Katy Perry

Katy Perry was born on October 25, 1984, in Santa Barbara, California, to Pentecostal pastor parents. Singing in church from childhood and releasing a contemporary gospel album under her birth name Katy Hudson in 2001, she relocated to Los Angeles at seventeen to pursue pop music, adopting her mother's maiden name, Perry.

Her global breakthrough occurred in 2008 with her sophomore album 'One of the Boys', featuring the sensational worldwide smash hit 'I Kissed a Girl'—which topped the Billboard Hot 100 for seven consecutive weeks—and 'Hot n Cold'. Perry’s vibrant camp aesthetic, infectious pop-rock hooks, and theatrical music videos immediately captivated global audiences.

In 2010, Perry released 'Teenage Dream', cementing her status as an all-time pop titan. The album spawned five No. 1 singles—'California Gurls', 'Teenage Dream', 'Firework', 'E.T.', and 'Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)'—making her the first female artist, and only the second artist in history after Michael Jackson's 'Bad', to achieve five Billboard No. 1s from a single record. Subsequent smashes like 'Roar' and 'Dark Horse' received RIAA Diamond certifications (10+ million sales each). In 2015, her Super Bowl XLIX halftime show drew 118.5 million viewers, making it one of the most-watched broadcasts in television history. Perry is also a dedicated UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and longtime judge on 'American Idol'.