Katy Perry, who is one of the most popular singers today, took her wow-inducing show to Saturday Night Live on Saturday (January 29) and did what she does best: raise eyebrows.
Videos by American Songwriter
Perry, the show’s musical guest for the night, performed two songs, “When I’m Gone” and “Never Really Over.” For the first song, she performed with Alesso (the two recently released a single together and debuted the accompanying music video during the 2022 College Football National Championship Game on ESPN). Together, the two danced with giant penis-shaped mushrooms.
For her second song, Perry, who was introduced by the night’s host Willem Dafoe, toned it down, performing seated accompanied by an acoustic guitar.
Watch both performances below.
The 37-year-old California-born Perry, who released her latest LP, Smile, in 2020, previewed the performance on the famed variety show, taking to social media ahead of the gig and writing to her nearly 110 million followers on Twitter, “flew into a blizzard to bring some heat to @nbcsnl see u tonight”
During the show, news came out that Saturday Night Live will return with new episodes next month and will be hosted by comedian John Mulaney on February 26 with musical guest LCD Soundsystem.
Perry also hosted a Vegas residency called Play, and recently news came out that she added a number of new dates to the residency’s summer slate.
“When it comes to my music videos we all know I like to push the boundaries and myself, and create unique opportunities for my fans to see them,” Perry previously said of her recent collaboration with Alesso. “ESPN and especially College GameDay hold a special place in my heart, so partnering with Alesso to become the first artists to ever debut a global music video within a live event on ESPN made for a perfect and natural pairing.”
“I’m so thrilled that ‘When I’m Gone’ is finally out,” added electronic music producer Alesso. “We’ve been waiting the whole year to share it with all of you. I’m honored to collaborate with Katy on such an amazing dance record and with ESPN to become the first artists to premiere our music video at halftime of the College Football Playoff National Championship. I loved working with her and think this song and video came out super special.”
Photo courtesy of U Music/Capitol Music Group
