Teenage Dream: Katy Perry

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Everyone at one point in his or her life experienced or is experiencing being a teenager. A period of insecurity and self-doubt, the teenage years have us begging someone to inspire, entertain, agree with, and shock us. Many teenagers today find their inspiration in music and in specific artists, such as Katy Perry. Katy Perry plays the role of a teen-idol on stage, producing songs of empowerment and living in the moment that both teenagers and adults desire to hear. However, Katy Perry has not always been such a mainstream source of inspirational and upbeat music. The history of her persona and direction of her music has changed over the years, her most popular stage behavior has been that of a vintage, candy-clad beauty queen, and her persona identifies with everything teenagers desire.
Katy Perry has possessed many stage personas in her career, first producing music under a Christian label as the daughter of a pastor, and moving on to produce controversial songs such as “I Kissed a Girl” and “Last Friday Night.” The staff at NPRmusic wrote on Perry’s transformation saying,”Her fans know her current career is actually a second take. She first tried her hand in the music world as a teenager, making Christian music as Katy Hudson. She released an album in 2001, which failed to break through.” (NPR Staff). Although the career of Katy did not take off when she produced music as the sweet daughter of a pastor, she later turned around to attract audiences all over the world with her teen-idol persona.
It was in 2008, when Katy Perry released her album “One of the Boys” when her now famous teen-idol persona was introduced to the world. Beginning with the release of that album, Katy Perry began portraying herself in a different ...

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...lities combined, I think she is a perfect source of entertainment for teenagers, with her guilt-free songs that only toe the line of what is acceptable. Moving on from her first failed album under the Christian music label, Katy Perry will always be remembered for her unpredictable, borderline costumes and incredible performances, and as she ages her lyrics will most likely begin to deepen but continue to keep adolescents singing along and finding wisdom within the music.

Works Cited

Lemoine, Yoann. Katy Perry “Teenage Dream.” Capitol Records, 2010. Music Video.
Perry, Katy. “Katy Perry On The 180 That Saved Her Career.” NPR. NPR Staff, 2013. Web. 13 Nov. 2013.
Perry, Katy. “Katy Perry grows up a little on 'Prism': 'I'm ready for my 30s'.” Los Angeles Times. Mikael Wood, 2013. Web. 13 Nov. 2013.
Perry, Katy. Teenage Dream. Capitol Records, August 24, 2010. CD

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