Sabrina Carpenter Just Performed “Taste” In Front Of Shawn Mendes And Camila Cabello, And This Is Why It’s Kind Of A Big Deal

Fans are literally obsessed with Sabrina's performance.

By
Stephanie Soteriou
by Stephanie Soteriou

BuzzFeed Staff

As you are probably aware, the MTV VMAs happened last night, and there is certainly a lot to discuss.

Sabrina Carpenter poses on the red carpet in an elegant strapless gown with intricate detailing at the MTV VMAs
Jamie Mccarthy / WireImage

For example, Chappell Roan went viral almost immediately after she arrived when she clapped back at the paparazzi while posing on the red carpet. 


Taylor Swift shouted out her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, as she accepted an award later on in the night, and Katy Perry was accused of performative feminism for her Video Vanguard award speech.


There were also some seriously impressive performances from Chappell, Eminem, and Sabrina Carpenter — to name a few — with Sabrina’s in particular causing a social media stir.

The star performed a medley of her three most recent hits, “Please Please Please,” “Taste,” and “Espresso,” which was later awarded Song of the Year. However, it was the snippet of “Taste” that got people talking, considering who was in attendance at the New York ceremony.

Sabrina Carpenter in a sparkling dress and heels performs on a diamond-shaped swing, mid-air under a spotlight, holding a microphone with confetti falling around
Jeff Kravitz / Getty Images for MTV

For context, it has been widely speculated that “Taste” is about Sabrina’s brief romance with Shawn Mendes — and how he reportedly left her to rekindle his relationship with Camila Cabello.

Shawn Mendes, in an open leather jacket and dark pants, and Camila Cabello, in a sparkling dress, pose on the Met Gala red carpet. Photographers in the background
Angela Weiss / AFP via Getty Images

To recap, Shawn and Camila first started dating in 2019 but broke up in November 2021. He is thought to have started dating Sabrina in February 2023, and they were repeatedly spotted together during this time.


In March of that year, sources confirmed to ET that Sabrina and Shawn were indeed “seeing each other.”


However, just one month later, Shawn was seen kissing Camila at Coachella, making it pretty apparent that he and Sabrina were already over. Shawn and Camila remained together until June 2023, when a source told ET that it was over between them.


While Sabrina has never publicly commented on the messy situation, she appears to reference it in multiple songs on her most recent album, Short n' Sweet, released last month.

Fans have speculated that “Coincidence,” “Sharpest Tool,” “Dumb & Poetic,” and “Taste” were all inspired by this specific love triangle, with “Coincidence” having a pretty obvious connection to the Coachella of it all with the lyric: "Your car drove itself from L.A. to her thighs / Palm Springs looks nice, but who's by your side?"

Sabrina Carpenter performs, sitting on her folded legs on a stage in a sparkling dress, surrounded by backup singers
Nbc / Todd Owyoung / NBC via Getty Images

But “Taste” is arguably the least subtle, with the chorus literally repeating: “I heard you're back together and if that's true / You'll just have to taste me when he's kissin' you / If you want forever, I bet you do / Just know you'll taste me too."

Jenna Ortega in the Taste music video, wearing a strapless top, holds a prop shotgun while looking intently at the camera
Island Records / Via youtube.com

And in the song’s music video, Jenna Ortega plays Sabrina’s love rival, with the brunette actor thought to represent Camila. 

So, with all that in mind, when people realized that both Shawn and Camila were in the crowd for Sabrina’s performance on Wednesday night, they couldn’t help but find the whole thing hilarious, and many took to X to share their reaction.

Noam Galai / Getty Images for MTV

One viral tweet included an iconic clip from the HBO series Euphoria where a character asks: “Wait, is this fucking play about us?” as they joked in the caption: “Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes watching Sabrina Carpenter perform Taste.”


“Sabrina singing taste with Shawn and Camila in the building is absolutely insane I love her,” somebody else wrote.


Another shared their disappointment that the VMAs didn’t cut to Shawn and Camila during the performance, writing: “vmas used to be shady they should've had shown them during sabrina's performance.”


Somebody else shared photos of all three stars on the red carpet as they pointed out that Camila was wearing black, just like Jenna in the music video.


They joked: “The way they just recreated the Taste music video but in real life.”


Neither Shawn nor Camila have publicly reacted to any of Sabrina's latest songs.

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