Katy Perry

Katy Perry, born Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson on 25 October 1984 in Santa Barbara, California, is an American singer, songwriter and television personality whose career has reshaped modern pop culture. Raised in a Pentecostal family, she spent her early years moving between churches before embracing secular music at seventeen, adopting her mother’s maiden name as her stage moniker. After a modest gospel debut as Katy Hudson in 2001, she relocated to Los Angeles, honed her songwriting under producer Glen Ballard, and eventually signed with Capitol Records, where the 2008 breakthrough album One of the Boys delivered the controversial hit “I Kissed a Girl” and cemented her reputation for bold, tongue‑in‑cheek lyricism. The follow‑up Teenage Dream (2010) produced five U.S. number‑one singles—including “California Gurls,” “Firework,” and “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)”—making her the first female artist to achieve that milestone and earning her the nickname “Queen of Camp” from major fashion publications. Perry’s subsequent releases, such as Prism (2013) and Witness (2017), showcased her versatility across pop, dance and electropop while her visual artistry continued to break records on Vevo and YouTube. Beyond music, she has acted as Smurfette in The Smurfs franchise, judged multiple seasons of American Idol, and launched successful fragrance and shoe lines, while her philanthropic work includes UNICEF ambassadorship and extensive charitable fundraising. Her personal life drew public attention through her 2010 marriage to British comedian Russell Brand, which ended in divorce in 2012, and later motherhood with partner Orlando Bloom, welcoming daughter Daisy Dove in 2020. With over 151 million records sold, numerous awards, and a net worth surpassing $350 million, Katy Perry remains a defining figure of 21st‑century pop.