The Rise of Sabrina Carpenter

In the wake of the 67th Annual Grammy Awards, Sabrina Carpenter appears as one of the standout nominees with six nominations. The 25-year-old pop singer receives nominations for Album of The Year, Record of The Year, Song of The Year, Best New Artist, Best Pop Solo Performance, and Best Pop Vocal Album. It is the peak achievement yet for the artist who has been in the industry for more than a decade.

Many say that Sabrina Carpenter gained her popularity after becoming the opening act in Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour in Mexico, in August last year. Whether or not Taylor’s effect works in her hiking popularity, this article provides data-driven insights on the rise of Sabrina Carpenter’s music career. 

Fun Facts about Sabrina Carpenter

Sabrina Carpenter is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She first began her professional career playing Maya Hart on the Disney Channel’s Girl Meets World (2014-2017). Her music career began when she signed with Hollywood Records in 2014, releasing her debut single, Can’t Blame a Girl for Trying. Sabrina is not only good at singing and acting, she also writes most of her songs.

The woman who was born on May 11, 1999 in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania, also appeared on the TV series Law & Order in the episode Possessed in 2011 at the age of 10. In the same year, a video showing her singing a cover song on YouTube went viral with 8.4 million views. Sabrina also won third place in the singing competition The Next Miley Cyrus Project where Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley Cyrus’ father, was one of the judges.

Amid her busy schedules and album promotions, Sabrina was entrusted with the role of Cady Heron in the Broadway musical Mean Girls. Her performance captivated the audience with her natural acting and mesmerizing voice, leading to a contract to play the role from March to June 2020. Being entrusted with such a role in the remake of the iconic film showcases Sabrina Carpenter’s versatility as an artist.

Sabrina Carpenter’s Discography

Sabrina Carpenter’s love for the world of singing began at a young age. At the age of 10, Sabrina began uploading covers of popular songs. Her cover of Adele’s Set Fire to the Rain went viral with 8.4 million views on YouTube. This is what motivated Sabrina to pursue a career in the entertainment world. From 2014 to 2024, Sabrina has released 141 songs including six studio albums and two EPs (Extended Plays) or mini albums.

Her latest album, Short n’ Sweet, contains the most popular hits of all time, Espresso, which has been streamed 1.5 billion times on Spotify as of November 14, 202. In second place is the song Nonsense which has been streamed 1 billion times and is the most popular hit from her music transition album from folk pop to pop dance genre, Email I Can’t Send. Other songs included in Sabrina Carpenter’s 10 most-streamed songs on Spotify are Please Please Please, Feather, On My Way, Taste, Looking at Me, Thumbs, Because I liked a Boy, and Bed Chem. The song On My Way, which was released in 2019, received a stream count of 727,771,250 and is her first collaboration song with famous DJ Alan Walker.

Despite being in the music industry for a decade, Sabrina’s music fans only started to soar in 2023. This is shown by the steady growth of the American singer’s monthly listeners on Spotify between January 2021 and December 2022. At the end of January 2023, monthly listeners of Sabrina’s songs increased by more than 10 million compared to the previous months. Sabrina’s songs were listened to even more when she performed at Coachella on April 12, 2024. This was demonstrated by the increase in listeners of this petite woman’s songs in that month, which reached 45.2 million. The peak increase in monthly listeners of Sabrina Carpenter’s music occurred in June 2024, along with the launch of the single Please, Please, Please with the number of listeners reaching 81.9 million in June 2024.

The rise in Sabrina’s song listeners on Spotify is closely tied to key moments in the life and career of the Espresso singer.  Judging from the graph above, the growth of Sabrina’s listeners on Spotify tends to be stable from January 2021 to November 2022 with an average number of listeners of 10 million to 14 million more. The first spike occurred after her appearance in Times Square for New Year’s celebrations with the number of listeners reaching 28.1 million in January 2023. At the end of 2023, the number of Sabrina’s music listeners jumped again to 35.4 million after she was caught having dinner with actor Barry Keoghan in Los Angeles.

The next notable surge happened after Sabrina captivated the audience with her alluring music and playful appearance at the Annual Summer Festival, Coachella, in April 2024. Without a doubt, her music fanbase surged to 45.2 million at that time. News of her romantic relationship with actor Barry Keoghan further boosted her Spotify listeners to 61.7 million in May 2024. The release of her single “Please, Please, Please” on June 6, 2024, caused her listener count to soar to 81.9 million. By September 2024, Sabrina’s Spotify listeners peaked at 83.7 million before falling to over 79 million by the end of October 2024.

Sabrina Carpenter on Social Media

Sabrina Carpenter’s Instagram followers continue to grow every year. Based on data from Instatract, in 2020, she had around 23.7 million followers and in November 2024, she had 42.1 million followers. The biggest spike occurred from 2023 to 2024, when she gained almost 10 million new followers. This proves that her popularity as an artist is increasingly gaining a place in the hearts of music lovers.

Although the number of her followers increases every year, the increase in the number of her followers fell from 2020 to 2022, then started to rise again in 2023 and skyrocketed in 2024. As seen from the graph below, the number of followers of Sabrina Carpenter’s Instagram account only increased by around 2.8 million in 2021, from 23.7 million in 2020 to 26.5 million the following year. The increase in his followers in 2022 was not that much, which is only 1.6 million, making his total followers that year 28.2 million.

However, several moments that occurred in her career in 2023, including her appearance as the opening act at Taylor Swift’s concert, The Eras Tour, also increased her popularity on Instagram with an increase in followers of more than 4 million. The year 2024 was the peak of Sabrina Carpenter’s career where her coquettish appearance singing a mashup of her song Feather and Lovefool by the old band The Cardigan on the main stage of Coachella suddenly went viral on social media. This moment, along with her love story with Barry Keoghan and the release of the song Please, Please, Please, made the Disney debut singer’s fan base increase by 9.9 million, bringing her number of followers on Instagram to 42.1 million.

The growth in Sabrina Carpenter’s Instagram followers reflects her rising popularity. Her success in the entertainment industry stems from her talents in music, acting, and performing arts, including her notable appearance on Broadway. Additionally, she maintains an active presence on social media, particularly Instagram, as evidenced by her frequent content uploads. Sabrina often shares glimpses of her activities, including promotions for new music, clips from her projects, and behind-the-scenes moments from her video shoots. Her skill in creating engaging content and staying connected with fans has enhanced her influence on social media.

From a Disney Cast to a Global Pop Music Sensation

Sabrina Carpenter began her career as an actress in the TV series Girl Meets World which aired on the Disney Channel from 2014 to 2017. In the remake version of the 90s favorite show Boy Meets World, she played the cheerful and humorous character Maya Hart. She also played the voice of Princess Vivian in the Disney Junior animated series, Sofia The First.

Her impressive performance in these roles earned her a recording contract with Disney’s music label, Hollywood Records. From Disney, Sabrina began to step into the world of recording with her first EP album Eyes Wide Open in 2014 which contained hits with a Folk Pop tone such as “Can’t Blame a Girl for Trying” and “We’ll Be the Stars”. The character of the Disney actor is so visible from her singing style that makes her popular among early teenagers.

Sabrina developed her acting talent by playing a more mature role in the Netflix romantic comedy Tall Girl. She played the character Harper Kreyman who was a supporting character in the film that aired in 2019. The shift in character from the Disney Channel role to the Netflix role also influenced the transition of Sabrina’s musical character from Folk Pop to Pop Dance. The transition from Sabrina Carpenter’s earlier albums to her latest release, Short n’ Sweet, showcases her artistic growth and personal evolution as she navigates adulthood. Now a global pop music sensation, she is a contender for Song of the Year at the 2025 Grammy Awards, competing alongside renowned artists like Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, Chappell Roan, Kendrick Lamar, and Charli XCX.

Taylor Swift’s Influence on Sabrina Carpenter’s Music Career

From the early stages of her career, Sabrina Carpenter has consistently expressed her admiration for Taylor Swift. She frequently mentions the significant influence Taylor Swift’s creativity has had on her own musical path. Sabrina has often covered Taylor’s songs and takes pride in showcasing how much of an inspiration Taylor Swift has been to her music career. A video of Sabrina performing Taylor’s song “White Horse” at the age of 9 went viral on the internet, leading to an invitation for her to duet at The Eras Tour concert in Sydney, Australia, in February 2024.

The Sydney concert wasn’t Sabrina’s first time performing at Taylor Swift’s world tour. She previously opened for The Eras Tour concert in Mexico in August 2023. She then returned to this role at concerts in Buenos Aires (Argentina), as well as in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo (Brazil) in November 2023. In 2024, Sabrina continued her involvement in Taylor Swift’s world tour, serving as the opening act at concerts in Melbourne and Sydney, Australia, in February, followed by a performance in Singapore the next month. In total, she has performed 25 times as part of Taylor Swift’s world tour from August 24, 2023, to March 9, 2024.

The question is, does Taylor Swift significantly influence Sabrina Carpenter’s music popularity? If we look at the timeline of Sabrina’s performances on Taylor Swift’s stage and other stages, based on the data analysis provided earlier, the answer is no. The increase in Sabrina’s monthly listeners on Spotify began in January 2023 after her performance at the New Year’s event in Times Square. Following that, her listener count declined and remained relatively flat from February to November 2023, despite her participation in The Eras Tour in four Latin American cities from August to November 2023. Her listeners spiked again after rumors about her relationship with Barry Keoghan surfaced in late December 2023.

The surge in Sabrina Carpenter’s music listeners skyrocketed after her performance at Coachella in April 2024 and the confirmation of her relationship with Barry Koeghan in May of the same year. In January 2024, Sabrina’s monthly Spotify listeners were still at 28.1 million, but by April, that number had jumped to 45.2 million. The following month, it rose to 61.7 million. The most significant increase occurred in June 2024 after the release of the second hit from the Short n’ Sweet album, “Please, Please, Please,” which added more than 20 million listeners from the previous month.

Looking at her Instagram followers, the biggest increase also took place in 2024, with an addition of 9.9 million followers. In contrast, during 2023, when Sabrina actively followed Taylor Swift’s concert series, her follower increase was only about 4 million. This suggests that the main factors driving Sabrina Carpenter’s popularity as a singer are her personal appeal as a light pop singer and her romance with Barry Keoghan. However, Taylor Swift still plays a role in the development of her music career, though not in a major way.

References

1. Logan, E. (2024, July 2). Sabrina Carpenter Made Her Acting Debut on SVU & She’s So Good. NBC. Diakses dari https://www.nbc.com/nbc-insider/sabrina-carpenter-acting-debut-law-order-svu
2. Afiffah, F. P. (2022, September 13). Profil Penyanyi Sabrina Carpenter, Juara 3 di Kontes The Next Miley Cyrus Project saat Usia 10 Tahun. Tribunnews.com. Diakses dari https://www.tribunnews.com/seleb/2022/09/13/profil-penyanyi-sabrina-carpenter-juara-3-di-kontes-the-next-miley-cyrus-project-saat-usia-10-tahun
3. Gans, A. (2020, March 10). Girl Meets World Star Sabrina Carpenter Makes Broadway Debut in Mean Girls. Playbill. Accessed from https://playbill.com/article/girl-meets-world-star-sabrina-carpenter-makes-broadway-debut-in-mean-girls
4. Barnes, K. (2024, August 23). How Sabrina Carpenter Became A Pop Queen: Tracing Her Journey To ‘Short N’ Sweet’. GRAMMY.com. Accessed from https://www.grammy.com/news/sabrina-carpenter-short-n-sweet-new-album-career
5. Garcia, T. (2024, September 3). Sabrina Carpenter’s ‘Short n’ Sweet’ Debuts at No. 1. Variety. https://variety.com/2024/music/news/sabrina-carpenter-short-n-sweet-number-one-album-charts-1236125747/
6. Songstats. (n.d.). Sabrina Carpenter | Data Analytics | Songstats. Accessed on 14 November 2024 from https://songstats.com/artist/un412by6/sabrina-carpenter
7. Sasic, E. (2024, April 12). Coachella 2024: Here’s everything pop star Sabrina Carpenter sang during her set. Desert Sun. Accessed from https://www.desertsun.com/story/life/entertainment/music/coachella/2024/04/12/coachella-2024-songs-sabrina-carpenter-played-during-her-set/73282897007/
8. Castro, A. (2024, January 1). Dick Clark’s New Years Rockin’ Eve LIVE: Sabrina Carpenter shocks viewers with NSFW Nonsense outro lyrics. The Sun. Accessed from https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/9981918/dick-clarks-new-years-rockin-eve-live-ryan-seacrest/
9. Ardian, D. (2024, Desember 5). Alasan Sabrina Carpenter dan Barry Koeghan break pacaran. Detik.com. Accessed from https://www.detik.com/pop/trending/d-7672163/alasan-sabrina-carpenter-dan-barry-keoghan-break-pacaran
10. Sabrina Carpenter Fandom (n.d.). The Eras Tour. Accessed from https://sabrinacarpenter.fandom.com/wiki/The_Eras_Tour

Meet the team

This article is written based on a project developed for BINUS International X Tirto.id Data Storytelling Bootcamp 2024

The team members:

1. Aisya KahlilaAjikarisma 
2. Annaka Sudiro 
3. Fannisa Widya Puteri 
4. Felicia Syifara Zalika Gunandar 
5. Nadia Zhafira Putri

Editor/Supervisor: Lily El Ferawati