Current:Home > reviewsKaty Perry defends new song 'Woman's World' as 'satire' amid terrible reviews -MacroWatch
Katy Perry defends new song 'Woman's World' as 'satire' amid terrible reviews
View
Date:2025-04-14 07:39:50
Katy Perry's latest song is more "bore" than "roar," according to critics.
The Grammy-nominated "Firework" singer, 39, is facing terrible reviews for her new song "Woman's World," the first single off her upcoming album "143," and its accompanying music video. After the Thursday release, she defended the video in an Instagram post, telling fans it was intended as satire.
The music video begins with Perry dancing with a group of women at a construction site. Emulating Rosie the Riveter, she flexes her muscles and sings, "It's a woman's world and you're lucky to be living in it." After Perry takes off her jacket, she is wearing shorts and an American flag bikini, and the video at one point cuts to an extreme close-up of her breasts.
The video takes a turn after an anvil drops on Perry. She is then re-inflated, now with bionic legs, and walks the streets as chaos unfolds around her. The video concludes with Perry riding away in a helicopter while holding the symbol of the female gender.
Viewers were unimpressed with the video in the YouTube comments, arguing that the song seemed like a parody of empowering feminist anthems. Others took issue with the fact that the video was still appealing to the male gaze with its dancers dressed in revealing outfits, despite its feminist messaging.
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
"This is what a feminist video clip would look like if made by a guy," one YouTube comment read, while another said, "This feels like a parody of girl boss feminism."
Amid the backlash, Perry indicated this was intentional and that the video is, in fact, a parody.
"YOU CAN DO ANYTHING!" she wrote on Instagram. "EVEN SATIRE!"
Katy Perrywears barely-there cutout dress for Vogue World: Paris
Perry also shared a behind-the-scenes clip from the set of the music video, where she explains what she was going for. "We're kind of just having fun being a bit sarcastic with it," the former "American Idol" judge said. "It's very slapstick and very on the nose."
In the clip, she also said that the video is meant to ironically depict her and the dancers claiming they're "not about the male gaze" when they "really are," and they're "really overplaying it." But followers didn't seem moved by this explanation.
"When you have to give this much of an explanation, the bit doesn't work," read one Instagram comment, which received over 4,000 likes. "We need female empowerment, not this!"
'American Idol'judges reveal must-haves for Katy Perry's replacement after season finale
Another follower commented, "I am a blue collar woman and this is embarrassing. This is a slap in the face to women. This is how men view us and you’re just fueling this. You are not helping women just stop."
Perry also faced backlash for collaborating on the song with Dr. Luke, the producer and songwriter whom Kesha accused of sexual assault. He denied the allegations and accused Kesha of defamation. On Instagram, one user commented that working with Dr. Luke on the song "is truly disrespectful to Kesha and every woman in the world."
Still, some of Perry's fans defended her and argued the song was being misunderstood. "YES. WISH MORE PPL UNDERSTOOD THE SATIRE," one follower wrote on Instagram.
Critics trash Katy Perry's 'Woman's World' as 'cringe' and a 'catastrophe'
Perry song's didn't fare much better with critics than it did with pop fans.
Pitchfork's Shaad D'Souza described the track as "unfathomably tepid" and "irritating at best" and said that the collaboration with Dr. Luke made it even more of a "monumental catastrophe."
The Cut's Cat Zhang, meanwhile, said that "Woman's World" is "so forgettable, so cringe, that it overshadows the blatant hypocrisy of having an alleged predator produce it," and in a one-star review, The Guardian's Laura Snapes wrote that the "garbage" track is "pandering nonsense."
It wasn't exactly a strong start to the rollout of Perry's album "143," which is set to debut on Sept. 20. It's her first studio album in four years following 2020's "Smile."
veryGood! (1726)
Related
- Residents worried after ceiling cracks appear following reroofing works at Jalan Tenaga HDB blocks
- Love Is Blind's Marissa George Debuts New Romance After Ramses Prashad Breakup
- Romanchuk wins men’s wheelchair race at NYC Marathon, Scaroni wins women’s event
- Karma is the guy in Indy: Travis Kelce attends Saturday night Eras Tour
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey treated for dehydration at campaign rally
- Health Risks Due to Climate Change Are Rising Dangerously, Lancet Report Concludes
- 9 Years After the Paris Agreement, the UN Confronts the World’s Failure to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Hi Hi!
- Voters Head to the Polls in a World Full of Plastic Pollution. What’s at Stake This Year?
Ranking
- Biden administration makes final diplomatic push for stability across a turbulent Mideast
- How Fracking Technology Could Drive a Clean-Energy Boom
- Alabama Mine Expansion Could Test Biden Policy on Private Extraction of Publicly Owned Coal
- Getting Out the Native Vote Counters a Long History of Keeping Tribal Members from the Ballot Box
- Current, future North Carolina governor’s challenge of power
- Is pumpkin good for dogs? What to know about whether your pup can eat the vegetable
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword, Save the Day (Freestyle)
- Oklahoma storms injure at least 11 and leave thousands without power
Recommendation
The Daily Money: Spending more on holiday travel?
Massachusetts firefighters continue to battle stubborn brush fires across state
Election Day forecast: Good weather for most of the US, but rain in some swing states
Video shows moment dog recognizes owner after being lost for five months in the wilderness
The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees
Dak Prescott injury update: Cowboys QB shares outlook for next week vs. Eagles
Dak Prescott injury update: Cowboys QB shares outlook for next week vs. Eagles
Britain has banned protests outside abortion clinics, but silent prayer is a gray area