Katy Perry tells us about her new album and her first child
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Read the following story by Tatat Bunnag from the Bangkok Post. Then, answer the questions that follow.
Katy Perry is without a doubt a big name in the pop music world. With a string of chart-topping tracks like Roar, California Gurls, Teenage Dream and Firework, the American pop singer has sold more than 45 million albums and her songs have been streamed over 40 billion times. Now in self-isolation, the megastar is gearing up for the release of her new album, Smile, as well as the birth of her first child.
Less than six months ago, the 35-year-old Perry had just announced her pregnancy with fiancé Orlando Bloom. However, that same week, she was forced to flee Australia as the coronavirus pandemic began to take its toll. She returned home to the US to ride out the storm during the lockdown. Perry spoke with Bangkok Post recently via Zoom about the ups and downs in her life.
August is a crazy month as you're releasing your new album and having a baby. What has it been like for you so far?
It's a beautiful month for me and I've been saying I will not write off 2020 just yet because that would not be fair for my unborn daughter, who is the silver lining to this awful year.
What can you tell us about the new album?
This record is called Smile because I walked through hell basically to get my 'smile' back when I had lost it in the last two years. So, I started writing songs as I began to come out of a really dark time when I was super depressed. I started telling myself things like just keep on dancing through those teary eyes or that I am resilient or the fact that I needed my smile back. Now, I’ve found my smile again and here I am.
The whole album was inspired by challenging times in your life and it was a turning point for you as well. Do you normally find it easier to write music about difficult periods when you are in them?
It's hard when you're in it. I mean when you're depressed, you can't get out of bed and nothing motivates you. When you're in that zone, it's hard to think about anything else. However, you have to push yourself into places in your mind that you don't want to go to. It's almost like exercising -- which I hate -- but you just feel so much better afterwards because we know that it's good for us.
It seems like now K-pop groups like Blackpink and BTS are so popular in America. Have you ever thought of working with these artists?
I'm all about collaborating with anyone. However, to be completely honest, it's not about the artists but about the songs. There have actually been quite a few collaborations that I've done in the past but they were not so great and it just didn't work out so well. I've done remixes of songs with legends but I haven't released them because it doesn't serve the music. So, if Blackpink has the dopest song that makes me feel sexy or makes me feel connected, then I'm totally there.
Do you miss playing shows and what is your opinion on the future of live concerts and touring?
My last show was in Australia in March. So it hasn't been that long yet. I was never planning on touring directly after putting out this album, though I didn't know the whole world was going to do the same thing. So I didn't have any kind of feeling of being let down or the fact that I couldn't stick to a certain plan. I can't imagine how people who had concerts planned but could not perform are feeling. I mean like Billie Eilish was on tour and she'd only done a couple of dates and then the whole thing just paused.
Section 1: Write the correct answer in the space provided.
1. How many albums has Katy Perry sold? …………….
2. Perry got pregnant 6 months ago. True or false? …………….
3. Who is Perry’s partner? …………….
4. Is her baby male or female? …………….
5. What does Perry compare writing music to? …………..
6. Perry would like to work with Blackpink. True or false? …………….
7. When and where was her last concert? …………….
8. Perry was planning to tour with Billie Eilish. True or false? …………….
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Section 2: Write the noun form of the following words in the space provided.
9. announced ……… 10. beautiful ……… 11. dark ………. 12. motivates ………. 13. connected ……….
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Section 3: Read the following passage. Then, fill in the blanks with the correct words from the choices given.
I was …14… whether I should release this album during these difficult times. …15…, I think this album has a lot of thought behind it; messages of hope, resilience, and a lot of joy. The music is …16… upbeat. There's maybe one mid-tempo song with …17… the album ends. Music has always been there for me in my darkest times, especially when I was younger and so overwhelmed with emotions that I didn't know how to organise them. If I played the right song, I felt …19… .
14. A. debating B. having C. talking
15. A. However B. Therefore C. In addition
16 A. most B. mostly C. rarely
17. A. whom B. when C. which
18. A. maybe B. definitely C. especially
19. A. understand B. understood C. understanding
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Section 4: Find words that match the following definitions.
20. to leave a place quickly ……………
21. very bad or unpleasant ……………
22. able to deal with and recover from difficult situations ……………
23. in a state of general unhappiness …………
24. people who are very famous ……………
.
.
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Answers: 1. more than 45 million. 2. false. 3. Orlando Bloom. 4. female. 5. exercising. 6. true. 7. Australia, March. 8. false. 9. announcer/announcement. 10. beauty. 11. darkness. 12. motivation. 13. connection.
14.a. 15.a. 16.b. 17.c. 18. c. 19. b.
20. flee. 21. awful. 22. resilient. 23. depressed. 24. legends.
SCORE 21-24: Excellent! 17-20: Good. 13-16: Fair. 12 or fewer: You'll do better next time!
