Katy Perry has come a long way since receiving her first Grammy nomination in 2009 for “I Kissed a Girl” (Best Female Pop Vocal Performance). She’s replaced the taste of cherry chapstick (and whipped cream bras) for a more socially-conscious sound on the first single from her new album, “Chained to the Rhythm.” There are still club-ready lyrics like, “Turn it up, it’s your favorite song/Dance, dance, dance to the distortion,” but Perry hints at something deeper when she sings, “Are we crazy?/Living our lives through a lens/Trapped in our white picket fence, and “So comfortable, we’re living in a bubble, bubble/So comfortable, we cannot see the trouble, trouble.”
Perry literally brought out a picket fence for her Grammys debut of “Chained to the Rhythm” with Bob Marley’s grandson, Skip Marley, who contributes the verse, “It is my desire/Break down the walls to connect, inspire/Ay, up in your high place, liars.” The performance ended with the preamble to the United States Constitution as the backdrop and Perry yelling, “No hate!”
Speaking of hate: country stars Little Big Town, who sang a stripped-down version of “Teenage Dream,” introduced Perry, which is an interesting choice. The band’s big hit “Better Man” was written by Taylor Swift, Katy Perry’s pop star rival. Maybe they’ve finally made nice? All it took was the world burning…
You just heard #CHAINEDTOTHERHYTHM on The Grammys. Grab it here! https://t.co/677ju8YjBK
— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) February 13, 2017
Perry also proudly showed off her support of Planned Parenthood:
Look at that PP lapel pin making an appearance at #GRAMMYs! Thank you @katyperry for showing how you #StandWithPP . #IStandWithPP pic.twitter.com/FihcbyL8bc
— Planned Parenthood Action (@PPact) February 13, 2017
