Katy Perry is being accused of ‘diverting attention’ and ‘gaslighting’ after breaking her silence over her controversial decision to collaborate with music producer Dr. Luke.
In June, it was revealed that Dr. Luke was among the producers attached to Perry’s upcoming seventh studio album, 143, and had co-written her feminist anthem, Woman’s World.
This sparked a backlash, as Katy’s partner Kesha had previously accused Dr. Luke of sexual and physical abuse. In 2014, he sued Kesha for defamation, but a settlement was reached in June 2023 before going to trial.
Since Katy’s new album focuses on “female empowerment,” many fans were left “upset” and “disappointed” by Dr. Luke’s involvement.
Katy first addressed the controversy on Wednesday’s episode of the Call Her Daddy podcast, telling host Alex Cooper that Dr. Luke is just “one of many” producers who help “facilitate” her music.
But she insisted the album is based on her own experiences, not those of those she works with, before bizarrely turning the conversation to how motherhood has “empowered” her as an artist.
Katy Perry is being accused of “deflecting attention” and “gaslighting” after she broke her silence on her controversial decision to collaborate with music producer Dr. Luke. She addressed the issue on the Call Her Daddy podcast on Wednesday.
Fans quickly took to social media to react to Katy’s comments, with many accusing the Teenage Dream singer of completely “ignoring” the question.
“The way he didn’t even answer the question lol,” one fan tweeted on X (formerly Twitter).
Another wrote: ‘She practically said nothing? Let’s not be fooled because she basically just revealed that she didn’t have to collaborate with him, it was her choice…’
Katy’s response was also criticized as an “evasion of classical principles” and one person noted that she “still chose to work with Dr. Luke even though she’s worked with several collaborators in the past.”
Some suggested it would have been better for Katy to “apologise” to her fans, as a last-ditch effort to salvage her once highly anticipated comeback.
“She could have apologized, now things are going to get worse for her,” wrote one X user.
Katy began her response by acknowledging the “conversations” her connection to Dr. Luke has sparked online in recent weeks.
“I understand that that started a lot of conversations. And he was one of the many collaborators that I collaborated with,” he said.
Since Katy’s new album focuses on “female empowerment,” many fans were left “upset” and “disappointed” by Dr. Luke’s involvement due to his settled legal battle with Kesha; Katy and Luke seen in 2014
Fans quickly took to social media to react to Katy’s comments, with many feeling the Teenage Dream singer completely “ignored” the question.
The Wide Awake singer insists that Luke is simply someone who helps her “facilitate” her music.
However, the I Kissed A Girl hitmaker, who has a four-year-old daughter Daisy with fiancé Orlando Bloom, insists her lyrics come from her own personal experiences and do not reflect the views of the producer.
Katy continued: “But the reality is that it comes from me.
‘The truth is I wrote these songs from my lifelong experience going through this metamorphosis, and he was one of the people who helped facilitate all of that: one of the writers, one of the producers.
‘I speak from my own experience.
“When I talk about Woman’s World, I talk about feeling so empowered now as a mother, as a woman, giving birth, creating life, creating another set of organs, a brain, a heart. I created a whole heart and I did that. I’m still doing that. And I’m still a matriarch. And I feel really grounded in that, and that’s where I speak from.”
Katy insists her music comes from a “place of celebration and love.”
He added: ‘I don’t feel like I have to make music.
“I don’t feel like I have to prove anything. I do it from a place of celebration and love.”
Katy’s response was also criticised as a “skirting of established principles” and one person pointed out that “she chose to work with Dr Luke despite having worked with several collaborators in the past.”
Perry’s collaboration with Dr. Luke sparked a huge controversy ahead of her long-awaited return.
In June, Rolling Stone The Grammy-nominated artist was reported to be collaborating with Dr. Luke, as well as Max Martin, Sarah Hudson and Stargate on her sixth album.
Perry “knew exactly the album she wanted to make and assembled the team to make it happen,” a Capitol Records source told the outlet of the collection of talent the former American Idol judge assembled for her first release since 2020’s Smile.
The online comments took aim at both Perry and Dr. Luke, who last year settled a defamation lawsuit with Kesha after she claimed in a 2014 lawsuit that he had sexually and physically abused her.
Kesha, whose full name is Kesha Rose Sebert, tweeted “lol” following the news that Perry and Dr. Luke would be collaborating.
Several followers speculated on the meaning of Kesha’s “lol” tweet. One speculated that she’s “laughing at Katy and her new song,” while another asked, “Is this Katy’s tone?”
Others were more understanding of Perry’s professional decision to collaborate with Dr. Luke.
Katy’s partner Kesha had previously accused Dr. Luke of sexual and physical abuse; Luke was spotted in 2013
She then sued Kesha for defamation in 2014, but a settlement was reached in June 2023 before going to trial; Kesha seen in 2016
“It will never be a ‘Women’s World’ because people like Katy Perry continue to support and encourage abusers in the industry like Dr. Luke,” one user said.
Another added: “I’m really shocked at how many Katy Perry fans are defending her over this Dr. Luke thing… by the way, it’s okay to hold your favorite artist accountable.”
One user said Perry had been calculating the move, as she “waited for the whole court process to be over before calling him out again.”
One user said they “wouldn’t listen,” while another said, “Some people make music with integrity, while others only care about getting number 1.”