Legions of (mostly gay) fans have described it as a comeback album that’ll save pop music — how many times have we heard that? — but Katy Perry’s new album era is already attracting controversy and we don’t even have a release date yet.
The pop megastar has been teasing a new project, a follow-up to 2020’s Smile, since April, with the first single from what will be her sixth album set to arrive in July.
Even in a year of seemingly endless major pop releases — from Ariana Grade and Charli XCX to Beyoncé and Taylor Swift — Perry’s comeback album has managed to cut through the noise, kinda like how MasterChef’s “Hot N Cold” theme song sounds ten decibels louder than the regular audio.
From controversial producer credits to heavily-dragged snippets, here’s why Katy Perry’s new KP6 era is already being roasted by pop music fans.
Why is Katy Perry’s new era getting roasted?
Fans “disappointed” by Dr. Luke collaboration
Rolling Stone reported on Wednesday that Perry’s upcoming album will see her reunite with Dr. Luke, the producer behind her smash hits like “Last Friday Night,” “California Gurls” and “I Kissed a Girl”.
The production credit caused a tizzy online, given Dr. Luke’s previous embroilment in a legal battle with fellow pop star Kesha, who publicly accused him of emotional and sexual abuse in 2014.
The decade-long lawsuit — which later saw Dr. Luke countersue Kesha for defamation — ended last year when the pair reached an undisclosed settlement, but the mention of Dr. Luke’s name on KP6 has prompted outrage among listeners who “can’t personally support his career.”
“I’m sorry Katy but I am very disappointed,” one Twitter/X user wrote, with another adding that “it’s ok to hold your favorite artist accountable.”
Even Kesha seemed to respond to the news, writing: “lol” on Twitter/X amid reports of Dr. Luke’s involvement.
Dr. Luke was named among a team of fellow producers also reportedly working on KP6, including Max Martin and frequent Rihanna collaborators Stargate.
The lead single is being torn apart on social media
A significant chunk of criticism surrounding KP6 also stems from “Woman’s World”, the first single from the project teased by Perry last week. The singer previewed the track — which will officially arrive on July 11 — with a snippet on TikTok, though fans quickly panned its lyrics and “Target commercial” sound.
“I was rooting for Katy but these lyrics are so dated,” one user wrote on X. “It’s giving 2016 Hillary Clinton presidential campaign material.” Others said the snippet — which has since been deleted from Perry’s TikTok — is “the worst thing I’ve ever heard.”
Rumours emerged on Wednesday that the “Woman’s World” clip was “a fake AI snippet to trick the fans and the haters,” but even that unconfirmed tea has prompted mockery among fans.
Katy (Copy)Cats
Perry has also been accused of copying the aesthetics of other pop stars for the visual direction of KP6, with critics saying the cover art for “Woman’s World” looks like a “charli xcx variant.”
Others slammed Perry’s new look as an attempt “to serve manufactured cunt” (a beautiful turn of phrase, but I digress), and pander to “lowest common denominator gay guys” (myself included).
In any case, fans will have to wait and see whether Katy Perry’s new era is deserving of all the criticism, or whether it’ll besmirch all her much-lauded contributions to MasterChef canon.
“Woman’s World” will be released on on July 11, with a music video arriving the following day.
Image source: @dontjudgemebymyusername/TikTok, Press and @dontjudgemebymyusername/TikTok.
