When Sabrina Carpenter unveiled her upcoming album's cover, set for release this summer, it – but some music fans argue that critics are "missing the point". The diminutive songstress has carved out a niche with her infectious tunes that cleverly weave satire and societal observations, all delivered in her distinctively bold and risqué pop princess style.

The 26-year-old songbird has been navigating the music scene for more than 10 years, with her first album dropping in 2015. However, it was her fifth studio offering, Emails I Can't Send, released in 2022, that began turning heads on a larger scale.

Her 2024 hit track, Espresso, fully propelled her into the limelight and secured her position as a pop star. Her sixth album, Short n' Sweet, soon followed and took the music by storm – clinching the top spot on the Billboard 200 and earning her a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album in 2025.

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Recently, the singer confirmed on with a duo of pictures that her latest album, Man's Best Friend, is slated for an August 29 release.

The album cover features down on her knees with what seems to be a man's hand gripping her hair.

Accompanying this is a second photo, which zooms in on a blonde puppy sporting a light blue dog collar adorned with a gold heart, etched with the album's name.

The controversial announcement has raked in more than four million likes so far but it's sparked a deluge of comments from people upset by Sabrina's perceived submission in the first image, especially during such a politically tumultuous time for women.

Instagram users flooded the comments with their thoughts. One said: "Love Sabrina - but this picture - why is the man in there like that? It's not a very empowering image for women."

Another voiced their confusion: "Explain to me again how this isn't centering men? How this isn't catering to the male gaze?"

A third remarked: "Okay - it's sarcastic? Satire? Art? Symbolism? But what about the men or boys who see this on billboards, on Instagram, in music promos - and consciously or not, internalise that this is what power looks like: a man objectifying a woman. Does that image challenge objectification or reinforce it?"

TikTok pop culture commentator Holden Smith – who boasts 178,000 followers – labelled the debate over the album artwork "so wild".

In a widely viewed video, Smith said: "To me, it just felt very 'Sabrina'. 'Man's best friend' is a dog, a female dog is also called a b***h.

"Sabrina on all fours, with a man pulling her hair, is feeding into that. I believed, in a cheeky way."

The content creator then addressed some of the extreme reactions and continued: "There are a lot of social media comments saying that this is extremely degrading and that she has set women back hundreds of years and, to me, that is a crazy statement."

Holden speculated: "Sabrina could also be using the cover to hold a mirror up to the public and say, 'this is how you guys are saying that you see me, for the male gaze rather than for the female gaze'."

Smith then said: "I found it extremely interesting that this is the main conversation around her new album. As someone who was the breakout artist of the year last year, who truly got, like, no negative press; this switch up feels kind of crazy - especially when she's giving us a second album in two years."

Holden expressed disappointment that the album announcement wasn't met with joy, noting it "felt like it should be a crazy happy announcement" rather than sparking intense debate over its cover.

Sabrina, who doesn't shy away from expressing her sexuality and sense of fun, has yet to elaborate on the provocative choice of imagery for her latest album.