The Gospel According to Katy

[MNPundit]

The Gospel According to Katy

by MNP

Katy Perry from Katy Perry, back cover.

Interview with EffectRadio.com, 12-29-2009, transcript

ER: How did you get the news Red Hill was going to shut down?

KP: They told me some of the female artists were going on the chopping block. I was only 17, and I was devastated. I prayed which I didn't do that much and probably still don't do as much as I should. Then I got an invitation to sing at Dr. Pamplin's church because someone had given him my album and reminded him I already worked for him. I guess you could call it a miracle. But I say it's just God looking after his own.

ER: So where were you then, spiritually?

KP: I was pretty curious at that time. When I first got signed, I was at a place in my life where I was like, "I don't know if I can hold that promise [wait until marriage] because this guy at camp is really cute." Sex wasn't talked about in my home except except for the basics. To tell you the truth, I was starting to pull away from Christianity a bit, there was too much emphasis on how other people were doing wrong.[1] I think a lot of people go through a period like that in life. Romans says that the most important thing is Faith. If everyone had to follow the law 100% to be saved, no one would be saved.

ER: Everyone sins.

KP: Right! But if you have Faith you can find forgiveness.

ER: Anyway...

KP: So here I was kind of questioning, and then the owner of the label says he wants me to sing at his church!

ER: That was in 2001?

KP: 2000 actually. So I decided to go up there [Lake Oswego, OR] because I hadn't had any calls from anyone.[2] A lot of people were there and I got to perform in front of them. It was a pretty big crowd for me at the time and I had a great time performing in front of them. When Dr. Pamplin saw how much the people my age enjoyed it, I was able to stay on at Cathedral Records even though my stuff was more pop than pure gospel.

ER: You can sing gospel though.

KP: I try to include at least one gospel track on each album. It makes a good change of pace and reminds people what the ultimate goal is.

ER: After coming back from Oregon you started promoting your album?

KP: That's right. Dr. Pamplin made sure that we had the money we needed but I still needed to do the work.

ER: But there was a major change right before it went out.

KP: Yes. We almost released it under my original name. I'd worried about that a little before but now we decided to go with Katy Perry to avoid confusion. So when I went on tour, I toured as Katy Perry.

ER: And "Katy Perry" took off.

KP: More than I'd thought. I didn't realize it at the time, because I was doing so much promotional work that I didn't have time for anything else.

ER: What was your first clue?

KP: I was reading the reviews and Christianity Today compared me to Fiona Apple and Sarah McLachlan. I thought "Even if this is the only album I make, I'll remember that!"[3]

ER: That was three albums ago.

KP: And I still remember it.

____________________
[1]The PoD is that Katy's parents are slightly less fundamentalist so her upbringing isn't quite so rigid, slowing her eventual break with them. This is the ASB portion.
[2]IOTL around this time Glen Ballard decided to work with her and they cut an album for Island Records, which also failed. Slightly less rebellion means she's less interesting means no Glen Ballard call.
[3]In OTL the album "Katy Hudson" was quite well received by Christian music publications at the time. Christianity Today really DID compare her to those artists and urged its readers to pick up the album in OTL. However Red Hill folded and her album received very little or no promotion which is the opposite of what happened here, plus no Katy Hudson confusion.

A/N: I have been threatening to make this timeline for a while now. It's fluffy and amusing and probably grabbed me because I find Katy Perry hot and the idea of changing her career so drastically is interesting--so is funneling her personality through evangelical Christianity. While there probably won't be enormous changes to world events there will be a number in the music industry. But this TL is a fluff project for me so who knows when I'll update!

Comments and Criticism appreciated, as always.

[Alex]

An interesting premise - I don't think I've ever heard of a Katy Perry TL, ever, and this is definitely different. Curious to see where you take this.

[MNPundit]

The Gospel According to Katy

Chapter 2:1-7

Katy Perry, Front Cover.

Track List
1. Trust in Me - Katy Hudson, Dickson, Mark
2. Piercing - Katy Hudson, Collier, Tommy
3. Search Me - Katy Hudson, Collier, Tommy
4. Last Call - Katy Hudson, Hudson, Katy
5. Growing Pains - Katy Hudson, Dickson, Mark
6. My Own Monster - Katy Hudson, Hudson, Katy
7. Split - Katy Hudson, Hudson, Katy
8. Faith Won't Fail - Katy Hudson, Dickson, Mark
9. Naturally - Katy Hudson, Faircloff, Scott
10. When There's Nothing Left - Katy Hudson, Hudson, Katy

Katy Perry, Sales as of 1/1/02: 79,000

STRANGELY NORMAL TOUR (2000-2001)
Phil Joel, Earthsuit, V*Enna & Katy Perry

Feb. 7 - The Glass House

Boredom was setting in when Katy Perry finally made it to the stage (only after some crowd-ramping from someone with an Australian accent). The denim jacket and glittery eyeshadow was what you’d expect from a 16 year old girl... Was it going to be soul bearing folk tunes or fluffy pop songs? Mostly the first since all she had was her guitar but Jennifer Knapp started the same way. She only had time to play four songs but they showed her songwriting skills and good voice. We kept wondering if she was influenced by Jewel, Sarah McLachlan or Christina Aguilera. Her ballad “Search Me” would have been at home on Jennifer Knapp’s album but the way she talked to the audience gave away her California valley-girl heart. Her album was due out in March but suddenly for some reason it got bumped up to January of 2001 so it was available and I admit, I picked up a copy and I wasn’t the only one, they sold pretty well. It’s a blend of teen pop, folk and rock but if tonight was any example, she’s at her best when it’s just her and a guitar--she can win over a crowd when they’ve never heard of her. I would have waited around to meet her, but she was being mobbed by the teenage girls in the audience…

--‘Man on the Street Reviews’ Inland Valley Daily Bulletin,
Entertainment Section, Feb. 22, 2001[1]

"Actually I just performed with Jennifer Knapp, she asked me, she actually asked me to go on one of her spot dates, and I kinda freaked out. Ah, but during her set she had a couple guitars in the back and there wasn't any runner guys to give her guitars in between songs and their set was just made out of a bunch of songs that she knew, there was no set list.

"So I had performed first and I had these RED hot pants on, and it was just like when you saw me, you knew it was me that was up there. So she pointed at me 'cause I was looking at the back and she's all "go get that guitar go get that guitar" and I was like "I wanna do that" and stuff like that. And so I went and got it and I got the wrong guitar and I kinda dropped it but I caught it and she almost started laughing but I quick gave it to her. I felt completely embarassed. I mean it's not completely embarassing for anybody else but I was embarassed... and then there was this one time when I tried to freestyle. But we don't get into that.

--Katy Perry, Glass House, after concert interview[2]

"The thing I remember most about Katy from that time, was her energy. Touring is one of the hardest things a musician can do and you suffer burnout so easily. But Katy was always up for anything and she didn't complain. She knew that anyone else her age would want to be in her place. After that thing with the guitar I could tell she was really embarrassed so I decided to give it to her to remember that night. No matter how big you get--and she could sing--you're not invincible so don't take yourself to seriously. I shouldn't have bothered, Katy never needs much help with that."

--Jennifer Knapp

“….Despite having her self-titled album, Katy Perry, released on parent label Cathedral Records to significant sales, the young artist has been released from Pamplin Music as of late last year. While the parent label will continue to promote and publish the album, the young singer currently remains unsigned.”

--Section, News Blurbs, CCM Magazine, January 2002

____________________
[1]This is based on a real review of Katy Hudson’s performance by someone who attended the Feb. 7 Glass House performance. In TTL her album is already released by this point so it began to get more play and word of mouth several months early.
[2]This happened in OTL, except the guitar broke and Jennifer Knapp had to sing the song without a guitar because Katy Perry was clumsy.

A/N: Yes, I am titling the updates like Bible passages. Anyhow, there is a rumor that a devotional book came out around 2001 entitled "Walk" that has a devotional written by Katy Perry. I am not sure if that's the title of the devotional book at a whole or just that specific one. Any help in tracking a copy of that down would be appreciated.

[Alex]

Didn't even realize it was updated, but glad that it was. I wonder, will Ms. Perry's self-proclaimed love of Queen still take place, or is it going to be butterflied away here?

(personally, I think Queen were the last great pure rock band, so even though I don't really care for Katy Perry's music, I must give her some points for that)

[MNPundit]

Originally Posted by Alex

Didn't even realize it was updated, but glad that it was. I wonder, will Ms. Perry's self-proclaimed love of Queen still take place, or is it going to be butterflied away here?

(personally, I think Queen were the last great pure rock band, so even though I don't really care for Katy Perry's music, I must give her some points for that)

It was updated right after all the server crashes so we lost the discussion that was on there, and the update probably got lost on people's radars. A little put out that I haven't even gotten a single view since then though. Ouch.

Anyhow, I think she'll probably go a more folksy route so it might be Bob Dylan ITTL, especially since he briefly put out Christian albums.

[Diamond]

Personally, I'd like to see Ozzy Osbourne: Gospel Singer, but this works too.