- 2 months ago
Katy Perry looks back on The Lifetime Show—from 91 shows across five continents to the technical chaos (and joy) of performing it live and what fans can expect from her tour film, 'The Lifetimes Tour Live From Paris.'In this Billboard News interview, Katy opens up about fans, hits, vocals, 'Teenage Dream' success 16 years later, and what her new music means now.
Katy talks about building a “dance party” tour, why concerts feel like a “third space,” the toughest stunt (“the ball”), and why she embraces imperfect live moments in an increasingly “automated” world. She also shares what it was like performing in Montreal with Justin Trudeau in attendance, and reflects on honoring Dolly Parton—calling her an “earth angel” and celebrating her legacy. Plus, Katy revisits the impact of Teenage Dream—“Everest”—and the mindset powering her latest songs, including “Burn” and “Band-Aids.”
Katy talks about building a “dance party” tour, why concerts feel like a “third space,” the toughest stunt (“the ball”), and why she embraces imperfect live moments in an increasingly “automated” world. She also shares what it was like performing in Montreal with Justin Trudeau in attendance, and reflects on honoring Dolly Parton—calling her an “earth angel” and celebrating her legacy. Plus, Katy revisits the impact of Teenage Dream—“Everest”—and the mindset powering her latest songs, including “Burn” and “Band-Aids.”
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00:00When the documentary comes, y'all might see me in a different way, because in Montreal, it's like,
00:06I can't look at him. She's cute. She looks the same. She looks like she hasn't aged a day. Thank
00:12you, Cyan. She was an earth angel. An earth angel.
00:28I mean, this was so fun. Yeah, this was a big, big, big thing. I went five different continents,
00:3691 shows. 91? Yeah, from April to, I think it was December. It was so massive. And the
00:45first thing I want to ask you, because what's interesting to me is like, even that last moment
00:49watching you down here dance with the fans, it's like, okay, we all know what it's like to experience
00:53a Katy Perry show. But how does Katy Perry feel experiencing a Katy Perry show? Well, some people
01:01say that I'm the one that has the most fun at my shows because it looks like it. I do.
01:06I do have
01:07the most fun and I have the most fun learning it, but it's very technical and I have to always
01:11keep
01:11my head in the game. You know, I can't have any missteps and I have to hit certain marks
01:15and do certain cues and lighting and positioning and, you know, it's all a domino effect. So
01:20I'm very focused, but trying not to look so much. So I'm trying to look like, you know,
01:26just chill. It's chill. It's just like a muscle. And I know there's a part in the lifetime story
01:30you saw, you know, when you get to do the choose your own adventure that I get to be a
01:36little
01:41on dance party. I remember when I was planning this tour, that was like most important is
01:45to be as close as possible to the fans and to make it a dance party. And I hadn't seen
01:50them for over eight years. And I felt like I owed that to them, to that reconnect feeling.
01:56And I think we kind of delivered. We delivered.
01:58Yeah, we did. We should deliver, guys.
02:01And we flew all over them. I flew over them. I'm always on top of them. I'm always on top
02:06of
02:06them. Which seems so scary. We're definitely going to talk about that.
02:08But I do want to talk about what it is like for you to like kind of look back and
02:12reflect
02:12on this experience and watch it on the big screen, experiencing it, dancing with your
02:16fans. Like, I think like everybody in here probably has a favorite song they can't wait
02:20to see when you sing it. Like for me, I'm going to, I'm not going to lie. I almost died
02:24when you just teased us with Wonder right before Firework. Like that was the moment at the
02:28concert that I was like losing it. I was like, Wonder! So what is that moment for you?
02:32But hold on, Tetris. Have you been a Wonder stan pre-FIFA or after FIFA?
02:37Oh, pre-FIFA. The first time I ever heard Wonder, I was like third of them.
02:41Wonder was always going to get its moment. You know, we were just waiting for the right
02:44one because I have played a lot of sporting events and big events like that. And people
02:49have heard Roar and so many different renditions of Firework. And actually, they were the ones
02:53that were like, there was a Katie cat like working for FIFA.
02:56So I was like, why don't you play Wonder? And I was like, okay, let's play Wonder.
03:00I can do that. I can do that. I can bring T.S. out from Norway, sweetheart.
03:05But that's what I want to know is like when you watch the film back, what's the song you
03:09feel like you would lose it to the more as a Katie cat at a Katy Perry show?
03:14I think when you have a combination of like California Girls, Teenage Dream and TGIF,
03:19you're just there to party. You know, like the world is hard sometimes and a chaotic place and
03:27there's darkness and all this stuff. And you go to concerts to let go of all that and to escape.
03:32And yes, if you wanted to look through the layers of the messaging of the tour and there
03:39are subliminal messages and deeper messages and all my albums, all my fans know that they get,
03:44you know, you got the frosting, you got the different layers, but it takes a lot to bait
03:48the whole cake. There's a whole cake there. It's not just fluff and frosting. Look, I just know
03:52when I go to a show and I go to so many, you see me so many, because I'm such
03:56a fan of music,
03:57you better play your hits. Play the hits. I want to hear some things from the new album,
04:02but like not too much. Not unless that album has like been on the charts for like a hundred weeks
04:08plus, you know what I'm saying? And you have a lot of those too. No, I know, but I want
04:12to sing along.
04:13I want to connect with everyone under the same roof, these strangers. I feel like we're very,
04:17isolated in our own little echo chambers and everything. And when you get into these places
04:22where you're singing along with strangers right next to you, you know, that's very unique. That's
04:27different than your day-to-day life. Like how many of us are asking the name of the person that
04:32made
04:32us food or coffee or blah, blah, blah. You're sweating and singing along and kind of like sometimes
04:37really singing to your neighbor at these concerts. And so these, I think, concerts and sporting events,
04:43those third spaces where we all gather around and join together as strangers in kind of unity,
04:50that's like some unique energy. So I do got to talk to you about this because this tour was insane.
04:56And even watching it back on the screen tonight, all I could remember is when I was watching it at
05:00the forum and I was tired watching you because you're climbing, you're flying, you're running.
05:07Yeah. Like so much is happening on this tour. So how did you keep up with yourself? Like what was
05:12every night like for you physically? Oh, I was a lean, mean fighting machine. It was the leanest,
05:19most in shape I had ever been in my entire life. I was like, whoa, I feel like Madonna right
05:26here.
05:26You're like, damn. Because I had never seen these abs before. It's crazy. But running that stage is the
05:34biggest cardio. I mean, I think doing like 10 of those, 10 of those lapses a mile is anything that's
05:40big. In the very beginning, I feel super overwhelmed because it's big. I'll get to the show and I'll be
05:45like, oh my God, I sketched this on a napkin. This isn't supposed to be this big. This really came
05:51to
05:51life in a way that was much bigger than I thought. Whoa, be careful what you wish for because you
05:56will get it. And I got there and I was just like, I'm going to have to eat this elephant
06:01one bite at a time. And you just show up, keep showing up every day, a little by little. Then
06:05it turns into muscle memory, a little by little. Everybody thinks that you're going to learn
06:09something overnight, instantaneously. And it just takes repetitive. Like it's repetition,
06:16repetition, repetition, repetition. You just got to actually put in the repetition.
06:20And I mean, you talk about writing it on a napkin and creating those ideas. I even like
06:23watching you like with the lamp in the hotel and how you noticed it was infinity and everything.
06:27So once you've created this show, what is the one part of it that you were like,
06:33I kind of wish I didn't create this.
06:36The sphere, the ball, the ball was stressful. And it was so high up and it's a lot higher.
06:44And like to dance on a metal ball sphere, it's not easy. It's not easy. And so that was technically
06:54pretty difficult. And using that jungle gym and like going backwards and singing backwards and then
06:59like sliding under and, you know, doing the splits and doing everything with breath. You know, it's
07:06very athletic.
07:07Well, you talk about singing. Guys, how good did she sound on this tour?
07:14I mean, Katie, your vocals and, you know, sometimes the girls' mics don't be on, but your mic was on.
07:27You know, let me just tell you something. And this is for better or for worse. And this is
07:33me teeing something that my team is like, don't say it. Don't say it. Don't say it.
07:37Every artist does a little putting things in the can, right? Every single artist, every single artist,
07:45because they know, oh my God, I'm going to have to do this. And I think about all the time,
07:49because you also, you want to put some things in the can because you can get really sick on tour.
07:55And it's a big deal. And I always think, oh, this is the tour where I'm going to probably put,
08:00you know, a bunch of things in the can. And I just never end up doing it. I just create
08:04this
08:05stamina and not every note is perfect. Not every inflection is right. And never, not every ad lib is
08:14like the album, but in a world where everything is getting so fucking automated and so fucking perfect,
08:20it's nice to see a little color outside of the lines and character. And like, who wants a straight
08:27line? I mean, unless it's a part, right? I want a straight line if it's a part. That's a, yeah,
08:35yeah, yeah, yeah. But you know, it's just, that's life. Life is real. Life is authentic. And
08:41you know, I, I'm a performer, I'm a singer, but number one, I'm a storyteller. And so I just do
08:47what I have to do to tell the story. Yeah, we definitely heard it. And I do want to talk
08:51to
08:51you about the community that you built on the tour as well. You brought your family out. I love seeing
08:56like Daisy's little tour box with all that stuff in it. That was so adorable in the film. So what
09:01was it like to have that community and family vibe on this tour? Well, it was really important
09:06and wonderful for her to see her mom and her power. I think in the beginning of this tour,
09:14from the outside, and I know, you know, the fans are different, but the outside,
09:18everyone that wants to have a hot take, there were a lot of people betting against me, right,
09:23in the very beginning, and this and that, and she, this is how she danced, like, this is how I
09:27fucking dance, okay? What's up? I'm having fun. I am living my whole life. You want to call me the
09:34queen of cringe? I'm going to suck the fucking juice. Excuse my language. I am going to suck the juice
09:40out of
09:40every single one of these fruits on this life. I'm going to never have any regrets. I'm going to
09:47leave no stone unturned. I'm going to live my life to the fullest. I am not scared. You know,
09:53this is that one opportunity in this skin, you know, as this character, and I don't want to have
09:59any regrets, and it was wonderful for Daisy to see, and it wasn't always peachy keen jelly bean,
10:05right? There were days that were hard. I remember, oh, it was really, let me tell you,
10:10it was hard before July 28th, and then it got pretty, it got cute. It got really cute.
10:17I think we know what you're talking about. Yeah, I got cute. I went, I went to Canada.
10:22And then I got real cute, and then I was, like, floating like the butterfly on the butterfly.
10:28But before that, I remember it was actually the lowest part because it was my third winter. I was,
10:34like, you know, I was having a really tough time. And then, you know, after the hurricane,
10:41there did come the rainbow. You know, it's really weird how those cliches, it's like in your darkest
10:48times, like right, right after that, it was like, it's like, control all delete. I want to talk about
10:54that just briefly because what is it like for you at a tour when you have, like, important people
11:00coming to see you that aren't just your fans? You know, when you played your Montreal show,
11:05there was somebody very special that's also important in Canada that was at that show. I
11:10think you know what I'm talking about. So what, do you get nervous then?
11:13So I don't typically get nervous, and I have had a lot, I had a lot of people come see
11:17this show,
11:18and I love when my friends come because they don't believe that I work. And I'm like,
11:22how do you think I pay for everything? Let me show you. Right? I don't typically get nervous.
11:29Maybe I get some butterflies on the first show because it's all the things coming together. And,
11:33you know, because of social media, you have, you want to kind of get it right. There's,
11:37you can't really learn along the way. But in Montreal, you know, this is the Lifetimes tour,
11:44you know, when the documentary comes, y'all might see me in a different way. Because I was like,
11:50in Montreal, it's like, I can't look at him. I'll pass out. There's a lot of energy.
11:59I'm sure it was. I can't even imagine what that feels like.
12:01Today, we lost one of the best songwriters that ever lived, Miss Dolly Parton.
12:08One other quick question. You were just in Mexico, like yesterday.
12:12I came from Mexico today, yeah. That was wild. And I do want to say,
12:15that was a beautiful moment that you shared, tributing our very own Dolly Parton.
12:20Oh. How special is it for you on a tour, when you have those moments,
12:24to be able to acknowledge and do stuff like that on stage?
12:27Well, I mean, it's just like, it's such an, it's a lot of emotion to feel for everyone
12:33in a day. And I think we're all still processing, because she's such a light, and she was such a
12:39light.
12:39But her light ripples, and will forever ripple, and I think will shine even brighter now. And all
12:44the philanthropic work that she does, and all the young kids' literacy that she's done with
12:53sending books to preschoolers. Like, I don't know if everyone knows how mega that is. And all the
12:59different things she's helped behind the scenes, all the good work. She wrote 9 to 5. She did,
13:05you know, all those songs, Jolene. And I got to spend some time with her, and she was always so
13:11wickedly funny. It was amazing. She didn't seem like she ever had a bad day. And if anything,
13:17she would just make a little joke about it, right? She was an earth angel, an earth angel. So I
13:25think
13:25her legacy is one to follow and look up to forever. And I just think it's going to continue to
13:31expand.
13:31Oh, gosh. And I think everyone should emulate her. She's kind of like the bar.
13:36Can we make some noise for Dolly?
13:39And, so, you put out an album one time. It was a big one. It might have been sweet 16
13:47years ago,
13:48that you put out this album. Teenage Dream, have you guys heard of that?
13:53And, as we celebrate, as we look back on that album, what I want to ask you is like...
14:01I wish I was, girl. Thank you, though. You know, this skin. But, I think about, like,
14:06we were talking to Alex Warren the other day, and we talked about, like, how...
14:09Orbalary!
14:12How ordinary.
14:14No, it's orbalary for me. It's orbalary for me.
14:17Spending 10 weeks at number one. And then I think about Teenage Dream,
14:20and what a moment that was for you. Yeah.
14:21And having five singles from an album go number one, tying Michael Jackson. All of that, right?
14:27I remember I was on tour. I was on the California Dreams tour, and I was just like...
14:32I remember pacing between some... It was like one of... I forget which one had gone number one,
14:37but it was like the fifth one. And I walked into management, I was like, is this normal?
14:42Is this not? Does this happen? And they're like, no, this isn't normal. And I was like,
14:45okay, I don't really understand, but here I am. I'm gonna hold on to this rocket for dear life.
14:50And when you have a moment like that in your career, do you constantly think about that as you're
14:55listening to music? Or is this like, that was that moment, it lived there. And how do you reflect
14:59on Teenage Dream? After you have those moments, you try and see if you can do things like that.
15:07But eventually, you just have to get back to the art, and you have to get back to your authentic
15:12self.
15:13Teenage Dream was like an Everest, right? And I climbed it. And I saw the view. And there's so
15:20many other mountains with so many other views. I don't need to climb Everest twice to be like,
15:26I climbed Everest twice. Okay, well, once was enough. So I was just grateful that I had that. So many
15:32people don't. I'm grateful that I even had one hit, let alone all that. I'm grateful I got to wake
15:37up
15:37today. I'm grateful that I have a daughter. I'm grateful that I've got all of this opportunity.
15:43I'm grateful for my fans. I'm like gratitude every day, first thing out of my mouth. I say it every
15:48single day. Even on my crummiest days, I say it. I say it through my Invisalign and my mouth tape.
15:55And I go, thank you, God, for today. I'm so grateful in every way. And then I list off the
16:00things I'm grateful for, and my breath stinks, and my hair is a mess. And that's how I start my
16:04day,
16:05every morning. When you're wide awake. When I'm wide awake. Well, speaking of Teenage Dream,
16:13everybody. I think we have a little surprise to say Sweet 16 to Teenage Dream. She's cute. She
16:22looks the same. She looks like she has an age today. Thank you, Science. And you do still look
16:28the same. You look so good. So guys, make some noise for Teenage Dream right now. And then just to
16:35wrap things up, like, obviously, the new music is amazing. Thank you.
16:44It's very cathartic. Honestly, great excuse, great word to use, because I will say,
16:51every time I play Burn in the car, I go through a therapy session. Do you put your foot on
16:56the pedal
16:56a little heavier? I should not, but I do. I know. It's one of those heavy pedal foot songs. I'm
17:02going
17:02through therapy. You are. Well, with your music. Okay. I don't know. But as you're releasing
17:09that you did Band-Aids, what's next for you? What are you excited about? What do you want to share
17:13with your fans? I feel like I was clearing the path with those two songs. May the bridges that I
17:18burn
17:19light the way to where I go next. Yes. But you do have to clear the path a little bit.
17:26Some of that brush
17:26don't serve you anymore. And I had to get it out. Better out than in. I'm not trying to see
17:32that
17:33thing show up as something else. It's exercise the demons. And you're trying to watch it burn,
17:38girl. I watch it burn. And you know what? I had a long conversation with myself on if I was
17:44going to
17:44put that out, because it's personal, and there's a lot of nuances and things like that. And I'm always
17:51thinking of my family. And I was like, but you know what? I probably should do it for that other
17:59woman that's debating it too. Debating like, am I allowed to feel these feelings? Am I allowed to be
18:07angry? Because women especially, it's like, oh, we're not really allowed to be angry. Oh,
18:12you can be angry. Like Mother Earth. You think Mother Earth is just like cute and green? Mother Earth
18:20has its moments, as we've been seeing. Like, there can be anger. It doesn't matter if you're male or
18:26female. But anger is energy that you can use and create with. So I did. Well, not only thank you
18:32for
18:32doing that for you, but thank you, Katy, for doing that for us. Everybody, make some noise for Katy Perry.
18:46Make some noise for Katy Perry to come.