Sabrina Carpenter’s ‘Feather’ Music Video Filmed in NYC Catholic Church Leaves Brooklyn Diocese ‘Appalled’
Sabrina Carpenter’s recent music video has stirred up some controversy.
Two days after the 24-year-old pop star unveiled the music video for her hit song “Feather,” a Catholic bishop has taken issue with the fact that a portion of the video was shot inside and outside a church in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
The Diocese of Brooklyn issued a statement to the Catholic News Agency on Thursday, expressing the dismay of Bishop Robert Brennan over what was filmed at Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Brooklyn.
According to the Diocese, the church failed to follow the proper procedures for approving on-site filming, which includes a review of the scenes and script, as per diocesan policy. The parish also claimed that the production company behind the music video did not accurately represent the video’s content.
The statement went on to mention that Bishop Brennan is taking this matter seriously and plans to investigate it further.
As of now, Sabrina Carpenter’s representative has not responded to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
In the music video for her breakup anthem, directed by Mia Barnes, scenes from the 19th-century church are featured at the beginning. Carpenter is later seen donning a black tulle dress and veil, dancing around the church’s pews and altar. The horror-inspired video carries echoes of films like “Jennifer’s Body” and “Promising Young Woman.” It portrays the singer feeling “lighter like a feather” after dealing with men who had treated her inappropriately through catcalling and mansplaining, as well as taking an unauthorized photo up her skirt.
Despite the somber setting of the church’s altar, decorated with items from funerals, Carpenter appears as if she is not grieving their deaths, suggesting a sense of liberation.
Towards the end of the video, Carpenter departs from the house of worship in a pink hearse.
Within just two days of its release, the video for the song from the deluxe version of Carpenter’s well-received 2022 album “Emails I Can’t Send” has already accumulated 2.4 million views on YouTube.
After the video went viral, the singer expressed her gratitude on Instagram and interacted with her fans, inviting them to share their favorite parts of the video.
Carpenter is not the first pop star to trigger controversy with religious groups. Madonna’s 1989 music video for “Like a Prayer” faced condemnation from the Vatican, and Lady Gaga’s “Judas” from the 2011 album “Born This Way” drew criticism from Catholic groups. More recently, Lil Nas X faced backlash from conservative Christians for his visual for “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name).
