Katy Perry takes aim at critics, thanks Orlando Bloom for 'doing the dishes' in VMAs speech
Katy Perry was unrestrained in her speech accepting the Video Vanguard Award at MTV's Video Music Awards.
The pop star accepted the VMAs version of a lifetime achievement award from her partner, Orlando Bloom, who referred to her by her birth name, Katheryn Hudson.
Perry accepted the award after performing a medley of her hits, including "I Kissed a Girl," "California Gurls" and "E.T." as well as new tracks from her upcoming album, "Lifetimes" and "I'm His, He's Mine" with Doechii. "Woman's World" did not make the setlist.
"Thank you. I did that all on my first day of my period, too, if you can believe it," Perry told a cheering crowd.
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Katy Perry receives Video Vanguard Award, thanks Orlando Bloom and daughter Daisy
After reflecting on her career, Perry thanked her team, family and fans, adding a shoutout to Bloom for "doing the dishes," a reference to her risque "Call Her Daddy" interview earlier this month, in which she said she likes to exchange sexual favors with her man for doing household chores. She added a thank you to their 4-year-old daughter Daisy Dove, "the only flowers I'll ever need."
The "Firework" singer thanked MTV for "believing in my weirdness from day 1." She said that in order to have a "long and successful career," many things have to align. She also gave the critics a piece of her mind, saying, "There are no decade-long accidents," before pausing for dramatic effect.
She praised the "amazing" young artists who are "operating with confidence, agency, vulnerability and authenticity." She then advised fellow artists not to let social media affect them.
"I learned how to block out all of the noise that every single artist in this industry has to constantly fight against, especially women," she said. "I just want to say with my whole heart, do whatever it takes to stay true to yourself and true to your art. Turn off social media. Safeguard your mental health. Pause. Touch grass. And do what you were born to do, just like I was born to do this."
Perry's speech may have been referencing recent backlash, including toward the first single from her new album, "143," "Woman's World."
The Grammy-nominated singer faced terrible reviews for the single and its accompanying music video in July. After the release, she defended the video in an Instagram post, telling fans it was intended as a parody. "YOU CAN DO ANYTHING!" she wrote. "EVEN SATIRE!"
The singer has also received backlash for working with controversial music producer Dr. Luke.
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On "Call Her Daddy," Perry sidestepped when host Alex Cooper asked about her work with "one collaborator in particular," noting that "a lot of people have expressed disappointment and were really upset that you decided to work with" him.
"I understand that it started a lot of conversations, and he was one of many collaborators that I collaborated with, but the reality is, (the music) comes from me," Perry told Cooper. "The truth is, I wrote these songs from my experience of my whole life going through this metamorphosis, and he was one of the people to help facilitate all that."
Contributing: Brendan Morrow and Jay Stahl
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