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Katy Perry released her seventh album, “143,” on Friday to mostly negative reviews, the conclusion of a rough rollout for one of the biggest pop stars of the 2010s that began with a series of poorly received singles and a much-criticized decision to work with a controversial producer.
In a negative review, Variety said the album “strips away the remnants of the perky personality” that propelled Perry to pop stardom, slamming the “lyrical cliches” and Perry’s voice sounding “disaffected and removed.”
Variety said the album was “set up to fail” and “stained by the narrative” of her decision to work with Dr. Luke, the producer whom Kesha sued for sexual assault in a now-settled legal battle (which he has denied)—a decision Perry defended.
In a 2-star review, The Guardian acknowledged “143” isn’t the “calamity expected,” but clarified it “isn’t good,” stating the album feels dated in the wake of “messily inventive and hugely successful” pop music by Charli XCX, Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter.
The Independent also slammed “143” as “painfully dated” in another 2-star review, stating the songs have a sense of “weariness” and “hesitance” that fail to match the highs of the more playful, “tongue-in-cheek bops” that made Perry famous.
NME also gave “143” two stars out of five, slamming lead single “Woman’s World” as the “most disastrous comeback single in recent memory” and said Perry seems to be “grasping for ideas” on songs like “Artificial,” which it says feels like a reworking of her 2010 hit “E.T.”
How Did The Rough “143” Rollout Start?
Lead single “Woman’s World,” which has a feminist message, released on July 11 to both negative reviews and a poor performance on the charts. The Guardian gave the song just one star out of five, calling it a “dated attempt at writing a feminist anthem” that suffers from “mixed messaging,” stating it fails to fully deliver on the satire it attempts. In another negative review, Pitchfork called the song a “monumental catastrophe” whose feminist message read like the “top half of the first page of Google.” The song failed to make a dent in the charts: It peaked at No.
63 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted for just one week, making it the weakest performance for a Perry lead single to date. Days after the video release, Perry posted behind-the-scenes footage to Instagram in which she calls the concept “satire” and acknowledges it is “sarcastic” and “very on the nose.” Her second single, “Lifetimes,” attracted controversy because the music video was filmed in the Balearic Islands, including Ibiza, in Spain—but the Balearic Islands’ environmental department announced it would open an investigation into the video shoot, alleging Perry’s production company did not obtain proper authorization to film on the island and that it would monitor for possible damage.
