Sexy, Confident, and Kinda Disappointing
Katy Perry’s long-awaited comeback should have marked her return to the top of pop Olympus. Instead, it left many scratching their heads.
There was a time when Katy Perry was effectively infallible. Everything she touched instantly turned to gold, as if she were some sort of King Midas-like figure on the pop landscape, and no one else seemed to be able to reach the heights her career had managed to touch.
This era started with her sophomore album One of the Boys (her debut one being 2001’s Katy Hudson, but we don’t talk about Katy Hudson), exploded with the masterpiece that is Teenage Dream, and was reaffirmed by Prism. These records solidified her campy and flamboyant persona, catapulting her to the top of the music scene.
Then came 2017’s unjustly hated Witness, an album doomed from the start because of Katy’s blonde pixie cut – reminiscent of Bangerz-era Miley Cyrus – and because even before its release, was labeled by Perry herself as “purposeful pop”. Purposeful it was not, but it was nonetheless an enjoyable, albeit uneven, listening experience. 2020 was the year it all really came crumbling down, with Smile, her sixth studio album, being poorly received by critics and the public alike, and only peaking at number 5 on the Billboard chart.
Flop eras are something that plague every artist at some point in their careers, but it became apparent that something had gone missing in Perry’s musical endeavors, and that she had lost the glare that once made her a pop titan.
So it is more than understandable that expectations were sky-high for her long-teased return. Things, however, didn’t go as planned. The first teaser of her latest song titled Woman’s World was received rather poorly, while the second one, though it didn’t get the same level of hate, didn’t quite manage to turn things around for the lead single of her upcoming album, set to be released on September 20. Upon the release of Woman’s World, the whole planet—or, at least, X (formerly Twitter)—sighed in disbelief and despair: not only wasn’t the song what fans had been waiting for, but it committed the nastiest crime in contemporary music. It was soulless, and, worst of all, dated. In a world where pop icons often teeter between profound and perplexing, Woman’s World lands squarely in the latter category.
First, let’s address the elephant in the room: the lyrics. Perry’s attempt to encapsulate the female experience feels as genuine as a knockoff designer handbag. The opening lines read “Sexy, confident / So intelligent / She is heaven-sent / So soft, so strong,” sound more like they were penned in a marketing meeting than a moment of genuine inspiration. Perry then goes on to wink at the gays the same way she did with her viral “Wig!” clip from American Idol when she declares that “She's a sister, She's a mother!”, in what seems like an anxious attempt to regain the favor of the queer community, a favor that she appears to have lost. The song's message, while commendable in its intent, suffers from a lack of depth. It’s as if Perry took a crash course in Women’s Studies and then promptly forgot everything beyond the buzzwords, ultimately ending up with a song that feels aimed more at Facebook Moms than it does at the modern public.
Musically, “Woman’s World” is quintessential Perry. The production is polished to a high gloss, but much like a glittery accessory, it sparkles on the surface without offering much substance beneath. The chorus is catchy, yes, but it’s also repetitive to the point of redundancy. One could argue that the repetition is a metaphor for the persistence of women, but that might be giving the song too much credit. The music video, however, is a fashionista’s dream—if your dreams include a dizzying array of costumes that scream “look at me” without saying much else. It’s all very Katy Perry: over-the-top and visually stimulating, but ultimately hollow.
We cannot possibly discuss Woman’s World without mentioning the controversial involvement of Dr. Luke in its production. In 2014, singer Kesha sued Dr. Luke for sexual assault, harassment, gender violence, and emotional abuse. Dr. Luke denied these allegations and countersued for defamation, claiming Kesha, her mother, and her management fabricated the accusations to escape her record contract. A judge dismissed Kesha’s claims in 2016, but despite no convictions against him, he remains a controversial figure in pop music. His presence casts a shadow over the song, and the bitter irony of a single proclaiming the divine nature of women being simultaneously produced by an alleged abuser is not lost on anyone.
Critics have noted that Woman’s World feels like a missed opportunity. Perry has the platform and the voice to make a significant statement, yet she delivers a product that’s more style than substance. In the end, Woman’s World is an anthem that tries hard to resonate but ends up as a catchy, if superficial, tune. It’s the musical equivalent of a trendy piece of clothing that you wear once and then forget about, buried in the back of your closet. If you’re looking for a feminist anthem that truly moves the needle, you might want to keep shopping. Let’s see what Perry’s got in store for her upcoming era. It can only get better from here.
