Last weekend, I saw Sabrina Carpenter in concert at the Sylvee in Madison, WI. It was THE best concert I have ever seen, and I don’t mean that lightly considering I’ve gone to Harry Styles’ Love on Tour twice. There are many reasons why this concert takes first place, and it’s not just because Sabrina is the hottest person ever, although that is a pretty big factor. It is mainly because of her unbelievable vocals, extravagant set pieces, and poetic lyricism. She is genuinely fantastic.
I’ve been a fan of Sabrina ever since her time on the Disney TV show “Girl Meets World” (2014-2017). She was the only character I liked because she had the best sense of humor on the show and acted the most normal. Since then, Sabrina has taken a few acting roles here and there like the Disney movie “Clouds,” a minor role in the film adaptation of “The Hate U Give,” the Netflix productions “Tall Girl” and “Work It.” During that time, she also released the albums Eyes Wide Open, Evolution, Singular Act I, and Singular Act II. However, her newest album Emails I Can’t Send released July 15, 2022 has been by far her most publicized and acclaimed one yet. My sister Lauren and I immediately obsessed over the music, and for Christmas, Lauren got us tickets to see her in concert on April 27th. Paige is never going to read this so it’s fine for me to say that Lauren is the superior sister.
On Friday, the time had finally come. Lauren and I had planned our outfits and everything. At 1PM on Friday afternoon, we took the two and a half hour trip to Madison. Once we got there, our parents, Lauren, and I all sat down for dinner at a restaurant called The Old Fashioned. It was very yummy, but I had a pretty bad stomach ache afterward from all of the cheesy stuff. After this, we walked a few blocks to the event center, The Sylvee. When we got there, the line was already pretty long, but we weren’t complaining considering last month we stood in freezing weather in an even longer line for Joshua Bassett. We waited in line for Sabrina for about an hour before the doors opened and we could go inside. The location was general admission so we just got to stand, but we were so close to the stage it was insane. Our legs got a little tired, so Lauren and I made friends with the girl behind us and we all sat down on the floor.
At 7, Sabrina’s opener, Blu Detiger, came out and did a set. To be honest, I had never heard of her before this, but she Blu me away haha. 1. Her outfit was sick. 2. Her music was really cool (alt-pop-indie kinda stuff). 3. Her stage presence was amazing. She sang her songs “Hot Crush Lover,” “Figure It Out,” “Crash Course,” “Lipstick,” “Vintage,” “Cotton Candy Lemonade,” and “Blondes.”
Somewhere around 7:40, Blu ended her set and the stage crew started moving things around. First came the giant light-up heart. Then, the lightpost and park bench. And then the glittery balcony thing. The anticipation kept building with the more props they added to the stage.
At 8, the lights went dark, and we heard the intro for the song “Emails I Can’t Send.” And there she was on the balcony playing the piano. I was in denial that this was even happening, but once I settled in I was freaking out.
Sabrina was wearing bedazzled bottoms with a cropped sweater and a bustier bra finished with Naked Wolfe heeled boots. I was literally in awe of her the entire time she was so stunning. Her first four songs were “Emails I Can’t Send,” “Read Your Mind,” “Feather,” and “Vicious.”
Over the course of the show, the lighting went from pink to blue to red and everything in between. I was insanely impressed with the production of this concert. She continued to sing “Already Over,” “Bad For Business,” “Skinny Dipping,” and my favorite, “Things I Wish You Said.” In between songs, Sabrina would take short breaks to talk to us in the audience. She seemed so genuine and sweet - I would definitely want to be her friend in real life if I was famous. Her voice sounded so kind and compassionate, I felt like she cared about each and every person she was singing to. She made us feel all the feelings.
The middle of her set had the songs “Tornado Warnings,” “Opposite,” “Bet U Wanna,” “A Thousand Miles” by Vanessa Carlton, and “How Many Things.” At this point it was probably 9:30PM, and the fatigue started to hit. Even though I felt like I was going to pass out or throw up, I stuck with it. I would’ve been more mad at myself for having to leave and miss out on the concert than if I threw up on someone in the crowd to be honest. Sabrina then sang “Fast Times,” “Paris,” “Honeymoon Fades,” and “Sue Me.” At the end, she left us with a little “I’m gonna sing [air quotes] one last song for you tonight” before “Decode,” and then she ran off backstage.
We obviously knew this wasn’t the end since she hadn’t sung “Nonsense” or “Because I Liked a Boy.” About ten minutes later, she came out and did exactly that. And at the very end of “Because I Liked a Boy,” heart shaped balloons fell from the ceiling along with heart shaped confetti and it was like being in a dream. I was sad that the concert had ended, but just thankful for the opportunity to be in the same building as her.
Basically, if you get anything from reading this article it should be that YOU NEED TO SEE SABRINA IN CONCERT. She deserves everything in the world for being how freaking fabulous she is, and that includes your support. Even if you don’t love Sabrina’s music, support her for how amazing of a person she is all around - talented, chic, and loving. Lauren and I are getting matching tattoos of the symbol for the album like the one to the right, but I can't decide where I want to put it... stay tuned to find out what I decide:)
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