Katy Perry is ‘pointing the fingers at everyone but herself’ after her comeback single, Woman’s World, failed to set the charts alight, according to insiders – who claim she is desperately scrambling to devise a new plan to save her musical comeback.
The singer, 39, released the lead single from her forthcoming seventh studio album 143 last Thursday, but the track – billed as an empowering feminist anthem – was quickly dismissed as unoriginal, hypocritical and formulaic.
The Teenage Dream hitmaker also faced criticism for the sexualized nature of the accompanying video, as well as her decision to work with music producer Dr. Luke, 50, after his highly publicized legal battle with Tick Tock singer Kesha, 37.
With the single plummeting down the US iTunes chart less than a week since its July 11 release, Katy is said to be ‘freaking out’ and demanding that her team go ‘back to the drawing board’ to save her album from suffering the same fate.
‘Katy is freaking out right now because she is very aware of the feedback that Woman’s World is getting,’ an insider exclusively told DailyMail.com. ‘She is pointing the fingers at everyone but herself, but it is her own fault.’
Katy Perry is ‘pointing the fingers at everyone but herself’ after her comeback single, Woman’s World, failed to set the charts alight, a source told DailyMail.com
The singer, 39, is ‘freaking out’ over the poor reception of the song which saw her team up once again with her frequent collaborator Dr. Luke, in the wake of his lawsuit with Kesha
The source claimed the biggest risk Katy had taken was reconnecting with Dr. Luke – the music producer who worked on her hit singles including 2008’s I Kissed a Girl and 2010’s California Gurls before later being accused of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse by Kesha.
The super producer, whose real name is Łukasz Gottwald, denied all allegations, including Kesha’s claim that he raped Katy – something she shut down.
A New York state judge ruled against Kesha in 2020 saying she had defamed her former producer with the claim, and an appeals court upheld that decision in 2021.
Music lovers have been vocal about their disdain for any artist choosing to work with the hitmaker following Kesha’s allegations, despite the pair reaching a settlement in 2023.
Some of Katy’s fans have defended the star by claiming she was forced to work with Dr. Luke due to contractual obligations. But Katy previously confirmed that she has no ties with the producer.
During her 2018 deposition for Kesha’s suit against Dr. Luke, Katy confirmed that she had only ever signed a three-album publishing deal with Dr. Luke’s Kemosabe Records and that the pair were no longer in a contractual relationship.
She also acknowledged what the public feedback would be if she chose to collaborate with Dr. Luke amid his battle with Kesha.
‘Working with him at this moment would mean – would not be – would not be received well because of this lawsuit,’ she stated.
When asked if she thought working with Dr. Luke would have a potential impact on the success of a future release, the Dark Horse singer responded: ‘[People would] protest against it, a smear campaign, just 20 different narratives than the one that I am.’
The insider dished to DailyMail.com: ‘Katy is freaking out right now because she is very aware of the feedback that Woman’s World is getting’
After DailyMail.com previously revealed that Katy had been warned not collaborate with Dr. Luke for the new album, the source confirmed that the Roar singer had ignored pleas.
Katy risked working with the producer in the wake of his lawsuit with Kesha (pictured)
‘She was insane to think that Dr. Luke was a good idea. She didn’t listen to anyone’, the insider stated. ‘Instead of diving deep and creating art she put something out that sounded like it could have been on an album of hers from 2010.’
Not only did the track see Katy team up with the producer, the track was also mainly written alongside men.
Dr. Luke, Aaron Joseph, Vaughn Oliver, and Rocco Did It Again! all co-wrote and produced the track – while Katy and Chloe Angelides are the only women who helped pen the song.
Not a single woman produced the album.
‘You don’t make a song about female empowerment with basically all men,’ the source said.
‘Katy cannot identify with other women because she lives in her celebrity bubble. She knows nothing about what it is like to be a woman in the real world.
‘She is not using her star power to make change in the world – she is using it to make money.’
Some of Katy’s fans claimed that the star is only working with Dr. Luke due to contractual obligations – but Katy previously confirmed that she has no contractual ties
The source continued: ‘She is pointing the fingers at everyone but herself, but it is her own fault. She was insane to think that Dr. Luke was a good idea’ (pictured in 2010)
Music fans have failed to connect with Woman’s World which only managed to debut at No. 110 on Spotify‘s US chart with 501,000 streams.
It faired slightly better on the Spotify global chart, landing at No. 58 with 2.26 million streams.
However by July 13, just two days after it was released, the song dropped out of the global charts and disappeared completely from the US charts.
Katy’s apparent response to critics who slammed the supposed message of the accompanying music video did little to help promote the lackluster single.
‘We’re kind of just having fun, being a bit sarcastic with it,’ she said in a clip from behind-the-scenes on set. ‘It’s very slapstick and very on the nose.
‘With this set it’s like, “Oooh, we’re not about the male gaze, but we really are about the male gaze.” And we’re really overplaying it and on the nose.’
In one of the more bizarre moments in the video, Katy is seen getting crushed when an anvil drops out of the sky. The flattened singer then goes on to re-inflate herself before she walks through a city wearing a futuristic look.
The former American Idol judge later explained the moment was meant as a ‘reset’ to help her embrace the ‘idea of feminine divine.’
With just weeks to go before she releases her new album, Katy is now desperately working with her team to ‘adjust’ the record in a bid to ensure a better reception.
The source claimed Katy is now demanding that they ‘go back to the drawing board’ ahead of the release of more singles and are even ‘adjusting the album right now’
The source explained: ‘Katy is now demanding that they go back to the drawing board ahead of the release of more singles and they are adjusting the album right now in a desperate attempt to salvage her comeback. She should be very grateful that they have three months to do this.’
It appears Katy is planning to give control over to the fans after she announced on Stationhead on July 14 that she would be creating a poll for her followers to help choose what her next single should be.
It is not yet clear how many other tracks from the new album feature Dr. Luke as a songwriter or producer.
143, which is the title is a code for ‘I love you’ which was often used in messages sent on pagers during the 1990s, will be released on September 20.
It will mark the star’s first album since 2020’s Smile, which did not replicate the success of her previous records.
When sharing information about her new album, known informally as KP6, Katy declared she was entering a ‘new era’.
