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Sabrina Carpenter’s “Nonsense” is some of the most unusual pop music in recent memory. Interestingly, it was not Carpenter’s idea of a surefire hit. The “Espresso” singer revealed what was going through her head when she wrote the track and how she felt about the tune’s unexpected popularity.

Sabrina Carpenter worried ‘Nonsense’ would discredit her other songs

In a 2024 Interview Magazine article, Carpenter revealed what was going through her head when she wrote “Nonsense.” “I was at a really, really low point in my life about two years ago, so I was writing very few optimistic love songs,” she said. “That one always stuck out, but I felt like it might discredit some of the songs on the album that were about more sensitive subjects, so it almost didn’t make it in.

“People in the past had told me my music didn’t have symmetry, that I didn’t have every song sounding the same, and that got in my head,” she added. “So I’m grateful because the fans decided on their own that it meant something to them.”

Sabrina Carpenter loved singers who didn’t feel like pop singers to her

The “Skin” singer discussed her reaction to the success of “Nonsense.” “Sometimes I get insecure about pop music and the fact that it can’t always resonate with people,” she explained. “So it was really special for me to experience that song having its own life, maybe because it felt like the closest to my true personality, as silly as that sounds.”

The Work It star said her approach to pop music was unorthodox. She defines pop music as catchy songs with simple concepts. When she was growing up, she was exposed to the music of Carole King, Patsy Cline, Dolly Parton, and Stevie Nicks. In her mind, those singers don’t feel like pop stars to her. While none of those stars made music that can be solely categorized as pop, they all resonated with a mass audience, so they could be considered pop stars. On the other hand, Carpenter is allowed to define pop music as she likes.

How ‘Nonsense’ changed everything for its singer

“Nonsense” reached No. 56 on the Billboard Hot 100, staying on the chart for 19 weeks. “Nonsense” didn’t even hit the Top 40, but it helped Carpenter become the “it girl” of the moment. 

The tune appeared on the album Emails I Can’t Send. That album title is incredible. We’ve all written angry emails with no intention of sending them. However, it’s pretty bold for Carpenter to put the emails she couldn’t send on an album available for public consumption! Emails I Can’t Send reached No. 23 on the Billboard 200 and spent a total of 35 weeks on the chart. So far, it’s Carpenter’s biggest hit on the Billboard 200 by a longshot!

Before “Nonsense” came out, three songs were released as singles from Emails I Can’t Send: “Skinny Dipping,” “Fast Times,” and “Vicious.” None of those tunes impacted the Billboard Hot 100. It was “Nonsense” that catapulted the album and Carpenter’s singing career into the mainstream.

“Nonsense” was very different from the music that Carpenter was writing at one time and that might be why it resonated with so many listeners.

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