Katy Perry’s comeback has faltered after Woman’s World, the first single from her new album, debuted at number 63 in the US chart and at 47 in the UK.
It’s a disappointing return for the pop star, who will release her seventh album 143 in September.
As well as being torn apart on social media, Woman’s World – and its video – have been critically panned, with many feeling its feminist messaging is out of touch.
The Guardian asked “what regressive, warmed-over hell is this?”, The Cut stated that “Perry is stuck in 2016”, and Rolling Stone raised the question: “Did Katy Perry release the worst comeback single of all time?”
On the song, Perry sings about women being sisters, mothers, champions, winners and superheroes all while being sexy and confident – with a catchy chorus of “It’s a woman’s world, and you’re lucky to be living in it“.
The video goes one step further, with Perry (dressed as Rosie the Riveter) and other women dancing around a construction site in tiny outfits.
Scenes from the videos include the women using urinals, brandishing sex toys, and Perry being hit by an anvil – which prompts her to grow bionic legs.
There’s also an appearance from YouTuber Trisha Paytas, dragging a monster truck.
Later, in a behind-the-scenes video posted on Instagram, Perry explained that the video was meant to be “satire” and “slapstick and very on the nose”.
But in her review, the Guardian’s Laura Snapes said Perry was struggling to match her pop star peers at the top of the charts, such as Chappell Roan.
“Roan – along with Sabrina Carpenter and Charli xcx – is modelling how to be a pop star in 2024: they’re inventive, self-aware, silly, deep, some of the qualities Perry had at the peak of her promise but seems to have lost for ever,” she wrote.
Perry has also drawn criticism for working with producer Dr Luke on the single, particularly given that the track is about female empowerment.
Fellow singer Kesha sued Dr Luke in 2014, seeking to void their contract because, her lawyers claimed, he had “sexually, physically, verbally, and emotionally abused [Kesha] to the point where [she] nearly lost her life”.
Dr Luke denied the claims. They reached an agreement to settle a years-long defamation lawsuit last year.
When Perry announced the collaborators for her new album, Kesha – who has just released her first track as an independent artist – tweeted “lol”, widely seen as a jibe at her fellow pop star. Kesha was later pictured in a vest top bearing the same message.
With 2010 album Teenage Dream, Perry became the first female artist to have five number one songs from the same album on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.
Perry’s last album, Smile, was released in 2020 and – while it had mixed reviews – hit the top five in the UK and US.
