Sabrina Carpenter responds to criticism of her sexuality

Like many young pop stars, Sabrina Carpenter has long cited Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears as inspirations. Unfortunately, she was also subjected to some of the same sexist comments that her musical predecessors had to endure.

In an interview with Time published this week, Carpenter said that she has “definitely” been criticized for expressing her sexuality in her music videos and live performances, similar to Aguilera and Spears in their heyday.

“I definitely understand that too,” she told the outlet, alluding to the challenges of honing a pop career in the age of social media. “Someone told me this whenever I got upset or felt like I was the only one being criticized for something that other people seemed so freely capable of doing: I'm the one who has all the negative shit about me sees yourself. My friends don’t see it.”

For those who have “strong opinions” about her sexy costumes, Carpenter has some advice.

“All I say to that is don’t come to the show, that’s fine,” she explained. “It's unfortunate that there was ever any reason for criticism because, quite frankly, going on stage in front of so many people and acting like it's nothing is the scariest thing in the world.”

“If the only thing that helps you is the way you feel comfortable when you dress, then that's what you need to do,” she added.

At 25, Carpenter is hardly a show business newbie. The Pennsylvania native rose to fame on the Disney Channel series “Girl Meets World,” which ran from 2014 to 2017. She spent much of the past year opening for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour and even accompanied Swift herself on stage in Sydney.

It wasn't until the release of her hit single “Espresso” in April that Carpenter managed to fully capture the pop zeitgeist. Her latest album, “Short 'n Sweet,” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts upon its release in August and spawned two additional hit singles, “Please Please Please” and “Taste.” Last month she embarked on a worldwide tour in support of the album.

Meanwhile, Carpenter has taken steps to align himself with other music industry bigwigs. Last month, she attended the MTV VMAs in a vintage Bob Mackie dress previously worn by Madonna. She also collaborated with Aguilera for a new version of “What a Girl Wants” in honor of the 25th anniversary of Aguilera's debut album.

And just as Madonna welcomed Spears and Aguilera into her circle with a smooch years ago, Aguilera recognized the “symbolic, full-circle connection” she shares with Carpenter for this year's Time 100 list, which celebrates the most influential people of 2024.

“As a 5-foot colleague. “As a woman with a similar career and youth history at Disney, I recognize and respect firsthand what it takes to maintain clarity while meeting the demands of this business,” she wrote. “Sabrina handles the task with seemingly effortless ease and charisma as she advertises, performs and handles the press with a smile and her signature shy charm.”