Katy Perry accused of ‘deflecting’ as fans savage her response to controversial Dr. Luke collaboration

Katy Perry is being accused of ‘deflecting’ and ‘gaslighting’ after she broke her silence on her controversial decision to collaborate with music producer Dr. Luke.

Back in June, it was revealed that Dr. Luke was among the producers attached to Perry’s upcoming seventh studio album, 143, and had co-written her feminist anthem, Woman’s World.

This sparked backlash as Katy’s pop peer Kesha had previously accused Dr. Luke of sexual and physical abuse. He went on to sue Kesha for defamation in 2014 but a settlement was reached in June 2023 before it went to trial.

Being that Katy’s new album is centered on ‘female empowerment,’ many fans were left ‘upset’ and ‘disappointed’ about Dr. Luke’s involvement.

Katy addressed the controversy for the first time on Wednesday’s episode of the Call Her Daddy podcast, telling host Alex Cooper that Dr. Luke is just ‘one of many’ producers who helps ‘facilitate’ her music.

But she insisted that the album is based on her own experiences — not the ones of those she works with — before bizarrely pivoting the conversation to how motherhood has ’empowered’ her as an artist.

Katy Perry is being accused of ‘deflecting’ and ‘gaslighting’ after she broke her silence on her controversial decision to collaborate with music producer Dr. Luke. She addressed it on the Call Her Daddy podcast on Wednesday

Fans quickly took to social media to react to Katy’s remarks, with many accusing the Teenage Dream hitmaker of completely ‘ignoring’ the question.

‘the way she didnt even answer the question lol,’ one fan tweeted on X (formerly Twitter).

Another wrote: ‘She pretty much said nothing??? Like let’s not get gaslighted here because she just basically revealed that she didn’t have to collab with him but it was her choice..’

Katy’s response was also slammed as ‘textbook deflection,’ with one person pointing out that she ‘still chose to work with Dr. Luke even though there were several collaborators she’s worked with in the past.’

Some suggested that Katy would have been better off ‘apologizing’ to fans — as a last stitch effort to save her once highly-anticipated comeback.

‘she could’ve apologized now it will get worse for her,’ one X user penned. 

Katy kicked off her response by acknowledging the ‘conversations’ her connection to Dr. Luke has sparked online in recent weeks.

‘I understand that it started a lot of conversations. And he was one of many collaborators that I collaborated with,’ she said.

Being that Katy’s new album is centered on ‘female empowerment,’ many fans were left ‘upset’ and ‘disappointed’ about Dr. Luke’s involvement due to his settled legal battle with Kesha; Katy and Luke seen in 2014

Fans quickly took to social media to react to Katy’s remarks, with many feeling as though the Teenage Dream hitmaker completely ‘ignored’ the question

The Wide Awake singer insists Luke is simply someone who helps her ‘facilitate’ her music.

However, the I Kissed A Girl hitmaker – who has four-year-old daughter Daisy with fiancé Orlando Bloom – insists that her lyrics all come from her own personal experiences and do not reflect the views of the producer. 

Katy went on: ‘But the reality is it comes from me.

‘The truth is I wrote these songs from my experience of my whole life going through this metamorphosis, and he was one of the people to help facilitate all that—one of the writers, one of the producers.

‘I am speaking from my own experience.

‘When I speak about Woman’s World, I speak about feeling so empowered now as a mother, as a woman, giving birth creating life, creating another set of organs, a brain, a heart. I created a whole whole heart and I did it. I’m still doing it. And I’m still a matriarch. And feeling really grounded in that, that’s where I’m speaking from.’

Katy insists her music comes from a ‘place of celebration and love’.

She added: ‘I don’t feel like I have to make music.

‘I don’t feel like I have to prove anything. I’m doing it now from a place of celebration and love.’

Katy’s response was also slammed as ‘textbook deflection,’ with one person pointing out that she ‘still chose to work with Dr. Luke even though there were several collaborators she’s worked with in the past’ 

Perry’s collaboration with Dr. Luke sparked major controversy ahead of her much-anticipated comeback.

In June, Rolling Stone reported that the multi-Grammy Award nominee was collaborating with Dr. Luke as well as Max Martin, Sarah Hudson and Stargate on her sixth record.

Perry ‘knew exactly the album she wanted to make and put together the team to make it happen,’ a Capitol Records source told the outlet of the collection of talent the former American Idol judge put together for her first release since 2020’s Smile.

The feedback online was pointed toward both Perry and Dr. Luke, who last year settled a defamation lawsuit with Kesha after she claimed in a 2014 lawsuit that he had sexually and physically abused her. 

Kesha, whose full name is Kesha Rose Sebert, tweeted ‘lol’ in the wake of news Perry and Dr. Luke would be collaborating.

A number of followers speculated on the meaning of Kesha’s ‘lol’ tweet, with one speculating that ‘she’s laughing at katy and her new song,’ while another asked, ‘Is this Katy shade?’

Other people were more pointed toward Perry’s professional decision to collaborate with Dr. Luke.

Katy’s pop peer Kesha had previously accused Dr. Luke of sexual and physical abuse; Luke seen in 2013 

He went on to sue Kesha for defamation in 2014 but a settlement was reached in June 2023 before it went to trial; Kesha seen in 2016 

‘It’ll never be a ‘Woman’s World’ bc people like Katy Perry continue to support and uplift abusers in the industry like Dr. Luke,’ one user said.

Another added, ‘I’m actually in shock how so many Katy Perry fans are defending her with this Dr. Luke thing… it’s ok to hold your favorite artist accountable btw.’

One user said that Perry had been calculating in the move, as she ‘waited for the whole court process to end before calling him again.’

One user said they ‘won’t be listening,’ while another said, ‘Some people make music with integrity, while others just care about having a number 1.’