Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson (born October 25, 1984), better known by her
stage name Katy Perry, is an American
pop musician. Born in
Santa Barbara, California, and raised by Christian
pastor parents; Perry grew up listening to only
gospel music and sang in her local church as a child. After earning a
GED during her freshman year of high school, she began to pursue a career in music. As Katy Hudson, she released
a self-titled gospel album in 2001, which due to the closing of her record label, was deemed unsuccessful. She later recorded
an album with production team
The Matrix and completed the majority of a solo album from 2004–5; neither of which were released.
After signing with Capitol Music Group in 2007, her fourth record label in seven years, she adopted the stage name Katy Perry and released her first Internet single "Ur So Gay" that November, which garnered public attention; but failed to chart. She rose to fame with the release of her second single "I Kissed a Girl" in 2008, which went on to top international charts. Perry's first mainstream studio album One of the Boys followed later that year and subsequently, became the thirty-third best selling album worldwide of 2008. It was accredited platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America, while "I Kissed a Girl" and her second single "Hot n Cold" both received multi-platinum certifications. Her sophomore studio album Teenage Dream was released in August 2010 and debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. The album included hit singles "California Gurls", "Teenage Dream" and "Firework", all of which topped the charts on the Billboard Hot 100 and worldwide.
Perry was credited as a guest judge on the seventh series of the British television show The X Factor; has released a fragrance called "Purr"; and will appear in the upcoming 2011-film The Smurfs. Perry had a long relationship with Travie McCoy; she married Russell Brand on October 23, 2010.
Biography
1984–2006: Early life and career beginnings
Perry was born Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson in
Santa Barbara, California on October 25, 1984 to Mary (
née Perry), an
evangelist who grew up in
Southern California and had "a tempestuous first marriage in
Zimbabwe", She has an older sister and younger brother. Perry's maternal aunt and uncle were screenwriter
Eleanor Perry and director
Frank Perry, through whom she is also related to
Charles M. Schwab, the founder of the
Bethlehem Steel Corporation.
Perry was incorporated into her parents' ministry She grew up listening to gospel music, was not allowed to listen to what her mother called "secular music", and attended Christian schools and camps. She took her GED after her freshman year at Dos Pueblos High School and decided to leave school in the pursuit of a career in music. Her sister practiced with cassette tapes, while Perry took the tapes herself when her sister was not around. She rehearsed the songs and performed them in front of her parents, who suggested she take vocal coaching. She grabbed the opportunity and began taking lessons at the age of nine and continued until she was sixteen. She later enrolled in at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, and studied Italian opera for a short period of time. In Nashville, Perry started recording demos and was taught by country music veterans on how to craft songs and play guitar. Performing as Katy Hudson, she released the self-titled Gospel-rock album in 2001. The album was due for release in 2005,
Perry signed to Columbia Records in 2004. However, the label was not amenable with her vision, not putting her in the "driver's seat". She made a cameo appearance in Carbon Leaf's video, "Learn to Fly".
2007–09: One of the Boys and MTV Unplugged
Before being dropped by Columbia, its then publicity executive Angelica Cob-Baehler recommended Perry to Capitol A&R;
Chris Anokute while at the
2006 Grammy Awards. Keen to hear more, Anokute was sent a DVD, featuring a video of "Simple", and a three-song demo. It was after hearing the demo of "
Waking Up in Vegas" that Anokute became convinced of Perry's star talent. He showed the demo to his boss
Jason Flom, then head of
Capitol Music Group, telling him, "I've found the next Avril Lavigne meets Alanis Morissette." Flom proved to be less enthusiastic, however; he wasn't convinced the demos were good enough and was wary about an artist that had already been dropped by two major labels. Anokute refused to give up and eventually his persistence together with that of new Virgin employee, Cob-Baehler, paid off. Perry was signed to Capitol Music in early 2007.
She went on the next step of promoting the album, undertaking a two-month tour of radio stations. The album's official lead single, "I Kissed a Girl", was released on May 6, 2008. Perry's A&R;, Chris Anokute, told HitQuarters how, despite being himself convinced it was a "career record", the song and its controversial theme met with strong resistance at the label, "People said, 'This is never going to get played on the radio. How do we sell this? How’s this going to be played in the bible belt?'" On June 12, 2008, Perry appeared as herself on the daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless,
One of the Boys was released on June 17, 2008 to mixed critical reviews. The album has reached number nine on the Billboard 200, and has been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Perry released her second single, "Hot n Cold", which became her second top three single in dozens of countries around the world, including the United States where it reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100, Perry was nominated in five categories at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards, including Best New Artist and Best Female Video, but lost to Britney Spears. She won Best New Act at the 2008 MTV Europe Music Awards, which she co-hosted, and Best International Female Artist at the 2009 BRIT Awards. On February 9, 2009, both "I Kissed a Girl" and "Hot n Cold" were certified three-time platinum by Recording Industry Association of America for individual digital sales of over three million.
The Matrix's self-titled debut album, which features Perry, was later released via the team's label, Let's Hear It, during Perry's solo tour. When the release date was scheduled, "I Kissed a Girl" had been charting well. Matrix member Lauren Christy spoke to Perry about the decision, but she wanted to hold the release until the fourth single of One of the Boys had been dispatched. Despite their communication, The Matrix was released on January 27, 2009, via iTunes Store. In December 2008, Perry apologized to British singer Lily Allen for remarks in which she called herself a "skinnier version" of her, saying she meant it as a joke. Allen retaliated and told a British radio station that she "happen[ed] to know for a fact that she [Perry] was an American version" of her because their record company needed "to find something controversial and 'kooky'" like her.
On May 16, 2009, Perry performed at the opening ceremony of the annual Life Ball in Vienna, Austria. In June 2009, lawyers acting for Katy Perry opposed the recent trademark of Australian fashion designer Katie Perry who uses her own name to market loungewear. Some media outlets reported this as a lawsuit, which Katy Perry has denied on her blog. Katie Perry the designer reports on her blog that at a hearing with IP Australia on July 10, 2009, the singer's lawyers withdrew their opposition to the trademark. During the summer of 2009 Perry filmed a cameo appearance for Get Him to the Greek; her scene, in which she kisses her future fiancé Russell Brand was cut, and does not appear in the final film. Discussing the issue with MTV, Perry hypothesized there may have been some fear that seeing the two make out would have taken viewers out of the experience. In 2009, Perry was featured on two singles: a remix of Colorado-based band 3OH!3's song "Starstrukk" in August (the idea for the collaboration came after Perry's tour that featured 3OH!3 as the supporting act). The song was released over iTunes on September 8, 2009; and "If We Ever Meet Again", the fourth single off Timbaland's album Shock Value II in December. In October 2009, MTV Unplugged revealed that Perry was one of the artists to perform for them, and that she would be releasing a live album of the performance, including two new tracks, "Brick by Brick" and Fountains of Wayne cover "Hackensack". The album was released on November 17, and includes both a CD and a DVD.
2010–present: Teenage Dream
Perry appeared as a guest judge alongside
Simon Cowell,
Cheryl Cole and
Louis Walsh during the
Dublin audition stage of the
seventh series of the British television show
The X Factor on June 28, 2010 (later televised on August 28). She was one of the many celebrities chosen to fulfil the role of judge whilst
Dannii Minogue was on maternity leave. She later returned to the show on October 17 to perform "
Firework". Perry's second mainstream studio album was titled
Teenage Dream and was released in August 2010. The first single from the album was titled "
California Gurls". The single peaked at number one on the
Billboard Hot 100 and was the fastest rising single from a Capitol Records artist since
Bobbie Gentry's "
Ode to Billie Joe" in 1967. The cover art for
Teenage Dream is a painting by
Will Cotton in which depicts Perry lying naked on clouds of cotton candy; resembling the shots of Perry in the video for "California Gurls". The booklet of the physical edition of the album, in keeping with the theme of cotton candy, has a cotton candy scent. The album's second single "
Teenage Dream" was released in July 2010. "
Firework" is the album's third single.
Katy Perry appeared at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards on September 12, 2010. She was nominated for two awards and presented the award of "Best Male Video" with Nicki Minaj to Eminem. On September 14, she returned to her old high school, Dos Pueblos High School, where she performed a short set for the school's students. Perry performed "Hot n Cold" with Elmo from Sesame Street, which was originally to appear on the forty-first-season premiere of the educational children's program on September 27, 2010. However, four days before the scheduled airing, Sesame Workshop announced, "In light of the feedback we've received on the Katy Perry music video ... we have decided we will not air the segment on the television broadcast of Sesame Street, which is aimed at preschoolers. Katy Perry fans will still be able to view the video on YouTube." The main reason was that parents complained about what appeared to be a great amount of cleavage shown by her dress. Perry shot the video for Firework in Budapest in September 2010. An open casting call drew an unprecedented 38,000 applicants. She proceeded to perform at a concert in Budapest on October 1, her first concert in Central and Eastern EuropePerry has announced her own fragrance to be released in autumn of this year, named "Purr". It will come in a cat-shaped bottle, and will be available through Nordstrom stores.
Musical style and themes
Perry has a
contralto vocal range. Among Perry's musical influences are
Alanis Morissette,
pop rockers
Cyndi Lauper,
Pat Benatar,
Joan Jett,
Shirley Manson, and
Freddie Mercury, Perry expects to record more pop songs for her next album.
Perry is artistically involved in her projects, especially in the writing process. Since she could play guitar, she would start writing songs at home and present it to her producers. Perry is mostly inspired by specific moments of her life. She said it is easy for her to write songs about heartbreak. The songs have been respectively labeled as being homophobic and promoting homosexuality, as well as "lez ploitational".
Public image
Perry is known for her unconventional style of dress. Her fashion has caught the attention of designers, who were giving her nearly as much attention as fans of her music. The picture was defended as only an effort to give Perry a "sexy, harder edge". She has appeared in FHM Magazine's 100 Sexiest Women poll twice, ranking at #23 in 2009 and #37 in 2010.
Personal life
Perry dated
Gym Class Heroes frontman
Travie McCoy, whom she met in a recording studio in New York, on and off for several years. After more than a year of friendship and casual dating, they became serious with their relationship right before they embarked on the 2008
Warped Tour. Perry and McCoy broke up in December 2008. The two began dating again in early 2009 and broke up again a few months later. Perry first met British comedian
Russell Brand in the summer of 2008 when Perry filmed a cameo for Brand's film
Get Him to the Greek. Perry and Brand began dating after meeting again in September 2009 at the
MTV Video Music Awards, where Brand, as host, remarked, "Katy Perry didn't win an award and she's staying at the same hotel as me, so she's gonna need a shoulder to cry on. So in a way, I'm the real winner tonight." The couple became engaged in December 2009 when Brand proposed to Perry while vacationing in India. In a July 2010 YouTube interview, Perry said Brand would be a "perfect" father. Perry has stated that she plans to take dual
British citizenship when she marries Brand. "One of the first things I'll do is apply for
dual citizenship. I'm not too sure if I have to take a test as I've not had time to look into it. But England is like my second home". Perry and Brand married on October 23, 2010 near the Ranthambhore tiger sanctuary in
Rajasthan, India, the same location where Brand had proposed. They were married in a traditional
Hindu ceremony.
Discography
Katy Hudson (2001)
One of the Boys (2008)
Teenage Dream (2010)
Tours
Hello Katy Tour (2009)
California Dreams Tour (2011)
Filmography
Television
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Year
!Title
!Role
!class="unsortable"|Notes
|-
|2008
|
|Herself
|Episode 8914
|-
|2008
|
Wildfire
|Herself
|"" (Season 4, episode 8)
|-
|2010
|
American Idol
|Guest judge
|"
Season 9, episode 5"
|-
|2010
|
The X Factor
|Guest judge
|"
Series 7, episode 2"
|-
|2010
|
Sesame Street
| Herself
| Online special (deleted from televised episode)
|-
|2010
|
The Simpsons
| Herself
| 1 episode, "
The Fight Before Christmas"
|-
|2011
|
How I Met Your Mother
| Zoey's cousin
| 1 episode, "Oh Honey"
|}
Films
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Year
!Title
!Role
! class="unsortable"|Notes
|-
|2011
|
|
Smurfette
|Voice
|-
|2011
|
|TBA
|Cameo
|-
|}
Awards and nominations
References
External links
Official website
Category:1984 births
Category:Living people
Category:2000s singers
Category:2010s singers
Category:21st-century actors
Category:Actors from California
Category:American bloggers
Category:American Christians
Category:American contraltos
Category:American dance musicians
Category:American female guitarists
Category:American female pop singers
Category:American film actors
Category:American musicians of German descent
Category:American people of Portuguese descent
Category:American pop rock singers
Category:American singer-songwriters
Category:American voice actors
Category:BRIT Award winners
Category:Capitol Records artists
Category:English-language singers
Category:Female rock singers
Category:Musicians from California
Category:People from Santa Barbara, California
Category:The X Factor judges
