It's been a week since Sabrina Carpenter announced the Short N’ Sweet follow-up Man's Best Friend, whose spicy cover depicting the singer on her knees having her hair pulled sent the internet into a puritanical spiral (Brat Summer is over, folks). Now Carly Simon — who experienced a similar situation with her sultry Playing Possum cover in 1975 — is expressing support for the "Espresso" singer.
In the Playing Possum artwork, the veteran singer-songwriter is also kneeling on the floor. She's wearing black lingerie and the picture was taken as she was moving through poses: "It wasn’t done on purpose. It wasn’t a setup," she told Rolling Stone. The initial reactions from her team were positive. "No one thought about what it might convey. It was a fascinating, unique image and it left a lot to the imagination,” she explained. Then, once the album was out:
Suddenly, I’m getting calls from Time and Newsweek, saying, "This is one of the sexiest covers that has ever known." There’s this whole controversy around what did it represent? It felt very much like that energy in a woman, but I just thought of it as a beautiful shot. None of that stuff they were talking about was the intention.
About the Man's Best Friend artwork, Simon said, “It seems tame. There have been far flashier covers than hers. One of the most startling covers I’ve ever seen was [The Rolling Stones’] Sticky Fingers. That was out there in terms of sexual attitude. So I don’t know why she’s getting such flak.”
“Well, any press is good press, so I wouldn’t worry about the press," she continued. "And as far as her being salacious, I certainly don’t think it’s that. I mean, look at all of the people who dress much more scantily. She’s so beautiful, and she should be proud of herself and the way she looks. I don’t see anything wrong with that.”
“I thought it was going over the line a little bit, touching the man’s knee,” she concluded with a chuckle. “I thought she didn’t have to do that.”
When someone on Twitter wondered if Carpenter has a personality outside of sex, the pop star responded with a quote-tweet: "girl yes and it is goooooood." Meanwhile the lead single "Manchild" is #1 on the Hot 100.
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My new album, “Man’s Best Friend” 🐾
is out on August 29, 2025.i can’t wait for it to be yours x
Pre-order now: https://t.co/E7QJWhYV2D pic.twitter.com/UXVLzBQTj4
— Sabrina Carpenter (@SabrinaAnnLynn) June 11, 2025
Sabrina Carpenter shuts down claims that she referenced ‘Lolita’ in a W Magazine photoshoot:
“I’ve never seen this movie. It’s never been on my mood board and never would be.” pic.twitter.com/hSfZoxiD2h
— Pop Base (@PopBase) June 17, 2025
