I’m A Woman, And I Want Nothing To Do With Katy Perry’s World
After teasing new music for weeks, Katy Perry finally dropped her new single ‘Woman’s World’ last Thursday. On Friday, she dropped the music video.
It did not go well.
The popstar, who catapulted to fame in 2008 with her debut single, ‘I Kissed a Girl’, has always been one to be campy with her music, aesthetics and videos; leading with sexual confidence and sprinkles of silliness. But unfortunately for Katy, the women of 2024 don’t seem to be buying what she’s selling.
Image credit: Katy Perry YouTube
Announcing ‘Woman’s World’ (the lead single from her upcoming album 143) in June and teasing a rebrand on her socials with messy fashion girly posts that happen to suspiciously resemble current pop IT girl, Charli XCX, we knew that Katy was preparing us for something groundbreaking with this next iteration of her career.
Groundbreaking it was not. When the song and music video were finally released, the internet was disappointed, to say the least.
Commercially speaking, ‘Woman’s World’ isn’t performing, reportedly gaining less than five million streams and awkwardly missing from the Spotify Global and US Charts. In fact, the song entered at number 110 on the US charts on Friday. Not ideal for the woman who used to debut on top every. Damn. Time.
Critically speaking, ‘Woman’s World’ is garnering widespread backlash. The song, and the music video, have been obliterated online, with scathing reviews from The Guardian, Pitchfork, The Cut and Forbes to name a few. And the fans aren’t biting their tongues on socials.
So, let’s break down some of the key reasons Katy’s comeback is currently flopping.
Let’s start with the song itself. Speaking with Zane Lowe, Katy referred to the “feminine divine” she had unlocked since giving birth to daughter Daisy back in 2020, and how this inspired her as an artist.
“Women are unstoppable. They create life, they carry life, um, they do it with beauty, they do it with grace. They are not one thing, they are soft, they are strong, they are chaos, they are cool, they’re all the things and they contribute so much to the world. I just feel so celebrated in my life, and I hope that other women feel celebrated when they hear this and that everybody connects to the feminine part of them inside of them.”
Let’s look at some of the lyrics, shall we? (Get ready to feel #feminist):
“Sexy, confident / So intelligent / She is heaven-sent / So soft, so strong.”
Go on.
“She’s a winner, champion / Superhuman, number one / She’s a sister, she’s a mother / Open your eyes, just look around and you’ll discover.”
Oh my god, what will I discover?!
“It’s a woman’s world and you’re lucky to be livin’ in it (Uh-huh, uh-huh) / It’s a woman’s world and you’re lucky to be livin’ in it (Uh-huh, uh-huh) / You better celebrate / ‘Cause, baby, we ain’t goin’ away (Oh) / It’s a woman’s world and you’re lucky to be livin’ in it (Uh-huh, uh-huh).”
Right.
I think The Guardian’s Laura Snapes’ one-star review says it all. “Perry’s solo return is a dated attempt at writing a feminist anthem about how women really can have it all! It’s a song that made me feel stupider every sorry time I listened to it.”
Let me be clear, there’s nothing wrong with a “yeah the girls” pop song. Taylor Swift’s ‘The Man’ is a bop. ‘God Is A Woman’ by Ariana Grande absolutely slapped. Destiny’s Child had me going for it dancing at the year six disco with ‘Independent Woman’. But each of these examples are far more nuanced, with underlining explorations of gender inequality, sexuality and financial independence. The lyrical content of ‘Woman’s World’ is so pedestrian that it leaves me feeling embarrassed, especially with the current domination of pop girlies who are producing modern hits examining the female experience like Chappel Roan, Sabrina Carpenter and as aforementioned, Charli XCX.
Then, my friends, there’s the music video.
We open with Katy dressed as a sexy Rosie The Riveter with her equally sexy mates posing atop a skyscraper, emulating the famous 1932 photograph. I, for one, am already cringing. They sexily pretend to piss at a urinal and then the bathroom wall disappears and they all do a sexy little dance at the construction site with bedazzled power tools. The chorus ends and a giant anvil falls on Katy and crushes her. Got that?
Part two of the video is Katy’s reimagined world (a woman’s, I’d presume). People are equally scantily clad (nothing wrong with that just FYI), but we’re meant to believe it’s in a less male-gazey kind of way. Lots of chaotic shit happens, including a cameo from Trisha Paytas pulling a monster truck by a rope, and the video concludes with a helicopter whisking Katy away as she holds a giant ring light shaped as the female symbol.
Lots. To. Unpack. Here.
Firstly, what??? Second, huh???? Fans were equally confused, and the YouTube comments came flying in. “This feels like a parody of feminism gone wrong,” one user wrote. “Not me thinking this was a parody from SNL,” wrote another. “I thought the first part before the anvil was satire…but then I realised the entire plot was for the male gaze and she just slapped ‘Woman’s World’ on it to pander,” stated a user.
Yikes.
In an attempt to clarify the tone of the video, Katy took to her socials and uploaded this reel:
View this post on Instagram
Katy assures us that the video is in fact satire, “very on the nose” and that the anvil crushing her represents a reset for her, leading to her imagined “feminine divine” world. Naturally, people shared their thoughts… “Having to explain a joke means it didn’t land. Hope this helps,” commented one user. I don’t condone trolls but that one made me laugh. So did, “Are you okay girl?”
Underpinning both the song and the video is the main source of criticism, this being both Katy’s choice to collaborate with alleged abuser, Dr Luke, and the irony of the fact she did so on a track about women’s empowerment. While it was only rumoured initially, the collaboration was confirmed with the release of the song. Dr Luke was named as one of the six writers of ‘Woman’s World’, four of which were men. You can’t make this shit up, honestly.
For context, pop singer Kesha sued American songwriter and producer Dr Luke in 2014, “alleging he drugged and raped her nine years earlier and psychologically tormented her throughout their working relationship.” After close to a decade of suits and countersuits, the two settled in 2023, and while Dr Luke suffered enormous reputational damage, it clearly wasn’t bad enough to stop Katy from reuniting with the man who helped her create hits like ‘California Gurls’, ‘E.T.’, ‘Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)’ and ‘Teenage Dream’.
On her “YOU CAN DO ANYTHING! EVEN SATIRE!” reel posted above, activist Gina Martin commented, “Satire pokes fun at power in a clear way. If you have to explain the satire it’s not working as satire and just works to reinforce the power system at play. Also, does the satire part also apply to working with an alleged abuser? We’re confused.”
Another user shared her thoughts. “Girl, working with Dr L*** is truly disrespectful to Kesha and every woman in the world. You’re basically saying you’re willing to work with abusers as long as they help you get what you want. That voids anything else you might say about feminism and female empowerment.”
Another aspect of Katy’s comeback attempt that people aren’t thrilled about is the lack of authenticity. Junkee reporter Ky Stewart eloquently unpacks how manufactured attempts at appealing to a queer fanbase aren’t it, and wonders whether artists are attempting a Kylie Minogue ‘Padam’ moment:
@junkeedotcom Katy Perry has begun her highly anticipated rollout of her new era… it’s already a mess. Many thoughts inc Charli XCX copycat claims, Dr Luke collab rumours, it’s a lot ? @Ky Stewart #katyperry #katy #katyperryfan #womansworld #charli #charlixcx #brat #lana #lanadelrey #arca #ladygaga #beyonce #chappellroan #kesha #camillacabello #music #pop #popmusic #queer ♬ original sound – junkee
Ugh, guys, it’s not good hey?
Katy Perry is set to release her album 143 in September. She might surprise us all and deliver us a nuanced album beyond this initial flop, but unless she drops the buzzwords and gets real about womanhood, I have zero interest in living in Katy Perry’s world.
Written by Lil Friedmann, a pop culture girly til the end of time – perhaps unless Katy Perry’s apocalypse comes for us all. You can follow her at @lilfriedmann on socials.
Image credit: Katy Perry + Punkee