Katy Perry: The California Girl
Meet America's favorite pin-up pop singer!
Katy Perry is unquestionably one of pop music’s hottest stars—both literally and figuratively. Coming from a constrained Christian household, our California Girl grew into a naughty little big-breasted pop princess.
Gifted both artistically and physically, Katy broke into America’s musical mainstream with her masterpiece debut album One of the Boys. For the past two decades and counting, she has continued to dominate the charts with her over-played radio romps.
Here’s the candy-sweet story behind the Queen of Camp.
Churched Up
Katheryn “Katy” Hudson was born in Santa Barbara on October 25, 1984.
As a girl, Katy came from a very churchy household. The daughter of Pentecostal parents, she endured a childhood of religious repression. Her zealot parents wouldn’t even allow the poor girl to eat “deviled” eggs for fear of violating church rules! Along with her siblings, she was baptized and forced into church youth ministry.
Both of her parents were sternly religious, but that wasn’t always in the case. Her father Keith once lived as a West Coast hipster in the 1960s. She inherited this party-loving ethos from her ex-hippie father.
Katy’s religious upbringing bordered on child abuse. In a disturbing Savonarola-esque fashion, her fanatically religious parents committed anything non-religious to the Bonfire of the Vanities! She wasn’t allowed to watch TV or read any books beyond the Bible. No secular music was permitted.
Bad Girl
As she grew up, the teenage Katy became increasingly dissatisfied with her cult-like Christian upbringing. At summer camp, she fell in love with guys at an early age. She started re-thinking Christian morality. She came to believe that maybe she wouldn’t go to hell if she enjoyed sex. Her pearl-clutching parents were horrified to find a thong in Katy’s drawer.
Katy was inspired by a female classmate, who enjoyed more personal license in sexual affairs. This woman became the object of Katy’s lesbian sexuality, later inspiring the ultra-smash hit “I Kissed A Girl.”
Musical Dreams
Growing up religious, Katy hated her isolation from the outside world. She wanted to know about pop music. She was fascinated by pop idols, such as Madonna. Unknown to her parents, Katy smuggled pop music into the house.
She listened with fascination to the records of Queen and Nirvana. Katy fell in love with the theatrics of Freddie Mercury, which influenced her own style as an adult musician. For young Katy, the brashness of female pop stars—such as Joan Jett and Pat Benatar—was an appealing alternative to her “good girl” church upbringing. Music represented female empowerment, in Katy’s view.
Katy’s artistry was applauded by her parents, who encouraged her to pursue music—as long as it was church music!
The 15-year-old Katy enrolled at the Music Academy of Santa Barbara, where she trained in gospel and classical Italian opera. She also took classes in swing dance, which inspired her persona of a vintage pin-up.
Through some Christian musicians in Nashville, Perry finally got what she was looking for. From them, she learned the tricks of the trade. The aspiring artist-to-be was taught how to play guitar, write songs, and record her own demos.
Signed on to the Christian music label Red Hill, our pop hero released her self-titled debut album in 2001: Katy Hudson.
From Gospel to Pop
As she launched her career, Katy felt a growing tension between her Christian parents and her desired path as a pop musician. To avoid similarities with the actress Kate Hudson, she adopted a new name, the one we all recognize today: Katy Perry. (Perry was her mother’s maiden name).
To get closer to the pop scene, the ambitious teenage girl moved out to LA. She signed onto a major record label. But the girl lacked experience, since she had previously only worked with Christian music. Def Jam dropped her.
Undeterred, the tenacious teenager continued her quest for fame and fortune. By 2004, she had successfully signed on with Columbia Records. Already on her third record label, the girl was just 20 years old. She forged ties with The Matrix, the hottest pop producers in the industry. Once again, she was dropped. Katy began to worry. Was music really for her? Broke, she feared having to move back in with her parents.
One of The Boys
Fate intervened for our pop princess, when Katy received a phone call out of the blue. It was none other than Jason Flom, the chairman of Virgin Records. He recognized Katy’s potential. After six months, she got signed to Capitol Records in April of 2007.
Although blessed by this fateful opportunity, Katy now had a real challenge on her hands. To break through into the industry, she had to release a huge pop record. Now, everything was on the line. It was do or die!
Katy would work with Dr. Luke, an expert in the female music business. Luke was a seasoned veteran of the industry. He had successfully engineered all kinds of classic pop hits: Kesha’s “Tick Tock”, Miley Cyrus’ “Party In the USA,” “Without You” by Kelly Clarkson—just to name a few.
Working hand-in-hand with Dr. Luke, Katy Perry would skyrocket to the very top of the pop industry. The lovechild of their collaboration was Katy’s second album, a classic of pop music: One of the Boys.
One of the Boys introduced the world to Katy Perry. It was a glamorous debut fit for a Pop Queen. The best-selling album went platinum, and Katy went on her Warped Tour to promote it.
“Ur So Gay”
It all began with her song “Ur So Gay.” Reflecting her raw rock roots, Katy was not yet the fluffy pop star we know today. The lyrics were venomous and biting expressing a young girl’s hatred for an ex-boyfriend. Right away, Katy’s fame exploded on the Internet, even catching the attention of Madonna herself. Overnight, she became an international star.
“I Kissed A Girl”
Then, Katy Perry released her signature song: “I Kissed A Girl.” With it, the bubblegum goddess sang gleefully about some hot girl-on-girl action! The lyrics were not too explicit, but controversial enough to provoke some attention.
The record company was a little concerned, fearing backlash from the Bible Belt. But because of Katy’s inoffensive way of discussing her flings with females, there was much less controversy than had been anticipated.
Right away, her lesbian anthem got over 4 million purchases on iTunes. It became the tenth best-selling digital single of the 21st century!
But Katy’s pop stardom came at a cost. Her religious parents were not too happy about her lyrics, which glorified hedonism. Nevertheless, our free-spirited rebel girl would not be deterred.
Teenage Dream
Hot of the heels of her debut success, Katy Perry released her second pop album: 2010’s Teenage Dream.
It was another ultra success! It went platinum five times. Five singles came from it: “California Gurls,” “Teenage Dream,” “Firework,” “E.T.”, and “Last Friday (T.G.I.F.).”
“California Gurls”
The biggest of these classics was “California Gurls.” It quickly became the theme of summer 2010. Catchy and easy to sing, it was a masterpiece of radio-ready pop. The song even featured Snoop Dogg.
Coupled with its flashy Willy-Wonka video, Katy Perry completely shed any remnants of her punk past with “California Gurls.” Katy’s classic hit also expressed her pride in her home state. She was, in fact, a California girl.
But behind the sweet-as-candy appearances, Katy’s aggressive sexuality lurked beneath the surface. Any listener over the age of 17 knew right away the song’s real meaning—and it wasn’t about literal candy!
“Firework”
For “Firework,” Katy shot the music video in Budapest in October of 2010. 38,000 people participated in its shooting. “Firework” became a classic example of Katy’s songwriting style: larger-than-life chorus, simple catchy melody. Using this winning formula, she wrote hit and hit.
Elmo
Never far from controversy, the sexy Katy made an appearance on Sesame Street. On the kids show, she taught Elmo a preschool version of her hit song “Hot and Cold.” But the big-breasted pop star did a lot of running with Elmo, much to the horror of onlooking parents. The show received tons of complaints. YouTube comments flooded with feigned outrage.
Fearing the controversy, however, Sesame Street ultimately decided not to air the segment. But the video can still be found online.
Getting banned from Sesame Street earned back Katy’s hard rock edge, in a certain way. Few musicians could claim this achievement.
“Circle the Drain”
On her song “Circle the Drain,” Katy lambasted her ex-boyfriend Travie McCoy, the lead singer of the band Gym Class Heroes. It was a harsh diss track. Their falling out was dramatic, to put it lightly. The two were never seen again together in public.
Russell Brand
Katy met Russell Brand on the set of the movie Get Him to the Greek. As Brand’s fame grew, he was invited to host the MTV Video Music Awards. There, in September of that same year, he again met Katy Perry. Sparks flew between the lovers. By December, the two were already engaged.
Russell was a well-known womanizer. A self-confessed sex addict, he claimed to sleep with as many as 80 women a month! But when he fell in love with Katy, he was swept off his feet. His playboy days came to an abrupt end.
Katy and Russell got married on October 23, 2010. It was a traditional Hindu ceremony held in Rajasthan, India. The site was where Brand had first proposed to her.
But a mere 14 months after the wedding, Russell wanted out. In December of 2011, their steamy affair came to a crashing end. Cleaning up his drug-filled life, Russell grew disenchanted by Katy’s constant partying. Katy didn’t want kids quite yet, which only fanned the flames. Perhaps Russell wasn’t too happy with Katy’s fried Rihanna. But much of this gossip can’t be verified; we can only speculate.
Katy never spoke publicly about the break-up. Perhaps the free-spirited California Girl just couldn’t be tied down by something like marriage.
Daughter of the Decade
The 2010s were virtually dominated by Katy Perry and her infectious melodies.
She released her fourth album Prism in 2013. It included such classics as “Roar” and “Dark Horse.” Influenced by her ill-fated breakup with Russell Brand, the album featured a more mature, darker sound.
Katy broke world records when she performed at the Super Bowl in February 2015. The highest rated show in Super Bowl history, she got more views than the game itself! Over 114 million people tuned in to see their pop princess perform.
Her album Witness was released in June 2017, soaring to number one on the charts. In 2018, she joined the cast of American Idol.
Today, Katy continues to make headlines well into the 2020s. She performed “Firework” at Biden’s inauguration in 2021. As of February 2024, she has announced her exit from American Idol, and plans to release new music soon.