Two Queens of Pop. Two comebacks. Two fierce new songs.
Two leaks in the same week.
Uh-oh....
So who comes out victorious?
KATY PERRY- ROAR
First up we have Miss Perry.
A firm favourite for her sharp sense of humour, lovable personality and fun, fierce, flirty brand
of pop, Katy's comeback after the huge success of 2011's 'Teenage Dream' has been long awaited.
She's weathered a divorce and found a new romance in the shape of a certain
John Mayer, she's made movies, she's won awards...
Yet as the 'Teenage Dream' phase was coming to and end, it's fair to say that Katy was in vulnerable and emotional place, as her brilliant and much deserved success was marred by a difficult and public divorce
from comedian and actor Russell Brand.
As she put it herself, she was 'falling from cloud nine', and it was this time in her life that inspired hits such as
'Part of Me' and 'Wide Awake'.
However it's 2013 now, and having been able to close the previous chapter of her life and start afresh, pursuing a new romance and channeling her emotions and feelings into music, Katy, it appears, has never felt stronger. And that's exactly the stance she has chosen to adopt for album number three, 'Prism'.
Katy isn't the damaged, broken, vulnerable women anymore,
Oh no.
New single 'Roar' proudly declares the exact opposite.
It's a fierce, strong, defiant single that empowers anyone who listens to it.
It's written by a woman who's gone through the worst and come out at her very best.
She may be in a steady relationship, but 'Roar' suggests a woman who is independent, wise, brave
and with a steadfast refusal to be beaten, knocked down.
It's all very inspiring stuff and I am genuinely pleased for Katy.
I really do believe that this could be the most successful phase of her career, eclipsing the huge success of 'Teenage Dream' and why?
Because the music Katy is making now is personal, it's powerful, it's inspiring, and there is no doubt
that Katy will be reaching out to an even bigger audience who can relate to and take
something away from Katy's music.
She's an inspiring woman. She's taken the worst of her life and made it into something that will surely produce the best of her life. She's survived and as she rightly declares, she's back with an almighty roar.
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LADY GAGA- APPLAUSE
And next up we have a certain Gaga.
After exploding onto the pop scene in 2008 with 'Just Dance', Gaga has been creating
a humongous stir, what with her insane, wacky, imaginative outfits and consistent stream of pop hits, many of which will most likely evolve to become true classics, for the last five years.
2008's debut 'The Fame' quickly gave way to 2011's 'Born This Way' and it seemed as though
Gaga rarely had time to pause for breath. If she wasn't decked out in her Kermit collection or wrapped up
in meat like a human sausage roll, she was releasing hit after hit, releasing award after award and making sure her presence on the music scene could not be forgotten.
And of course it wasn't, how could it be?
It takes a lot to forget a woman who's idea of casual is to go out in her undies, and whose preferred
evening look is that of a bacon rasher.
However it has to be said that in this fifteen minutes of fame society, once the spotlight had shifted to the next biggest star, Gaga moved to the back of the queue and speculation began to build regarding how she could
top the incredible achievements she'd made with her first two albums.
Yet over the last couple of years, Gaga has taken a step back from the limelight and toned
herself down. She's fallen in love, she's found an identity that seems to sit just right- unique, different, slightly strange yet beautiful, strong, feminine- and she's been working away on
a new album, 'ARTPOP', which seems to be the album she's felt most passionately about.
Gaga's undergone a transformation whilst retaining her key, core elements.
And the buzz is building once more.
Like Katy Perry, Gaga's new offering, 'Applause', leaked before it's release date,
with many genuinely curious to see just what Gaga had to pull out the hat this time.
And she's got a good'un alright.
In comparison to her previous work, 'Applause' is perhaps not as strong, but it's catchy, it's
well made pop, and hopefully it is only a taste of what is to come.
Because knowing Gaga, this is probably not the best she has, oh no, she probably has
a magical array of incredible songs up her sleeve just waiting to be released to the world.
With 'Applause', you can't help but think that she has released it to satisfy the growing appetite of her fans and public for new music. And the leak was something she couldn't ignore, so she has been forced to release it and use the generated publicity to her advantage.
Had she had the choice, I don't think she would've made 'Applause' her first single, but seeing as the choice was taken out of her hands, she's done well to ride the waves and I cannot wait to see what she has yet to show us.
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SO WHO WINS?
Well there's absolutely no doubt that both will be greeted to much success with their respective releases,
however personally, based on their first singles, I believe it's a victory for Miss Perry in terms of her music.
She's entering what I believe will be one of the most successful phases of her career and I really do admire Katy for coming out the other side fighting strong. That will resonate with people most definitely.
So it's a victory for Katy right now.
But Gaga is most likely to sell a landslide, shedload and tsunami of albums and she will do incredibly well, of course. She deserves it. As does Katy, because ultimately, they are both strong, independent, admirable women who live and breathe their craft and each deserves every bit of success that comes their way.
PRISM- OUT 22ND OCTOBER 2013
ARTPOP- OUT 11TH NOVEMBER 2013
