In the three years since Katy Perry released her last album, “Teenage Dream,” she has gone through major milestones: marriage and divorce, voice acting and launching her own line of perfumes. Known for her catchy beats and fun anthems, Perry is slated to deliver more singles than she’s had with her previous two albums in her latest album, “Prism.”
The 13-track album is a fusion of heavy electro-pop, hip-hop and pop-rock—expect some vintage Katy Perry upbeat tracks with a touch of heartfelt and raw lyrics that reflect her life events in the last three years. This summer saw the first single of the album, “Roar,” a fierce track that easily made its way to the top 10 of global music charts; Perry has hinted that the song is about John Mayer.
Perry, whose life has been heavily publicized, particularly with her marriage and divorce with Russell Brand and on-and-off relationship with John Mayer, heavily comprises her love life in her latest album. She tells Elle UK “Unconditionally” (the next single) was written during her split with Mayer; however, it is not the only song about their split. “It Takes Two,” which will be in the deluxe version of the album, is about her “acceptance that she played a large part” in the end of the relationship; Mayer played the guitars for the song and also co-wrote “Spiritual” for the deluxe version.
Though part of the album speaks to Mayer, her divorce to Russell Brand is not kept in the dark; “Ghost” is written about the end of the marriage, with the lines “You sent a text/It’s like the wind changed your mind,” a reference to Brand’s decision to ask for a divorce via text message. The latter song, “By the Grace of God,” is where Perry pours her heart out and reveals contemplating suicide after the divorce with the lyrics “Thought I wasn’t enough/ Found I wasn’t so tough/ Laying on the bathroom floor/ We were living on a fault line/ And I felt the fault was all mine/ Couldn’t take it anymore.”
Other tracks that are focused on Perry’s love life include “Love Me,” “Double Rainbow” and “Legendary Lovers.”
Aside from the tracks about her romances, the album is predominantly filled with dance tracks since Perry worked with numerous dance music producers, including Max Martin, Diplo and Bloodshy.
Most of the album’s tracks are highly influenced by dance music, such as “Walking on Air” (a homage to 90s disco dance) “Birthday,” “This is How We Do,” and “International Smile. “Dark Horse,” a hip-hop collaboration, features rapper Juicy J of Three Six Mafia, is the only collaboration on the album.
Though the album may show a darker side of Perry and reveal her raw thoughts and emotions, it will still maintain the usual catchy and energetic vibes that she has delivered through past hits.
Prism will be available on Oct. 18 and the deluxe version will be out on Oct. 22.
