January 20 brought wonderful news to Sabrina Carpenter fans far and wide: She would perform at the 2026 Grammy Awards after all. We knew she'd make an appearance during the show, as she's up for Song, Album, and Record of the Year—but half way through the ceremony, she gifted fans another award-worthy performance, with a notable outfit to boot.
In addition to curating her Valentino red carpet gown, stylist Jared Ellner transformed her into a high-fashion pilot for her performance during the ceremony. At the Sabrina Carpenter Airlines terminal, Carpenter belted out her nominated hit, "Manchild," in a sultry, all-white pilot-inspired look, beginning with a lace-up blazer and classic Carpenter-core short shorts. (The corset-like detail stretched onto her knee-high boots.) Extra points for her peekaboo bra, also in stark white. A bedazzled ascot necktie and a monogrammed "SCA" cap drove the performer's flirty 1960s air travel theme home.
Carpenter set a high bar for herself with last year's Grammys performance: a vaudevillian medley of "Please Please Please" and "Espresso," complete with a Broadway-style outfit change. She kicked off her set in a tuxedo mini dress, courtesy of Dolce & Gabbana—a surprisingly conservative choice for the saucy style muse. But she was simply creating suspense.
By the chorus, Carpenter stripped down to a baby blue corset bodysuit, its sweetheart neckline and exaggerated boning bedazzled with indigo Swarovski crystals. The strapless bustier was a perfect shade match to a feather-trimmed shawl, which became her dance partner. Once again, Christian Louboutin crafted custom, crystalized Mary Janes for Carpenter, just as the designer had for the Short n' Sweet tour.
All together, it became the performance to beat, even before Carpenter perfected her craft with 37 additional Short n' Sweet shows last year. Leading up to tonight's Grammys, she performed on Saturday Night Live, at the Brit Awards, and the 2025 MTV VMAs.
At the latter award show, she packed a mid-rainstorm dance break and an homage to Britney Spears into her allotted five-minute slot. Her live rendition of "Tears" was just as iconic as her music video for the song: It started with Carpenter climbing out of a literal manhole wearing a rhinestone fringed long-sleeve over a bedazzled bra and low-rise underwear-turned-pants, which got their close-up during the Spears-inspired section.
If you didn't score tickets to the Short n' Sweet tour, her live TV performances will tell you everything you need to know about Carpenter's stage persona: She's dazzling, committed to the bit, and always on board for an outfit change.
