Sabrina Carpenter: why did the BBC remove singer’s Live Lounge performance from YouTube - what did she say?

Sarah Carpenter’s debut performance on BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge was taken down from YouTube, before being edited and reuploaded.

The former Disney star who is best known for her performances in Girl Meets World and Adventures in Babysitting, performed her song “Nonsense” on Live Lounge last week, with the radio station uploading the video to YouTube. However, it was swiftly taken down supposedly due to comments the singer made referencing the BBC’s name at the end of her song during the riff.

The video has since been edited and reuploaded with the comments in question removed. So, what did Sabrina Carpenter say and why did the BBC remove her Live Lounge performance from YouTube? Here’s everything you need to know.

Who is Sabrina Carpenter?

Sabrina Carpenter is an American singer and actress who starred in the Disney Channel’s series Girl Meets World and Adventures in Babysitting. The 23-year-old who made her acting debut on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit when she was just 12 has also starred in films including Horns (2013), The Hate U Give (2018), Tall Girl (2019) and Work It (2020).

In 2014 Carpenter released her first single called “Can’t Blame a Girl for Trying,” her debut album “Eyes Wide Open” came out in 2015 and she has since made three more studio albums: “Evolution” in 2016, “Singular: Act 1” in 2018, “Singular: Act II” in 2019 and “Emails I Can’t Send” in 2022.

The actress is currently rumoured to be dating “Senorita” singer Shawn Mendes, with People sharing images of them spending time together in Los Angeles.

What did she say during BBC Live Lounge?

Carpenter made her debut performance on BBC Radio 1’s Live Lounge on February 23. The singer gave a rendition of songs including “Late Night Talking” and “Nonsense” which she performed at the Grammy Museum in November 2022, where she sang: “Usually I would say something nasty/ but I’ma keep it classy for the Grammys”.

The BBC uploaded a recording of the singer performing her song “Nonsense” which included comments she made during the riff at the end. Carpenter sang: “How quickly can you take your clothes off, pop quiz. I’m American, I am not British so BBC, it stands for something different.” Adding in an English accent: “This live lounge is so lit because I’m in it, innit.”

BBC stands for British Broadcasting Corporation, however, the acronym is also used as an explicit slang reference with racial connotations in pornography. Fans have speculated that the comments at the end of her song caused the initial YouTube video to be taken down.

Why did the BBC remove Sabrina Carpenter’s Live Lounge from YouTube?

A BBC spokesperson told the Mirror that the unedited version of the clip was “posted in error”. They said in a statement: “An unedited version of the video was briefly posted in error, and the correct version is now available for viewers to enjoy.” The video has since been reuploaded to BBC Radio 1’s YouTube channel with Carpenter’s outro edited out. You can watch the performance below.

What has the reaction been?

Pop Crave reported the video had been removed from YouTube on a post on Twitter, stating it had been taken down due to Carpenter’s “ad-libbed outro” being “deemed inappropriate”. They included screenshots of before and after, with the video no longer available.

Whilst singer-songwriter Charlie XCX found the whole incident rather funny. The “Boom Clap” singer weighed in “sabrina carpenter explaining bbc on the bbc is so funny i can’t.”