Perdita
05-12-2008, 06:39
Whatever you think of Katy Perry, you could never accuse her of being boring. The daughter of California pastors first caught our attention with a song called 'Ur So Gay'; she reached number one this summer with one about kissing a girl; and then she hit the headlines again after posing with a knife in a publicity photo. As her stonking new single 'Hot N Cold' beds down in the top ten, we hooked up with Perry to find out whether she means to be quite so provocative.
Is 'Hot N Cold' about a real relationship?
"Yeah, a very real relationship! I was with this boy I really, really cared for and we'd be having a conversation by text or by email and then he'd just disappear. For like three days! It would drive me crazy 'cause I'd be like, 'Where'd you go? I thought we were making plans for this weekend?' I realised this guy was the moodiest mother*******er I ever met and honestly that's all it came down to. He changed moods like he was going through the menopause."
How did it all end?
"It basically ended with me going, 'Alright, I'm done', and then when I said I was done he figured it all out. I'm still in touch with him but I don't think he knows the song's about him. Sometimes I tell the boy if a song's about him, but sometimes I let it remain a mystery."
Have you got to grips with the incredible success of 'I Kissed A Girl' yet?
"Umm... no! The other day I was in Canada and I was grabbing some food with my band at this restaurant. We were just eating and I noticed the waiters had this quote on the back of their shirts and the quote said: 'I've kissed more girls than Katy Perry.' It was the most random thing I've ever seen in my life! I was like, 'What's happening? Who did this? Is this a joke? Am I being Punk'd right now?' When I see little things like that I think, 'What did I do?'"
Will you ever retire the song? Can you imagine singing it when you're 50?
"Well, Madonna's 50 and she still sings 'Like A Virgin'. I don't think I'll ever retire the song to be honest. I still really enjoy singing it because it makes peoples' faces light up - and of course you don't bite the hand that feeds you."
With 'I Kissed A Girl', 'Ur So Gay' and the knife incident, you're someone who really gets people talking. Do you aim to this provocative?
"Well, I know that I enjoy being charismatic and I enjoy entertaining. You know, sometimes people are quite a bore and you leave their show after three songs because you've essentially seen the whole show. I never want people to come to my show and leave in the middle of my set because they think they've understood it. I want to keep people wanting more and I have a very cheeky, dark sense of humour. My music definitely isn't background music. It's fair to call me provocative, but that's not the term that I aim to live by necessarily."
A lot of the songs on your album are about the different ways boys and girls behave. Is that something you find fascinating?
"Definitely. That's one of life's ultimate mysteries - the communication between men and women. You know, we're all in the hustle of life to find love and I find it interesting to watch how people interact with each other. I like to write about what I go through in my life and it's very easy for me to talk about my life and my relationships."
What do you look for in a guy?
"What's most important for me is that he can be the leader. Basically I need a guy with balls because I've got a big pair of balls myself. I want somebody who's got enough balls to say no to me sometimes - I find it boring when guys always say yes to me. I definitely want somebody who inspires me and can teach me, and of course a good sense of humour is important."
Have you had much attention from guys since you became famous?
"Here and there, but my boyfriend is 6'5" and covered in tattoos so I don't get a whole lot of attention from guys. They're pretty much scared s**less - thanks baby! I do get people asking for kisses of course which I find very cute and very endearing."
How do you want people to react when they think of Katy Perry?
"I want them to smile - generally that's all I care about. You can smile because you find me silly or goofy, or you can smile because maybe one of the songs on my album has meant something to you. It's cheesy I know but I don't care."
Katy Perry's single, 'Hot N Cold', and album, One Of The Boys, are both out now.
Is 'Hot N Cold' about a real relationship?
"Yeah, a very real relationship! I was with this boy I really, really cared for and we'd be having a conversation by text or by email and then he'd just disappear. For like three days! It would drive me crazy 'cause I'd be like, 'Where'd you go? I thought we were making plans for this weekend?' I realised this guy was the moodiest mother*******er I ever met and honestly that's all it came down to. He changed moods like he was going through the menopause."
How did it all end?
"It basically ended with me going, 'Alright, I'm done', and then when I said I was done he figured it all out. I'm still in touch with him but I don't think he knows the song's about him. Sometimes I tell the boy if a song's about him, but sometimes I let it remain a mystery."
Have you got to grips with the incredible success of 'I Kissed A Girl' yet?
"Umm... no! The other day I was in Canada and I was grabbing some food with my band at this restaurant. We were just eating and I noticed the waiters had this quote on the back of their shirts and the quote said: 'I've kissed more girls than Katy Perry.' It was the most random thing I've ever seen in my life! I was like, 'What's happening? Who did this? Is this a joke? Am I being Punk'd right now?' When I see little things like that I think, 'What did I do?'"
Will you ever retire the song? Can you imagine singing it when you're 50?
"Well, Madonna's 50 and she still sings 'Like A Virgin'. I don't think I'll ever retire the song to be honest. I still really enjoy singing it because it makes peoples' faces light up - and of course you don't bite the hand that feeds you."
With 'I Kissed A Girl', 'Ur So Gay' and the knife incident, you're someone who really gets people talking. Do you aim to this provocative?
"Well, I know that I enjoy being charismatic and I enjoy entertaining. You know, sometimes people are quite a bore and you leave their show after three songs because you've essentially seen the whole show. I never want people to come to my show and leave in the middle of my set because they think they've understood it. I want to keep people wanting more and I have a very cheeky, dark sense of humour. My music definitely isn't background music. It's fair to call me provocative, but that's not the term that I aim to live by necessarily."
A lot of the songs on your album are about the different ways boys and girls behave. Is that something you find fascinating?
"Definitely. That's one of life's ultimate mysteries - the communication between men and women. You know, we're all in the hustle of life to find love and I find it interesting to watch how people interact with each other. I like to write about what I go through in my life and it's very easy for me to talk about my life and my relationships."
What do you look for in a guy?
"What's most important for me is that he can be the leader. Basically I need a guy with balls because I've got a big pair of balls myself. I want somebody who's got enough balls to say no to me sometimes - I find it boring when guys always say yes to me. I definitely want somebody who inspires me and can teach me, and of course a good sense of humour is important."
Have you had much attention from guys since you became famous?
"Here and there, but my boyfriend is 6'5" and covered in tattoos so I don't get a whole lot of attention from guys. They're pretty much scared s**less - thanks baby! I do get people asking for kisses of course which I find very cute and very endearing."
How do you want people to react when they think of Katy Perry?
"I want them to smile - generally that's all I care about. You can smile because you find me silly or goofy, or you can smile because maybe one of the songs on my album has meant something to you. It's cheesy I know but I don't care."
Katy Perry's single, 'Hot N Cold', and album, One Of The Boys, are both out now.