Disney/Eric McCandless
Katy Perry has officially opened the portal to her new musical era.
Perry announced on Tuesday that her new album, "143," will be released on September 20.
"I set out to create a bold, exuberant, celebratory dance-pop album with the symbolic 143 numerical expression of love as a throughline message," Perry said in a press release distributed by her label, Capitol Records.
The press release also bills "143" as a "sexy, fearless return to form" for Perry, who hasn't released a full-length project since 2020. That album, "Smile," was met with largely negative reviews and lackluster sales; it debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 and its top-charting single, "Daisies," peaked at No. 40 on the Billboard Hot 100. (Her previous three albums, "Teenage Dream," "Prism," and "Witness," all went to No. 1.)
Since then, Perry has delivered a small handful of duets and commercial singles, including a cover of "All You Need Is Love" for a Gap holiday campaign and the pop song "Electric" for a Pokémon soundtrack album.
"143" will be Perry's sixth major-label release — seventh overall, including her sparsely heard debut "Katy Hudson," a Christian music album released in 2001.
The new album's lead single, "Woman's World," is set to arrive on Thursday after more than a month of teasers.
The upbeat track will contain themes of freedom and female empowerment, with Perry belting in the chorus, "Celebrate / We ain't going away / It's a woman's world and you're lucky to be living in it."
Although teasers for "Woman's World" were initially met with disappointment online (and a clip of the music video has received similarly mixed reactions), it does offer a peek into the tone of Perry's hopeful pop comeback.
"'143' IS A PARTY AND THE WORLD IS INVITED!" reads the album description in Perry's online store. "Get ready for Singalong, Heart Opening, Empowering, Sexy, Provocative Pop Anthems!"
Perry reunited with familiar faces to create "143," a label source told Rolling Stone.
Perry previously worked with Dr. Luke, Martin, and Stargate to craft No. 1 hits like "I Kissed a Girl" (2008), "Teenage Dream" (2010), "Firework" (2010), and "Roar" (2013).
However, Perry has not worked with Dr. Luke since he was sued by Kesha, his former teen protégé, in 2014.
Kesha accused Dr. Luke, whose real name is Lukasz Gottwald, of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse. He denied all of Kesha's claims and countersued for defamation.
"The abuse I suffered from Luke was a decade long, every day, every moment of every day," Kesha said during sworn questioning in 2017.
Kesha's battle to escape her contract with Dr. Luke's label, Kemosabe Records, earned her support from fellow pop stars like Adele, Halsey, Lady Gaga, and Taylor Swift, who donated $250,000 to help cover Kesha's legal fees.
The parties reached an undisclosed settlement last year. Shortly after, Kesha announced that she had fulfilled her contractual obligation to Kemosabe and released her first song as an independent artist, "Joyride," earlier this month.
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Given Dr. Luke's embattled reputation among artists and fans alike, Perry's decision to reunite with him sparked backlash. However, the Capitol Records source told Rolling Stone that Perry personally assembled her team for the album.
"Katy knew exactly the album she wanted to make and put together the team to make it happen," the source said.
Perry also reconnected with Sarah Hudson, who cowrote Perry's diamond-certified hit "Dark Horse," as well as several tracks from her 2017 album "Witness."
Newcomers to Perry's orbit include Vaughn Oliver, Rocco Valdes, and Theron Thomas, according to the label source.
Oliver is an up-and-coming pop producer who has teamed up with Gottwald multiple times, coproducing hits like Latto's "Big Energy" and Nicki Minaj's "Super Freaky Girl."
Valdes — better known by his stage name Rocco Did It Again! — is another member of Gottwald's inner circle. The two share production credits on songs by Doja Cat, Kim Petras, Minaj, and more.
Thomas is a Grammy-winning songwriter who signed with Kemosabe in 2014. More recently, he has written songs with Beyoncé ("All Night"), Lizzo ("Juice," "Tempo," "About Damn Time"), and Usher ("No Limit," "Bad Habits").
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
