Katy Perry has revealed the real reason for her underwhelming recent performance, after being mocked for her concerts amid a rash of career woes.
Last week, the 40-year-old pop star was fiercely criticized and brutally roasted for her role in Jeff Bezos‘ all-female Blue Origin space flight, which has proven to be controversial because of its cost and environmental impact.
As one of the passengers on the 11-minute excursion, Perry was especially derided for singing to fellow travelers during the journey and kissing the ground after they landed, among other treacly moments that were captured on camera.
She is now facing blistering scrutiny on her new Lifetimes Tour, as she struggles to sell tickets for her US dates which kick off in Houston, Texas, in two weeks time.
The California Gurls singer launched the tour Wednesday in Mexico City and was slammed for her ‘mom moves,’ with fans accusing her of ‘giving lazytown.’
Now, in backstage footage she posted to Instagram, Perry said she had been ‘struggling for the past few things with my voice, having a flu-cold thing.’
Katy Perry has revealed the real reason for her underwhelming tour performances; pictured this Wednesday playing the CDMX Arena in Mexico City
She then also pointed to the famously high altitude of the Mexican capital, which is situated at more than 7,000 feet above sea level.
After Wednesday’s inaugural show, Perry gave another concert in Mexico City this Friday and will perform there again Saturday before playing Monterrey next week.
She will embark on a string of dates across North America in support of her seventh studio album, 143, which was widely panned by critics on its release in September.
As footage of her first Lifetimes Tour show circulated online, social media users were merciless in making fun of her stilted, awkward choreography.
‘Not the mom moves,’ groaned one observer, while another joked: ‘Maybe she should have spent less time in space and more time rehearsing lmao.’
One social media user compared her moves to ‘my cat when she’s cleaning herself,’ another called her a ‘straight up soulless vessel’ and still another marveled that ‘her fans have the audacity to say she’s a better performer than gaga… byeee.’
She also attracted unfavorable comparisons to Taylor Swift, as one X user snorted: ‘Girl wtf is this, even Taylor dances better than this.’
A fan pleaded with Perry to ‘please retire gracefully.. dont do that to yourself,’ while another joked: ‘Are her choreographers third graders that won a contest?’
Now, in backstage footage she posted to Instagram, Perry said she had been ‘struggling for the past few things with my voice, having a flu-cold thing’
After Wednesday’s inaugural show (pictured), Perry gave another concert in Mexico City this Friday and will perform there again Saturday before playing Monterrey next week
Perry was accused of ‘giving lazytown,’ as one viewer said: ‘every time i think she can’t possibly flop harder she pulls some s*** like this.’
Meanwhile Perry is facing a worrying lack of sales, with rows of seating still available at multiple venues, according to official seat maps on Ticketmaster.
Insiders claim she had hoped to emulate the success Taylor Swift achieved with her record breaking Eras tour, but there are fears Perry’s place on Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin flight has scuppered her chances of securing last minute sales.
Dates in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Denver, Colorado, are particularly bad, with row upon row of seats still available, while swathes of tickets – which cost upwards of $50 – and resale are on offer for the first US date in Houston on May 7.
As footage of Wednesday’s concert circulated online, social media users were merciless in making fun of her stilted, awkward choreography
‘Not the mom moves,’ groaned one observer, while another joked: ‘Maybe she should have spent less time in space and more time rehearsing lmao’
The California Gurls singer launched her Lifetimes Tour Wednesday in Mexico and will embark on a string of dates across North America
Perry was accused of ‘giving lazytown,’ as one viewer said: ‘every time i think she can’t possibly flop harder she pulls some s*** like this’
Insiders claim the singer, 40, has scuppered her chances of securing last minute ticket sales after she joined an all-female crew on the Blue Origin fleet that headed to space last week
The numbers are also concerning for her May 9 date in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, with multiple rows of seating still available.
While it is unclear how many of her VIP packages, which cost upwards of $200, are still available, there are tickets for most nights, as well as resales which are being listed for over $1000 on some dates. It is a similar fate for Beyonce’s upcoming Cowboy Carter tour which kicks off on Monday.
‘There were already concerns about poor ticket sales even before Blue Origin,’ one source told DailyMail.com. ‘They were pretty dismal. Katy truly believed her tour would take off like Taylor’s.
‘Some higher-ups at Live Nation were sceptical from the beginning. There are talks about what to do if the venues don’t fill up further.’
Poor ticket sales is the latest blow to the beleaguered star who was this week forced to cancel two concerts in Guadalajara, Mexico, on May 1 and 2 as the stadium she was scheduled to perform in was not built in time.
‘I wish I could fix this but it is beyond my control,’ she told devastated fans, adding she will ‘create something special for the fans in Guadalajara in the future.’
But there are a handful of locations that look close to selling out. These include Perry’s upcoming shows in Chicago, Illinois, on May 12 and multiple dates outside of the US. Seat maps for dates in Canada’s Edmonton, Montreal and Toronto in late July and early August show whole blocks of seating have been booked up.
Extra dates were also added in Europe and Australia due to high demand.
Perry is experiencing poor sales for her date at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota on May 13. The swathe of blue is unsold seats
It is an equally as poor state of affairs for her night in Denver, Colorado, on May 15
The second date on the North American leg in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, has struggled to shift tickets
The news came amid the ongoing backlash over her much-derided 11-minute space flight which saw her join Gayle King and Lauren Sanchez, as well as NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, film producer Kerianne Flynn, and activist Amanda Nguyen, on the all-female Blue Origin fleet.
Perry was seen floating inside the capsule holding a daisy in a nod to her four-year-old daughter Daisy, whom she shares with her fiance Orlando Bloom.
She was ridiculed on landing back to Earth and emerging with the flower in hand which she held to the sky before dropping to her knees and kissing the ground.
She then proceeded to claim she was ‘super connected to love’ and thanked a reporter who incorrectly referred to her as an astronaut.
‘It’s not about singing my songs. It’s about a collective energy in there. It’s about us. It’s about making space for future women and taking up space and belonging,’ she said in a post-flight interview.
‘And it’s about this wonderful world that we see right out there and appreciating it. This is all for the benefit of Earth.’
It wasn’t long before she was branded ‘tone deaf’ and ‘dramatic’ for her actions, which came days after NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore returned to Earth after being stranded in space for more than nine months.
An inside source told DailyMail.com that she had regrets about ‘making a public spectacle out of’ the trip, which she reportedly thought would be ‘good PR for her tour.’
The bad news comes after the star joined an all-female crew on the Blue Origin fleet that headed to space last week. Perry was ridiculed on landing back on Earth
She appeared to address her critics at the CDMX Arena in Mexico City last night, posing to the audience: ‘Has anyone ever called your dreams crazy?’
She appeared to address her critics at the CDMX Arena in Mexico City last night, posing to the audience: ‘Has anyone ever called your dreams crazy?’
Perry also posed for a selfie with two men wearing blue NASA jumpsuits.
Perry was already facing an uphill battle after her album 143 became the lowest scoring on Metacritic since 2011 when it dropped back in September 2024.
Perry faced intense criticism ahead of its release over her decision to collaborate with Dr. Luke.
The music producer, 50, was embroiled in a highly publicized legal battle with Kesha, 37, in which he was accused of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse. He denied the claims. Kesha also alleged that Perry was a victim – something she denied.
The pair reached a settlement in 2023.
‘Katy’s feeling the pressure right now and has been trying to calm her doubts by focusing on her family,’ said a second insider. ‘She knows ticket sales in America are underwhelming, but she genuinely wants to deliver the best possible show for her fans.
‘She was convinced her album would be a hit, but it didn’t resonate with her fans. She wanted to do an album her way and use Dr. Luke, which was not a wise decision. Then she agreed to do the space flight thinking that it would be good PR for her tour, but it backfired.’
She also recreated space choreography during the show, flying in the air at some points
The pop icon took to Instagram on Monday to confirm that her concerts in Guadalajara, Mexico, on May 1 and 2 were off after the stadium hosting the gigs was not built in time
Perry will play 81 dates across North and South America, Canada, Europe, and Australia as well as two nights in China, before wrapping up in Abu Dhabi on December 7.
She told fans to ‘come as YOUR favorite timeline’ from her decades-long career, revealing they ‘miiiiiight be joining me on stage at the show.’
It is perhaps no surprise that Perry looked to Swift, 34, whose record-breaking Eras Tour surpassed $1 billion in revenue, making it the highest grossing of all time.
Spanning over 3.5 hours, each show consists of a 44-song set list from the singer’s 17-year career.
Meanwhile, Madonna’s Celebration Tour, which paid homage to her four decade-long career, made an impressive $77 million in ticket sales.
