I remember the first time I saw the video and heard the song “I Kissed a Girl.” It was emailed to me by a publicity person for Katy Perry, whom I had never heard of before. I thought “this song is crap and the video doesn’t even have women kissing in it.” I didn’t think it would be popular at all, and of course I was wrong. “I Kissed a Girl” was Katy Perry’s first hit and while I questioned her talent then and several times afterwards, she certainly has ambition and worked hard for her fame. When she first hit the scene we heard that Katy came from a strict religious upbringing, her dad is a preacher, and that she started out singing gospel music. She seemed to break free from her background and her parents stuck by her and became more progressive along with their daughter. I didn’t know that “I Kissed a Girl” was at all autobiographical, and if it was it wasn’t that scandalous. It sounds like an ode to drunkenly kissing your best friend to turn on a guy. “I hope my boyfriend don’t mind it.” It doesn’t come across as a sexual awakening, more like a dabbling, but maybe that was because Katy wasn’t particularly open about it at the time. At the Human Rights Campaign gala in LA over the weekend, where she was honored with a National Equality Award, Katy described struggling with an attraction to women while she was growing up and praying about it so that it would go away. She said that she did more than just kiss a girl:
Katy Perry opened up last night about her religious childhood at the Human Right Campaign Gala in downtown Los Angeles.
The gay rights lobbying group honored the pop singer with its National Equality Award.
“I’m just a singer and songwriter, honestly,” Perry said. “I speak my truths and I paint my fantasies into these little bite size pop songs. For instance, ‘I kissed a girl and I liked it.’ Truth be told, I did more than that.”
“However,” she continued, “But how was I going to reconcile that with a gospel singing girl raised in youth groups that were pro-conversion camps? What I did know was I was curious and even then I knew sexuality wasn’t as black and white as this [Rasario] dress. And honestly, I haven’t always gotten it right but in 2008 when that song came out I knew that I started a conversation and a lot of the world seemed curious enough to sing along, too.”
While Perry said she spent her adolescence trying to pray “the gay away in my Jesus camps,” things began to change when she made her foray into the mainstream music world. “I found my gift and my gift introduced me to people outside my bubble and my bubble started to burst,” she said. “These people were nothing like I had been taught to fear. They were the most free, strong, kind and inclusive people I have ever met.”
I like when celebrities admit that sexuality isn’t black and white in their experience. It would be impressive if Katy identified as bisexual at some point, if she does identify that way, but she doesn’t need to and that’s a personal decision. Good for her for discussing this and for being open about how just knowing about conversion therapy before she was even subjected to it made her feel like she was wrong and needed to be “saved.” I do have to say that I don’t think “I Kissed a Girl” was groundbreaking at all. Jill Sobule did it better in 1995.
Whenever Katy speaks, I think of the line from Hamilton: “Talk less, smile more.”
I love her dress.
She must want headlines , I thought she talked about this on Howard Stern or some radio show years ago?
She usually trots out some variation of this when she’s between boyfriends. The haircut must not have elicited the coverage she wanted, there’s no new man, so..,
She’s a show pony. Truth or not she will always give her audience a good performance.
She looks less then 100% healthy in the pics or is it bad lighting?
You’right. She does not look her best on this pic. Her hairdo is less than flattering too. She usually looks beautiful so it must be the lighting. I love Katy. She is so talented. It is also discouraging to me her feud with Taylor Swift. How can two amazing artists like themselves tear each other apart? If they join forces they would rule the world.
Do we have to like everyone? I loathe Taylor Swifts pseudo ‘squad’ crap which is just a cover or a mean girl barricade. So what she disagrees with everyone- ladylike ain’t her thing.
I don’t believe her. I think she is pandering to her audience. I don’t know why, just don’t think she is sincere.
These were my thoughts, exactly.
I think it just seems like weird timing? She’s been a really big star for quite a while now – and her music hasn’t been as great lately. And now she pulls it out.
If it’s that this is when she finally feels comfortable talking about it – then no shade. That’s completely respectable. But there’s a certain amount of me that just feels like it’s pandering when she doesn’t have a lot going on compared to what she used to.
That’s how it came across to me as well.
Same.
Honestly that was my first thought too. I don’t know why but my gut instinct was that this is for attention.
Either way, if it helps someone feel less alone, that’s good, but Katy still needs to apologize for her insensitive comments regarding Britney.
Agreed! Ambiguous wording reminds me of the Cate-Blanchett-alluding-to-relationships-with-women-when-promoting-Carol mess
I don’t think it’s pandering. She’s defiently very attuned with the LGBT cause. a lot of pop divas love their gay males, Katy actually has a lot of lesbians in her crew and amongst her bffs.
Same here.
I believe her. Her family are crazy crazy religious. There was no room to be anyone other than that in her family. It must have been terrible for her
If this was someone ‘serious’ saying this we would have no problem
How can we q her own detailing of her sexuality and struggles in a hyper Christian household?
Sure, This is marketing. Stay in the headlines, if the ridiculous cupcake bras get boring, pretend to be gay. Shes only in the news for superficial reasons to begin with. She is the most monotonic “singer” ever.
Also, its rather normal for most people to experiment, so who cares. Means nothing…
I’ll be dragged for this but I side eye this. Like you pointed out the whole “Kissed A Girl” song sounds like some nonsense anthem for drunk girls that use bisexuality to turn on straight guys. This was not some kind of LGBT anthem to bring visibility to anything worth a damn. This song was released when so many actresses were doing men’s mag interviews saying they like girls which came off as a ploy to link themselves to the straight male fantasy of two chicks being together.
She just seems like any another celeb using the LGBTQ to make themselves come off as edgy ( ex. Nick Jonas, Miley, Nicki Minaj, etc). I am just weary of these actresses and singers saying they are bi; it just seems like a marketing ploy and not authentic at all. Besides at this point I’ll be more moved when a famous A-list male celeb comes out as bi.
This is what I was thinking too.
In all fairness, I don’t really care for her. I think a lot of what she does is just attention seeking. Maybe I just can’t see past my own bias.
if you read my comment down, i sort of agree with you. BUT, i’d be careful to imply that women are just doing it for attention, unless you have some evidence of it. i’m bisexual, and you know how often my sexuality gets denied both in the lgbt+ community (especially in the lgbt+ community) and otherwise? generally, i believe straights have absolutely no business assessing lgbt+ sexuality to begin with, so tread lightly (unless you’re lgbt+ too, then speak from experience).
I was only talking about some women who are in the entertainment business, not women as a whole. Maybe it is just the way they go about talking or presenting it that makes them seem so fake. I know bisexuality exists.
But as Ell points out we have no way of knowing if this is a performance or real. In this case we must err on the side of caution. It doesnt hurt the cause to let Katy into the umbrella but it does reinforce bi erasure practises to challenge the very words out of her mouth. Afterall, there is no rule book on what bisexual or bicurious people must look or act like.
@Jinni Well Nick Jonas never actually said anything about attraction to or relationships with the same sex, he just made some type of coy (and kind of stupid) “I’ve played a gay male character on a TV-show, so I count as one-type comment. It’s easy to see why that comment would be side-eye inducing from anyone. And Nicki Minaj DID once admit that very early on in her career, she pretended to be bisexual for attention (also side-eye inducing, but at least she was honest about it later on). But it doesn’t make as much sense to dismiss one woman who’s talking about her own attraction to and sexual history with women (Katy Perry), and another who’s discussed attraction/feelings and hiding past relationships with women/girls, but who straight up identifies as pansexual (Miley Cyrus) as pretending to be bisexual just because they’re also flashy celebrities (which means being paid attention-seekers.) Of course it’s a given that all celebrities who are out there giving interviews, walking red carpets, yadda yadda yadda are trying to market themselves and draw attention in some way, but when celebrities discuss straight relationships/sexuality, people are usually able to see that they can be people who are trying to draw attention to something related to them AND be genuinely into hetero sex/relationships. I’m with Ell and Ramona on this.
Oh, I completely agree with you! I had the same thought as you regarding the straight drunk girls. I also think she’s being coy with the “I did more than that” comment. A hand on a breast over the clothing constitutes more than a kiss but admitting to that isn’t edgy enough.
I always thought she experimented, IIRC she hinted at it during promo for the single but then backtracked.
Oh much gosh, the Jill Sobule I kissed a girl. My brother and I used to laugh so hard at the video. He thought Jill was callinlg Fabio a girl because he was in the video.
…yeaaaah. i mean, as a bisexual i’m so not here for straights talking about their bi-curiosity. we have enough people, especially in the lgbt+ community, telling us we don’t exist or that we’re greedy and confused, without the likes of katy perry and similar lot talking out of their arse. you either talk about bisexuality from your experience and own up to it, like evan rachel wood or anna paquin, or just shut up.
I can’t stop side eyeing her. I want to support her story because I think bi girls get a lot of flack, especially questioning about oh she’s really straight or whatever.
Is it because shes so insincere? That stupid song was 100% about trying on homosexuality to be extra sexy to a hetero guy. I’ve always found that kind of attitude gross and a turn off. I’m going to do sexy stuff because I want it. ME. Not to impress someone else with a performance.
There’s a huge difference between the straight girl trying to kiss you because she wants to impress some boys, and a girl who wants to kiss you because she’s into you.
Katy wants to impress. Her timing is very suspect as well.
most generous read: 45 winning has really shaken her and she feels the need to be honest and support the lgbt community.
most cynical read: she wants attention so shes further capitalizing on the male fantasy of two hot girls making out while thinking about dick.
pandering to the gays. her new music is failing terribly on the charts. she’s old news. her career is about to take a huge tumble just like lady gaga.
Uh, this is the same person who gifted us with “Ur So Gay”, right?
Exactly, my mind also went immediately to that song.
Also I was willing to support her for being so politically active in the last months but not anymore after making fun of Britney’s mental breakdown.
my thoughts exactly. she’s a fake.
and her latest single? oh dear…the lyrics! I just rool my eyes sooo hard whenever I get to hear it (at the gym, at the gym. I’m not a fan). she’s such a hypocrite.
im glad yal are calling her out…bec i been saying for a while…. when all else fails appropriate gayness and blackness (thanks miley, and katy-this is how we do video) and get BACK into the headlines…. sickening.
Stuff like this sometimes make people to not take LGBTetc seriously….because they are always looked as sexual and a twisted fantasy and or pandering, when in actually they are just people who love differently. Katy kinda lost me on her revelations and it feels like attention seeking….idk just not sincere.
Can’t someone do something problematic like appropriating black, Japanese, or other cultures of the world but still also experience attractions, sex, and romance with both sexes though?
It seems like there’s a little flipside to homophobia/sapphophobia that goes on with the left where instead of it being a matter of being classified as ‘sinners’, adult women who want to discuss their bisexuality have to be perma-woke, private ‘saints’ who never say or do anything problematic and who never present themselves in a way or make decisions that people can’t stand in women (in this case, anything attention-seeking), or else they’re lying about their sexuality and their history, all in the hopes that erasing women who are too far from the meek, modest, never-problematic, intellectual, respectable ideal for women will ‘Get Us Taken Seriously & Change The Way We’re Treated’. It limits what bisexual women can be. Just like straights, we’re not a monolith. We’re just as diverse as everyone else. Some will be very private people who never end up exposing any type of stupidity, insensitivity, some will be celebrities who seem as un-attention-seeking and not in our faces all the time, and some won’t be those things.
Funny. Back then she used to say she has never even kissed a girl before. Huh.
I’m glad the prevailing thought is like : Ok Sis sure *eyerolls* We all gotta start demanding better from ourselves than this naked between Bfs Pandering
Thank you for the Jill Sobule reference. I said the same exact thing when Katy’s song first came out! “This has already been done, and Jill’s is better.”
The wedge of cheese hat front row at a MTV award show sealed the deal for me. She is a giant no & her gay revelation isn’t the least bit interesting. I want a new cycle of pop stars, the Katy’s & Nikki’s & Taylor’s are dusty.
I had never heard Jill’s version. Love the quote in the comments at the link you provided. As for Katy, I think she’s full of it and is just trying to get back into the headlines. I’m going to love it when people aren’t labeled by their sexuality any longer. (I’m bi.)
Here’s the quote for people who can’t click through: “I think Jill Sobule said it best:
“As a musician I have always refrained from criticizing another artist. I was, “Well, good for her.” It did bug me a little bit, however, when she said she came up with the idea for the title in a dream. In truth, she wrote it with a team of professional writers and was signed by the very same guy that signed me in 1995. I have not mentioned that in interviews as I don’t want to sound bitter or petty…
Okay, maybe, if I really think about it, there were a few jealous and pissed-off moments. So here goes, for the first time in an interview: Fuck you Katy Perry, you fucking stupid, maybe ‘not good for the gays,’ title-thieving, haven’t heard much else, so not quite sure if you’re talented, fucking little slut.
God that felt good.””
Really? Honestly, she’s always seemed totally into guys.
I don’t think of her as a dishonest person, but she really, really, really seems like she’s into guys. Maybe the Orlando Bloom pictures have made me think this.
So is she no longer gay? I get that she grew up in a strict household, but she seems so into guys that I wouldn’t think she’d have to pray anything away.
Although if she’s ambiguous in her sexuality, I guess that would explain her brief attraction to Justin Bieber.
I love her hair. That’s all I’ve got.
Katy Perry’s “I kissed a girl” sounds more like a mainstream glorified p0rn0gr@phic take on lesbian relations rather than anything groundbreaking on personal sexuality. It just sounds like a party song. Although I’ve heard cherry Chapstick is a euphemism for a certain sensitive female part, but I’m not sure.
I love the Jill Sobule song, and I think of it every time I see that song title!
That song was so my jam when it came out. I still have it on CD somewhere.
Even though I am a woman who has always been attracted to men, if I had a choice to sleep with Katy Perry or some homeless dude, I would pick Katy Perry.
I could be wrong but for some reason it’s easier and more acceptable for women to talk about their sexual fluidity. When men do it they lose their masculinity or something.
“I could be wrong but for some reason it’s easier and more acceptable for women to talk about their sexual fluidity.” With liberals, I think it’s more the opposite. People would totally believe a guy if he started talking about attraction to, sex with, or romance with other men, as long as he didn’t make a dumb comment like the one Nick Jonas did. Men seem to have to ‘prove’ their straightness more, while women seem to have to ‘prove’ their lack of straightness more.
I hope she has better taste in women than men…her picker is def broken!
Thank you for crediting Jill Sobule!