The music world is fertile ground for conspiracy theorists. We’ve all heard the “Paul is dead” theory, which posits that the Beatles replaced Paul McCartney with a doppelganger following the bassist’s alleged death in a 1966 car crash. While that hypothesis speculates that McCartney is dead, others believe that late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain is in fact alive and performing as fellow ’90s star Rivers Cuomo. Yet another… creative theory presents that pop star Katy Perry is actually JonBenét Ramsey. Recently, Perry finally addressed those rumors herself.
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The Katy Perry-JonBenét Ramsey Conspiracy Theory, Explained
First, a little context: JonBenét Ramsey was a fixture on the child beauty pageant circuit when the 6-year-old’s parents reported her missing on Christmas Day 1996. She was found dead in the basement of her Boulder, Colorado home that same day. Nearly 30 years later, police have yet to identify her killer.
However, certain corners of the internet believe that JonBenét has been alive all along, performing on global stages as none other than the “Queen of Camp,” Katy Perry. The theory got its legs with a 2014 video posted by YouTube user Dave Johnson, in which he suggests that Perry’s parents, Keith Hudson and Mary Perry, are actually John and Patsy Ramsey in disguise. Since then, believers have scrutinized every picture of JonBenét, comparing her features to those of the “I Kissed a Girl” singer. (Never mind that the little girl was born in 1990, making her 34 years old today—six years younger than Perry.)
Is Katy Perry actually JonBenét Ramsey? You decide.https://t.co/8fkzDK0G2Y pic.twitter.com/q6Zl00maj6
— Betches (@betchesluvthis) March 1, 2016
“Wait Am I:” Katy’s Response
On Feb. 27, an Instagram user named Peter Shields shared a now-viral AI-generated video of Ramsey morphing into Katy Perry. “WAKE UP PPL,” the text overlay reads in a post captioned “iykyk.”
Within three days, the video had found its way to the “Teenage Dream” singer. “wait am i,” Perry commented, predictably setting in motion an avalanche of even more conspiracy theories.
“Just found a new rabbit hole. See yall in a week,” one Instagram user wrote.
Others found the post less palatable. “Let her precious soul rest in peace people,” another user admonished.
At a glance, this theory seems built on nothing more than baseless speculation and wishful thinking. Which means, of course, it has likely found a permanent home on the internet.
Featured image by Edward Berthelot/Getty Images
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