Katy Perry
Katy Perry is a singer who rose to prominence in 2007-2008 due to provocative song titles such as UR So Gay and I Kissed A Girl. Perry is actually a stage name, and her real name is Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson. The reason for inventing a stage name is that it was felt her real name "Katy Hudson"was too similar to the actress Kate Hudson.
Fast Facts
- Katy was born on 25 October 1985.
- In real life, she's dating Gym Class Heroes singer Travis McCoy, and appeared as his girlfriend in the Cupid's Chokehold video.
- She became the focus of a tabloid controversy when a publicity photo of her posing with a flickknife was discovered. She fought back on her blog by posing for a picture with a spoon.
- Startlingly, she is the daughter of two pastors and initially persued a career in Christian music before turning her attention to pop music.
Early Years
Perry was born on 25 October 1985, the middle child of two pastors in Santa Barbara, California. Naturally, her early influences were gospel and church music, but she cites a Queen album as triggering a change in musical direction. She released a Christian gospel album in 2001 named Katy Hudson.
Influences
Perry cites her influences as starting with Queen and including Alanis Morissette, Heart and Joni Mitchell. She namechecks other female artists such as Cher, Cyndi Lauper, Pat Benetar, Joan Jett and Shirley Manson.
Musical Career
Perry was involved in the music industry, working for the record production company The Matrix in 2004, and also writing songs with Glen Ballard with a view to releasing an album. However, interest in Perry continued to rise and fall without a breakthrough until 2007, when she signed to Capitol records and released an EP titled UR So Gay.
The song attracted controversy for perceived homophobia, but was also praised by Madonna as "my favourite song right now", which resulted in major attention for the singer.
One Of The Boys
Katy has worked with an array of famous songwriters such as Cathy Dennis, Greg Wells, Dr. Luke, Butch Walker, Max Martin, Dave Stewart, and Ted Bruner to write songs for her album.
Two singles have been released from One Of The Boys: I Kissed A Girl was the first release, followed by Hot N Cold.
The album was released on 17 June 2008.
On 18 February 2009, Katy won the Brit Award for Best International Female Solo Artist against other nominees including Beyoncé Knowles, Pink, Gabriella Cilmi and Santogold.
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