Prevented from listening to pop music by her Evangelical Christian pastor parents, Katy Perry grew up on a strict diet of gospel music before prancing her way to international fame as a flirtatious starlet. Spotted singing in her parents' church at the age of 15, she honed her skills in Nashville and released an unsuccessful gospel rock album in 2001 under her real name Katy Hudson. She moved to LA, changed her name due to its similarity to actress Kate Hudson and reinvented herself as a bubbly, outspoken, pop minx. Her single 'Ur So Gay' won the admiration of Madonna before 'I Kissed a Girl' shot her to worldwide stardom in 2008.
Her debut album 'One for the Boys' produced further hits 'Waking Up in Vegas' and 'Hot N Cold' and she was invited to host the 2008 and 2009 MTV Europe Video Music Awards, causing a stir in her bizarre range of outfits. She also served as a judge on 'American Idol' and collaborated with Snoop Dogg on the single 'California Gurls' which earned her a number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The single's album 'Teenage Dream' gave her another number one and she went on to release the title track, 'Firework', 'E.T.' and 'Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)', all of which peaked at number one, with the final single 'The One That Got Away' making it to number three.
While filming a cameo appearance for the film 'Get Him to the Greek', she met her future husband, English comedian Russell Brand. They married in 2010 but after just 14 months they filed for divorce. Using the emotion garnered from this difficult time, Perry started writing her fourth album 'Prism'; the album and its title track went straight to number one. She performed the halftime show at the 2014 Super Bowl with Lenny Kravitz and Missy Elliott joining her as special guests. Her performance made it into the Guinness World Records as the most watched show in Super Bowl history, with an audience of 118.5 million people in the US.
Aside from performing, she also set up her own record label in 2014, voiced the character of Smurfette in 'The Smurfs' (2011) and its sequel 'The Smurfs 2' (2013), became a guest curator of Madonna's Art for Freedom initiative, starred as herself in 'Zoolander 2' (2016), and created her own brand of fragrance called Bad Potion.
Her fifth album, 'Witness', was released in 2017, preceded by the singles 'Chained to the Rhythm' and 'Bon Appétit'.
Artist biography compiled by BDS/West 10. All rights reserved
