Katy Perry determined to find next ‘American Idol’
LOS ANGELES – Katy Perry has become a music superstar around the world with a continuous stream of hit records, gigantic tours and even performing at halftime during the Super Bowl. As if that wasn’t enough fame and glory, Perry now joins Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie to be a celebrity judge on the ABC revival of “American Idol.”
Despite all of her success, Perry has a wish that she would love to see come true. “You know, the iconic Snow White has never been made into a liveaction movie. I will go back to black hair if this is ever available,” Perry said after a press conference to talk about the new “American Idol.”
She’s long had a passion for anything Disney, a connection that just got stronger because the company owns ABC, and she has done her share of animated voice work with the “Smurf ” movies.
Few people get to see her commitment to voice work because it’s all done in a recording studio, but Perry says that when given the chance to be a cartoon character, she throws everything she has into the work. She will work so hard on an animation voice that she has to go back and practice her own songs just to get her voice back to normal.
Part of the process of finding contestants has to do with talent, but there’s also a human element. Perry has listened to an endless stream of heartbreaking stories told to win favor with the judges. She’s very sensitive to what the contestants have gone through, but Perry also knows that almost every successful singer started out dealing with hardships.
Perry deals with this by remembering this is a business and she must make executive decision based on the raw material standing in front of her. In describing her place among the judges, Perry talks about how Richie is the legacy who shares countless stories about music history, and that Bryan is more of a nurturing type.
“I am very serious about it. I do the jokes. I get up and dance,” she said. “But, at the end of the day, I see things that the other judges don’t see. I see where the music industry is going and how much emphasis is put on personalities and different styles. There are a lot of singers out there, but this isn’t a singing competition. Half the people in the world can sing. What we are looking for is someone who will be a star.”