That was her experience about three years ago when Katy released “Witness,” which had some success but didn’t dominate the charts. Although the first single “Chained to the Rhythm” hit the Top 5, the others waned and the pop star’s popularity waned as newcomers – mostly budding rappers – took over the music scene.
“In 2017, 2018, I went through an ego check and really reprioritized what was important and my association with validation, or my relationship with validation. It just happened a change in my life and my career. I wasn’t getting as high on my own anymore as I used to, ”Perry said. “Like I had reached the top of the mountain. He had seen the view. I had gotten used to it. So, of course, the universe decided to come and say, ‘Alright honey, let’s figure this out.’
“I definitely had to go through a real emotional, psychological and spiritual journey in those years to find my smile, because I had lost it,” Katy Perry continued. “That’s why I titled this album ‘Smile’.”
“Smile,” her fifth album with a major record label, comes out on Friday as the 35-year-old artist – who is engaged to actor Orlando Bloom and close to giving birth to a baby girl – sees life differently. .
In an interview with The Associated Press, Perry discussed how she smiled again, her wedding plans during the pandemic, and the 10th anniversary of the epic “Teenage Dream,” the album that cemented her as an international superstar.
AP: What are your fans going to hear on “Smile”?
Katy Perry: It’s a record full of hope and resilience and a little bit of joy and some fun … I think it’s always a good time to get a little injection of hope, especially these days. This album really talks about my own experience going through hell, finding the light and coming out of it. So if someone else is going through this journey and can be inspired by the positivity and hope (of the album), I’m happy about that.
AP: In the title track of the album, you sing: “I ate a piece of humility pie / That ego check saved my life.” What made you write that?
Katy Perry: I mean, I’m not invincible, I’m not perfect. I have fallen from a banana tree so many times and I have learned from that growth. I have been living in the public light for over 12 years and have had moments that have been very intense. I don’t necessarily like to avoid or ignore, I just like to accept and assume. I think, “Look, I needed that. It was a sobering experience ”. Obviously when you’re going through it, you hate it. But I do think that you have the option to step away from the situation a little bit and say, “OK, what am I going to learn from this? What is the lesson? Where is the growth?” Not just, “Fuck it … everything should burn!” If not, “Where is the gratitude for this obstacle?”
AP: You name your parents in the song “Only Love”, how did they react to that?
Katy Perry: I touched my mom, she was very touched. This song really talks about if life threw you a curveball, and the weird thing is, I was vocally putting the finishing touches on it in my room during that week of March 13 when everyone went into lockdown and everyone was buying thousands of rolls. of toilet paper. Nobody knew what the hell was going on and the sensations and emotions were very intense.
I was almost ready with my album. This was the last song I added and it’s funny, because it reflected the feeling of that moment. “Damn, life is throwing a curve ball at me, and what is valuable to me now? What is really important?” You start thinking, “Yeah, this is what matters. Forget all the bullshit and even your career. I have to take care of my parents. I have to take care of them ”. And I think everyone changed their speed a little bit.
But this song is really about, at the end of it all … what are we going to say, wish I had worked one more day? Or, I wish I had had a little more love, to have connected with my brother or my sister or my mom or my dad a little more, or with my partner or my children or whoever? I just want a little more love.
AP: It’s the 10th anniversary of “Teenage Dream,” which equaled Michael Jackson’s “Bad” record as the album with the most singles at number one, how do you feel thinking about that album and that time in your life?
Katy Perry: I hope you can see 10 years on my face. Is incredible. In your twenties you hear people more mature than you saying that time flies. It is starting to fly. You are such a different person in your twenties than you were in your thirties. And I love that record and what it means. Each album has a special meaning for me. I always try to approach music composition as a super vulnerable and authentic open book so that anyone who wants to be reflected can do so. I think “Teenage Dream” really encapsulates this fantastic idea of love. It was nostalgic in a way.
It was a special moment and I can’t believe 10 years have passed. I’m glad “Smile” is coming out at the same time. It’s like, “Okay, let’s get hold of that energy.”
AP: Mariah Carey once said that pregnancy gave more strength to her voice, has your voice changed anything with your pregnancy?
Katy Perry: It’s interesting to have an extra 45 pounds … 30 (13.6) of them right here on my lung capacity. It wasn’t too difficult, but I definitely had to change a couple of notes. I think that is simply due to the physical intensity … I have been very active. I’ve done everything. I go to every meeting for Zoom. I am a mom on the go. I’m on promotion. Don’t go saying I didn’t work hard. I worked hard for this moment, I created a life, I am doing my part!
AP: How are wedding plans going during the pandemic?
Katy Perry: We have ideas, but anyone making plans in 2020 is a bit LOL (haha). There are bigger things happening in the world. I don’t want to say “oh, how sad I had to postpone or cancel or whatever.” So many other terrible things are happening. What we hope for now is just a healthy and safe baby. It’s the next thing on our calendar that we can look forward to.
.
