Katy Perry dodged a question about working with Dr. Luke on her forthcoming album 143 by citing women’s empowerment and claiming her upcoming songs were written from her own experiences.
During an appearance on the podcast Call Her Daddy, host Alex Cooper mentioned many people “were really upset” about Perry’s choice of producer and asked, “Why did you choose to work with him?”
Perry replied without mentioning Dr. Luke by name and downplayed his contributions. “I understand that it started a lot of conversations, and he was one of many collaborators that I collaborated with,” she said. “The reality is, it comes from me.”
Continuing to lean into women’s empowerment language and lamenting the male “narcissists” that have dotted her career, Perry added, “I am speaking from my own experience. The truth is, I wrote these songs from my experience of my whole life going through this metamorphosis, and he was one of the people to help facilitate all that.”
Last year, Dr. Luke settled a lengthy legal battle with singer Kesha in which she accused him of sexual assault, harassment, and gender violence. Perry’s reunion with the producer has caused many listeners (us included) to question why an era seemingly centered on women’s empowerment would need to include a figure like Luke behind the boards.
Further addressing lead single “Woman’s World,” Perry said it was about “feeling so empowered now, as a mother, as a woman, giving birth, creating life, creating another set of organs.”
After “Woman’s World” took a freefall off the charts, Perry was briefly under investigation for the filming process behind her music video for “Lifetimes.” 143 is still expected to arrive September 20th.
Listen to the full episode below.