “vintage coquette meets Playboy pop philosopher.” But Man’s Best Friend is different. This is her Erotica era. Her Blackout. Her “watch me weaponize my femininity and make you uncomfortable” moment.
In an email sent to fans, Carpenter explained her inspiration behind the project:
“I didn’t plan on releasing a new record… but luckily life was really happening to me and inspiration struck! … I felt so at ease making Man’s Best Friend… every inch came together so effortlessly, different from my other previous projects… I went back to some of my favorite artists growing up… Stevie, Dolly, Donna…”
The energy? A cool girl who secretly graduated valedictorian but plays dumb to keep you guessing. It’s clear Sabrina Carpenter isn’t pandering to the TikTok crowd. She’s studying them, mocking them, and then turning their takes into pre-chorus material.
Billboard Hot 100 Chart Watch: “Manchild” vs. Ordinary
And just to rub a little glitter in the wound, Manchild is currently clawing its way to No. 1 in both the UK and US. In the UK, it’s poised to dethrone Alex Warren’s 12-week reign. In the US, Manchild and Warren’s Ordinary are locked in a chart race so tight even Billboard insiders are clutching their pearls.
In other words, while the boys argue about whether or not this is “too much,” she’s lapping them. Literally.
The post Sabrina Carpenter Poses Like a Dog on All Fours for ‘Man’s Best Friend’ Album Cover Sparks Feminist Civil War appeared first on Where Is The Buzz | Breaking News, Entertainment, Exclusive Interviews & More.
