Katy Perry had a scary moment during her Lifetimes tour concert in San Francisco on Friday, July 18, when a large butterfly prop she was riding stopped working correctly, almost making her fall into the crowd.
As found by Page Six, the 40-year-old pop star was singing her hit song “Roar” at the Chase Center when the flying prop suddenly moved downward, causing her to lose her balance. Videos from the incident show the audience gasping and screaming as Perry looked frightened.
Even though it was a scary situation, Perry quickly got herself together, holding onto the butterfly tightly, and kept singing the song. Someone close to the singer said she only got a small bump and is “fine,” adding that she “stopped for just a second but then kept going, barely missing a note.”
Katy Perry was almost hurt in concert over malfunction
After the concert, Perry joked about the incident on her Instagram Stories, sharing a blurry picture of her surprised face with the caption, “Goodnight San Fran.”
Katy Perry’s giant butterfly prop just malfunctioned mid-show and nearly took her out… she really said fight or flight
— Rayan (@Rmadjidi) July 19, 2025#lifetimestour #KatyPerry @katyperry @ChrisAntonacci1 @todaykatyp pic.twitter.com/MeXJ77JJBj
This isn’t the first time Perry has had a technical problem on her “Lifetimes” tour, which started in April. Just a few weeks earlier, during a show in Australia, a metal ball meant to lift her above the crowd tilted in a dangerous way, making her hold onto the frame for safety. This also happened after a similar mid-air prop failure involving Beyoncé in Houston last month. Luckily, Beyoncé also survived, but two malfunctions this close together are strange.
The San Francisco incident comes during a tough time for Perry, who has also dealt with poor sales for her “Lifetimes” album, a recent onstage run-in with a fan who wasn’t supposed to be there, criticism about her dance moves, and her recent breakup with fiancé Orlando Bloom after 10 years together. Earlier this month, representatives for Perry and Bloom confirmed that they are “changing their relationship” to focus on raising their 4-year-old daughter, Daisy Dove, together.
