A Sabrina Carpenter Music Video Dragged Her Into The Messy Eric Adams Scandal

Pop star Sabrina Carpenter is many things – an actress, a musician, a style icon – but no one would've guessed that the five-foot-tall "Short n' Sweet" singer would have something to do with a major New York City government scandal. The 2023 music video for her song "Feather" may have played a minor role in the investigation of NYC mayor Eric Adams, who was indicted on federal charges including bribery and wire fraud, to which he pleaded not guilty.

The 57-page bombshell indictment against Adams chronicles illegal activity dating back to 2014 when he became the Brooklyn borough president. The mayor allegedly accepted illegal donations to his mayoral campaign from a Turkish government official and other foreign benefactors. During the ongoing investigation, federal investigators subpoenaed a Catholic church in Brooklyn, requesting information about business between Adams' former chief of staff Frank Carone and a monsignor named Jamie Gigantiello. 

What does this have to do with the "Espresso" hitmaker? Gigantiello — who also serves as the New York City Fire Department chaplain — was the one who gave Carpenter the green light to film her video inside the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church. The monsignor's review by the Brooklyn Diocese may have been the catalyst for a federal probe.

Sabrina Carpenter's "Feather" music video depicts the singer with her classic winged eyeliner, clad in a black tulle mini dress as she prances around the coffins of deceased men on the nave inside the 19th-century Brooklyn church. After the video's release, Catholic Bishop Robert Brennan was "appalled at what was filmed at Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Brooklyn," according to a November 2023 statement from the diocese, obtained by Catholic News Agency. The bishop even held a special Mass to reconsecrate the church after Carpenter's scandalous visit. In another statement to the outlet, they revealed that Monsignor Jamie Gigantiello was relieved of his administrative roles within the parish. While the diocese says the parish did not follow policy about reviewing the content of the video script, the parish claims the production company was misleading about what would be filmed in the church.

In a September 2024 statement to the New York Post about the subpoena, diocese officials said: "It would be inappropriate to comment further on that review, which is still ongoing. The Diocese is fully committed to cooperating with law enforcement in all investigations, including conduct at individual parishes or involving any priest." The latter part of the statement potentially suggests that the monsignor's review led to federal agents inquiring about his relationship with Frank Carone, and subsequently Eric Adams. While the church is staying quiet about the federal investigation, Carpenter hasn't been. In a video clip of Carpenter during her September 29, 2024 concert at Madison Square Garden posted to X, formerly Twitter, she can be heard saying, "What now? Should we talk about how I got the mayor indicted? Or..."