During the seven years Katy Perry spent as a judge on “American Idol,” she was frequently the focus of online outrage over comments she made or costumes she wore on the show. But since her May 2024 departure, the vitriol has only intensified, from harsh critiques of her new music to backlash over her Blue Origins space flight.
On April 29, 2025, a week after launching her world tour, Perry thanked fans for defending her “when the ‘online’ world tries to make me a human Piñata.” The pop star issued a lengthy response to the online buzz in the comment section of a video posted by several fan accounts that pooled their money to put up a digital billboard in New York’s Times Square, celebrating her first week on tour.
Expressing her gratitude for the bond she has with her fans around the world, Perry told them, “Please know I am ok, I have done a lot work around knowing who I am, what is real and what is important to me. My therapist said something years ago that has been a game changer, ‘no one can make you believe something about yourself that you don’t already believe about yourself’ and if I ever do have any feelings about it then it’s an opportunity to investigate the feeling underneath it.”
Katy Perry Says She’s Been ‘Battered & Bruised’ by Online Hate
Perry kicked off her “Lifetimes” world tour in Mexico City on April 23 and has concert dates scheduled through December.
The Times Square ad created by fan groups dedicated to Perry features white text on a blue background that said, “Congratulations on the opening week of the tour. We are so proud of you and your magical journey. And we love you to the moon and back! Know that you are safe, seen, and celebrated. We’ll see you around the world, this is just the beginning!”
The ad was signed by “your worldwide cats,” given that Perry calls her fandom the KatyCats. The post’s caption said the ad would be live for 24 hours in Times Square.
In the comment section, Perry replied by writing, “I’m so grateful for you guys. We’re in this beautiful and wild journey together. I can continue to remain true to myself, heart open and honest especially because of our bond. I love you guys and have grown up together with you and am so excited to see you all over the world this year!”
Addressing all the buzz surrounding her, Perry wrote, “When the ‘online’ world tries to make me a human Piñata, I take it with grace and send them love, cause I know so many people are hurting in so many ways and the internet is very much so a dumping ground for unhinged and unhealed.”
She continued, “What’s real is seeing your faces every night, singing in unison, reading your notes, feeling your warmth. I find people to lock eyes and sing with and I know we are healing each other in a small way when I get to do that ♾️”
“I’m not perfect,” Perry wrote, “and I actually have omitted that word from my vocabulary, I’m on a human journey playing the game of life with an audience of many and sometimes I fall but… I get back up and go on and continue to play the game and somehow through my battered and bruised adventure I keep looking to the light and in that light a new level UNLOCKS ♥️”
Katy Perry Still Has Thousands of Diehard Fans Showing Up for Tour
Also on April 29, Perry posted a video of herself playfully greeting and hugging a look-alike fan wearing a costume from her “Play” residency in Las Vegas, who was allowed to join her onstage.
“Never forget this is the whole point,” she put in text over the video, which also showed a packed arena.
Perry received harsh criticism online, in the media, and even from some fellow celebrities after her eight-minute trip to space on April 14, as part of an all-female crew that also included “CBS Mornings” anchor Gayle King and philanthropist Lauren Sánchez, fiancée of Blue Origins founder Jeff Bezos. Celebs including Olivia Munn and Amy Schumer ridiculed the flight as a publicity stunt, per Variety.
She was also widely criticized in July 2024 over her first single in four years — “A Woman’s World.” The first track and music video from her “143” album failed to climb the charts in the U.S. or Europe, prompting Rolling Stone to call it a “catastrophic flop” and potentially the “worst comeback song of all time.”
Originally calling it an ode to female empowerment, Katy responded to the criticism on July 15 by calling the video “satire,” according to E! News.
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Katy Perry Speaks Out, Thanking Fans for Defending Her Against ‘Unhinged & Unhealed’ Critics