KATY PERRY - "BON APPETIT" - Will Katy Prove Us Wrong?
I'm conflicted. I love Katy Perry and what she's done in the world of pop music. After all, no one can deny that her Teenage Dream album is one of the best pop albums of (at least) the past decade. She has hits for days.
Needless to say, I was eager and excited when she announced her return to music early this year, after a nearly 4-year hiatus since her Prism release. When she dropped "Chained To The Rhythm" in February, I was intrigued -- this was a new sound for her and it was cool to hear her voice on a politically-themed pop song, while still maintaining her Katy Perry essence.
While she was doing promo for this "comeback" single, she had mentioned how she would be doing what she called "purposeful pop" for this next go-around.
Then, she dropped "Bon Appetit" on April 27th, after a social media campaign which led Katy Cats to bake cherry pies and tweet the photos to her. Clever... kind of.
And then, she announced that the oh-so-trendy Migos would be tacked onto the track, as if she needed a hip hop feature.
(Lest we forget that most of Katy's BIGGEST hits were carried by herself -- "Firework," "Teenage Dream," "I Kissed A Girl," "Roar," "The One That Got Away," "Wide Awake"...)
It's almost like they were trying to replicate the success of "Dark Horse" with Juicy J or "E.T." with Kanye, but these lazy, forgettable Migos verses do not work.
"Bon Appetit" is riddled with sexual innuendos that instead of being witty, come across as tacky. The song sounds under-produced, yet, overproduced, at the same time. I'm not sure how that is possible, but I guess it is.
The song is the complete opposite of the "purposeful pop" Katy had promised, and to be honest, I'm disappointed.
Maybe it's because I know she can do better than this throwaway single and I think her fans deserve better. I want to see/hear Katy evolve. Now's the time and I would hope her supporters would agree.
A real fan can be critical of their "fave" and can still admit when they put out an unsatisfying single. In fact, I would hope that artists appreciate that more than fans who just say "YAAAAAAAAAAAAS ______" to everything they release.
But hey, maybe the rest of the album will prove me wrong? Where's Bonnie McKee at? Can we maybe give her a call? They made such an unstoppable team.
I still love you, Katy. I just want better.