Sabrina Carpenter’s bold embrace of sexual confidence is empowering young fans, but with rising STI rates and declining condom use, it’s clear that while sex talk is growing, safe sex practices need more attention.
Famous for her raunchy dance moves and racy song lyrics, global pop sensation Sabrina Carpenter, who is currently embarking on the UK leg of her world tour, is certainly not one to shy away from all things intimate. Hoards of fans have attended her concerts so far, with her performing two sold shows at London’s O2 arena this weekend and due to head to Manchester and Scotland in the next week.
The blonde-haired beauty is no stranger to a viral moment, but most recently, clips of her performances have been doing the rounds for one particular reason – her Juno pose. It’s at the pinnacle of her hit song Juno that the singer displays a different sexual pose on stage each time she performs it. Whether this be on all fours, her legs in the air or her symbolic use of the microphone, the 25 year-old does not hold back.
And young people are loving it – claiming that the Bed Chem singer’s openness around all-things sex is actually helping them to be more confident in that department. Newly released figures show that up to 55% of young people say that celebrities talking openly about sex and sexuality has made them feel more confident in the bedroom. The research from LELO suggests that seeing celebrities such as Carpenter so openly displaying sexual confidence has made them feel the same and in turn, is leading to more pleasurable sex.
Carpenter certainly isn’t the first artist to openly discuss sex in her repertoire, and isn’t even the most explicit, but the conversation around sex is increasing in general. This includes on social media where it wouldn’t take any user long to find a video offering up sex tips to the masses or advice on how to up your sexual game – often graphic and uncensored.
Things have changed since when our grandparents – and even our parents – were young and sex was considered something to be hidden away between the sheets and it was considered uncouth or even obscene to discuss it publicly.
While this surge in sexual openness removes the taboo around the act for young people, does it also mean safer sex? The most recently available statistics show that the answer is no, showing that in 2023, cases of STIs in the UK increased by 4.7% compared to the year before.
Diagnoses of gonorrhoea and infectious syphilis – which can both be fatal if left untreated – rose, 7.5% and 9.4% respectively, in the year between 2022 and 2023. The same research showed that overall, the impact of sexually transmitted infections is the greatest in young people aged between 15 and 24. This means that Sabrina’s prime target audience are also the most likely to be affected by these diseases, especially if uneducated about the real dangers of unprotected sex.
Perhaps even more worrying is data released last year by the World Health Organisation that shows an alarmingly significant decline in the use of condoms by young people globally over the last 10 years. The WHO conducted a survey of nearly 250,000 15-year-olds in 42 countries and regions across Europe and Canada, finding that out of all of the countries surveyed, including France, Italy and the Netherlands, the UK showed some of the lowest use of condoms. Overall, almost one-third of 15-year-olds reported that they did not use a condom or take the contraceptive pill.
These worrying stats show that while young people are feeling more comfortable talking about their sex lives and discourse around sex and sexual pleasure may be at the forefront of Gen Z culture right now, discussion around practicing safe sex isn’t necessarily.
So while sex talk continues to rise, and mostly for the better, there is definitely something to be said for normalising the more ’embarrassing’ parts of sex too, like walking up to a check out with a pack of condoms, stumbling around in the dark to look for one or asking sexual partners if they regularly get tested for STIs.
Sex can be and should be great fun, but it should also be, perhaps more than anything else, safe.
