Pastor's daughter, Katy Perry releases single, "I kissed a girl"
Don't be surprised if you hear your daughter humming to the tune of "I kissed a girl" in the days to come. Or for that matter, if you find it on her MP3 player. In fact, I was in the car with my daughter (18) and the song came on the radio and she said, "This song is so catchy and I love the beat, but the words are so messed up." At that point, I tuned into the lyrics more carefully just in time for the chorus:
I kissed a girl and I liked it
The taste of her cherry chapstick
I kissed a girl just to try it
I hope my boyfriend don't mind it
It felt so wrong
It felt so right
Don't mean I'm in love tonight
I kissed a girl and I liked it
I liked it
Her CD drops today and she is currently the buzz of the pop music industry, often being compared to Pink or Alanis Morissette. If you are the parent of a tween or teen, this up-and-coming artist needs to be on your radar. As our kids get older, it becomes more and more difficult to monitor each and every song they load on their iPods. Kids today are begging for MP3 players in grade school and most of the basic models hold in excess of a thousand songs. They then get iTunes cards for birthdays or Christmas and quickly learn their way around the iTunes store, loading up their digital shopping carts with .99 cent songs. Of course, they will want to load the songs they are hearing on the pop radio station, which also just so happen to be the songs their friends are buzzing about. Even their Christian friends.
Now, what has me most troubled about Miss Katy Perry is that she is the daughter of a Pastor who began her music career in the Contemporary Christian Music scene. In fact, back in 2001, I received a CD in the mail entitled "Katy Hudson." The CD came with a note from an agent touting Miss Hudson as a perfect compliment for the events I was holding for teen girls across the country. Katy Hudson = Katy Perry. Same girl, people. I kid you not. When I listened to the CD, it was clear that she was talented, but I was more interested in having a worship leader at the conferences as compared to a Christian pop artist. I passed along her CD (among many others sent to me in those years) to my daughter and forgot all about her. Until now. Mercy Moses, child, what happened?!!
To get a better picture of Miss Perry's transformation from Christian pop artist to banner artist for the "lesbian chic" movement, check out this article written about her in 2001 in Christianity Today and then check out the music video for her new hit single here. I also saw this live performance on YouTube where she spews the "f" word and jokingly states to the audience, "I'm gonna be a lesbian after this tour." Or maybe she wasn't joking. Hmmmmm....
Anyway, I thought you might want to have this gal on your radar. Yet another opportunity for a teachable moment should you find her song on your tween or teen's iPod or hear them singing along when it comes on the radio. Even if you don't allow your tweens or teens to listen to secular music, take note that Katy Perry's parents didn't allow her to listen to secular music, either. She was raised on a steady diet of hymns and gospel music until she was introduced to secular music (Queen) at a sleepover. She shares this story in an interview here where she claims that "the heavens opened and saved me." Saved you from what, Katy? Christian music or Christianity in general? I share this not to depress you, but to remind you that this is why we must teach our children to take the influences they are exposed to and run them through God's lens as well as weigh them against His standards. Remember, Deuteronomy 6:6-7 is our standard for parenting.
We need to be lifting this gal up in prayer. If she truly is a Christian, the conviction has got to be eating her up. While we're at it, let's toss up a prayer for her parents, too. Not to mention, the countless young girls who will buy into this lesbian chic message that Miss Perry (Hudson) is attempting to take mainstream. Interestingly, I have had young women cry on my shoulder at my events over a past "girl kissing" (or more) episode that haunts their past. In just about every case, it involved a) alcohol and b) a dare from a group of guys. And when all was said and done, not a one of them claimed to have "liked it."
Here is a video clip of a recent interview where the host asked her some tough questions about her Christian background including her parents' thoughts regarding her career and whether or not she still believes in Christ:
...and on that note, I think I'll double up on my prayers for this girl. She acknowledges that she has been given a gift from God on the one hand, but has squandered that very gift! What a sad picture of a lost child who has been swept away by the carnal pleasures of the world. She is floating quickly downstream or as she says, round and round in Hurricane Harbor. Let's pray that she'll reach for the lifeline God is throwing her way...
(NOTE: I expect that many will stumble upon this post while searching for information about this artist. Please respect the fact that my blog is a tool for Christian parents wishing to raise their children with Christian principles. Therefore, hateful comments will not be posted.)
83 comments:
Thanks again for letting know. I will pray for her and family. Michelle
I found your blog via Jean Stockdale's blog. I used to be a part of the MOMS ministry with her at Bellevue Baptist Church.
Anyway, I absolutely love your blog!! I am in the process of raising three children for the Lord, and I really appreciate your frankness about virtue. Thanks for sharing your insight, which in my humble opinion, is strategically sprinkled with humor and satire!!
I've been hearing this song all week. Disturbing....
Oh my word, how scary. Thank you for this virtue alert, Vicki.
I've been struggling with my 11 yr. old daughter over what radio stations I'll listen to while in the car. I caved and agreed to listen to a secular station the other afternoon. While waiting in line at the bank I tuned in to the words of this very song and could not believe what I was hearing. I'm not sure how long the song had been playing without my paying attention to it but I know my precious, very impressionable child heard every word. I immediately asked, "What did she just say?" and my child told me that she said she "kissed a girl". I was sickened!! God convicted me to stick to my guns and listen to what I know to be pleasing to Him and good for ME as well as my children. Since I've shared about my experience with this song, several people have come to me to say they've also heard it and seen speculation over it on TV.
Keep doing what you do! I so appreciate it!
Thank you for being a watchman on the wall for the rest of us!! I haven't heard the song but hearing this girls story just makes me feel sad for her and her parents.
Oh goodness. Thanks for the heads up. I have never heard of the song or artist, but with a young impressionable girl and boy, I will be watching and prepared now. Thanks Vicki.
Praying for sure.
This is so sad and scary at the same time... It is funny how one can go from one extreme to the other. I watched the first part of the video, and felt so uncomfortable.
I can see where a tune like this can get into a young person's (or not so young) head, and if the worst thing happens work its way to their hearts... You are right when you say we should pray... Blessings to you...
This is just wrong. After my corrupt State now issues Same Sex Marriage lic. this just disturbs me. When will it stop!!
Thanks for the update!
I just went over to her site and watched a couple of second of her video with the same title. In just these short seconds I could see the sad direction this girl is heading. Very provocative.
I have never heard of her. So very sad on many levels.
I truly appreciate you sharing your take on all of this. I always feel the same way, but words sometimes fail me. After reading your posts and books for years now, I'm much more able to put my feelings and convictions into words.
You're a blessin'!!
Ok sometimes I just want to pack up my family and move to a deserted island somewhere!!
It sounds like her parents did things "right" and look at her
I am trying to teach my boys to remember WHO they are and WHOSE they are so when they walk out of the house they know the choices they make not only effect them but our family as well
Still it truly disturbs me how teens are acting these days
Thanks for always keeping us informed
Blessings
Kim
Thanks for the heads-up, Vicki! After seeing the parts of the video I could see while squinting through my fingers in fear, disgust, and general nausea, I heard these words in the bridge:
"It's no big deal; it's innocent."
She couldn't be further from the truth. Thanks again for helping us moms out there who are trying to raise godly children.
Appreciate you!
Thanks so much for the work you do and for posting information like this. My girls are little, and we're starting now! I'll need ministries like this more and more as they grow. Thanks again!
Let us all just remember to pray for her and her family. How they must be suffering right now. I stand with them in faith that the Lord would convict and bring her back to the foundation in which she was brought up in the Lord.
I am the lyric cop in my family. I listen to the lyrics and google them if I can't get them all. As soon as a word comes up or a suggestive lyric, the station gets changed. PERIOD. I get complaints all of the time, but oh well! I always tell them "It is what it is."
This world is a battle.
I will pray for Katy, that she has an encounter with the love of the Father!
Linked to this... thanks for posting it.
Vicki,
This is not good. I understand that something went terribly wrong in this girl's life, and she needs out!!! She needs a mightly sanctifying or saving work of God!!! When I helped co-facilitate a middle school girls bible study this past winter, one of the girls told me her cousin had a bunch of friends who were "gay" and that her cousin was wondering what she thought about being "gay". I told her that she needed to tell her cousin IN LOVE that it was a sin (against your own body) and how it is not a sin you want to get involved in at all! No one is immune to this kind of temptation. Yes, sexual sin like that and any kind at all does such a work on a person's thoughts-those girls you talked to...I hurt for them...with the world going in the direction of accepting this type of behavior as a "lifestyle choice"-it is not good. Satan has a field day with these types of sins...praying for you and your ministry.
katiegfromtennessee
The part that made me the sickest is where she said, "It don't matter...it's innocent". I think back just a decade ago when I started mentoring teen girls and they were struggling so much with physical issues with guys. Now, we're in so deep in a world where girls think it's OK to "experiment" with other girls in an "innocent" way. I only pray that we can stand up with the voice to remind them that there is NOTHING innocent about it.
Thank you! This is scary stuff.
Troubling beyond words. I could not even finish watching the video of her song.
I did find it interesting that she said in the interview that the song "Lost" on her album reflects a portion of her life. She might give that some serious thought.
And saying she still believes in Christ. "But." That just brought to mind the verses in Romans 6: "Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?"
Thanks for making us aware. How this must grieve her father and her Father.
Excellent post. Thank you for this warning.
When I first started reading your post, I kept waiting for the punch line. And then it dawned on me, brilliant and still naive girl that I am, that this song was about Lesbians.
And then I felt sick. And sad. And wanted to shield my two girls from this.
Thank you for being a watchdog for the virtue of our daughter's. My oldest is only 8 and the exposure to the ungodly and indecent is frightening.
Oh yes, all my high school girls that I teach (and even some of the boys) are singing this catchy little tune that I just heard about yesterday.
We can't underestimate the impact and influence that tunes like this have on the psyche of teens. Scott
Wow. What's going to be out there when my girls are tweens?
This should be a wake up call to parents who allow their children to listen to "Christina Pop". It can so easily suck our children into secular music because it is based on the SAME hypnotic beats of secular music. Baptizing the lyrics may make many ignore the beat, but once that is normalized it becomes part of your appitite.
I am saddened each time I accidently tune into a Christian music station because initially I CAN'T tell the difference between it and secular music, and often even after listening to the words.
This might seem legalistic to many out there, but start researching the roots of Rock and Pop music (not talking about the lyrics here, just the rythmns) and you will be shocked to find out who is being allowed into your home and church.
If its that easy to "switch sides" that should put us on our guard. Our children's minds are SO impressionable, it just doesn't seem worth the risk!
Just when I think it can't get any worse - it does. How many young girls out there are watching this pornographic video that encourages this kind of behavior? Not to mention that that the last scene of the video she is in bed with her boyfriend.
Thanks so much for giving a heads up. It breaks my heart to see someone who is trying to fill their void with that which the world offers:-(
So heart breaking. I am speechless. Such fowl language and such a worldly view for someone who claims to believe in Christ. It is a sad day when someone like that is claiming to know Christ and then is blaspheming and shedding such a bad light on Christians. Lots of prayer is needed. Thanks for the heads up for this sinful example. so sad.
Oh, heavens! I bought this song for my daughter for her iPod, thinking it was okay because it didn't have any warnings.
I had no idea. Thank you so much for this alert.
I see a discussion is in order. We'll listen to it together, then discuss. Not sure where that will lead. Praying for guidance.
You are right -- we can isolate our girls but that doesn't teach them how to handle what the world will send them.
I wish I have never heard of her, but at the same time, I need to be aware to protect our children from these sinful influences. This society is just getting worse. We need so much prayer. Katy Perry also has a horrible blog where she posts videos and other things. katyperryblog.tumblr.com Her language and things she talks about are so fowl, its no wonder it is working into her songs too. She reeks sodom and gamorrah. So heart breaking, and scary at the same time. It must grieve our Lord and the Holy Spirit.
Once again, thank you Vicki! I will be praying for her and her family. I will also be passing this along to other.
Thank you for sharing this story. I will continue to pray for Katy. She is such an amazing gift from God and I can totally relate as we all can to the time in our lives when we have been so very "lost." Also, thank you, Vicki, for this gracious reminder to pray for her.
Floating around Hurricane Harbor prunishly aimlessly...may her eyes be opened to the One she's heard about her whole life. I just this second read 2Chron 19:2 where the LORD said to the king: don't make alliances with those who do not like God. Seems like that means for us today, don't download their itunes, don't buy their cd's and "get into them" either.
It's so sickening! What a blemish on christianity! I say that because, remember when Jessica Simpson came out? Her big deal was how her family was a ministry family and they were filled with values and boundaries???? Oh yea, right! Let's not forget the blasted all over the world news of her "virginity" until she married her "ex" Nick Lachey.
Now....fast forward a bit. Her life is so sexualized and shallow. All at the hands of her ministry family (parents). What an embarrassment to believer's all over this world.
They are responsible for compromising their Lord for the almighty dollar $$$$. They have pimped out their daughters in every way. All for more money. They can be seen at bars, wild parties, buying her provocative clothing...etc...making sexy video's. Yuck!
I want to cry when I hear media point out they are a christian family. Eeek!
Now about this Katy.....she is L O S T !!!!!
No doubt about it. She is way out there on her beliefs....it sounds like her parents faith is not her faith.
Money is a driving force in many of these people's lives. The raunchier you will be...the more money they will hand you. Satan at work!
I am praying for her....and for her family. In the meantime, people....talk to your kids about the lyrics in secular music and turn it OFF! Go with Christian music....it rocks!
Unbelievable! I was just shocked! And she thinks her parents who are serving in the ministry respect her....
I know they love her but she is not to be respected at this time in her life.
Very very sad!
As a mom of a 5 yr old and a 1 yr old - this sickens me! Not because I am judging Katy, but because I fear for how a child can be raised in the Word and then turn from it so severely! It truly scares me for my children.
I think this is a call to pray for our own children diligently and for each other - to step up and stay involved in our children's lives!!! It is a reminder that we must be "nosy" about what are kids are doing, listening to, and who they are friends are. It is so easy to slack off, but we can never let our guard down!!!
WOW! I have never heard of this song. My 10 year old just saved and bought her own MP3 player (which I thought was a good compromise since she really wanted a cell phone) and has been looking for songs to put on it. Thanks for the heads up on this one.
Christine
(Mom to Ana, 10, and Zoe, 5)
Thank you, Vicki, once again, for the heads-up!
This is precisely why our girls do not do overnights!
There is no sheltering too great!
the sad thing is that many teens will not even understand why there is controversy. and the controversy is what will get the song played.
WoW!!! Thanks for the 'head's up'!!!
As a teenage girl, I do listen to some pop, but generally switch stations when it gets dirty. yeah, I have heard this song, and it's definitely catchy. But you parents who wish to shelter your kids from EVERYTHING are doing them a disservice. My parents don't, we listen to secular music in the car together. We use it as a topic for discussion,i.e. what would God think of this? is this honoring to God? etc. Unless you keep your kids in a padded cell for eternity, they will figure pretty much everything out. It is best for you to teach them in a way that is honoring to God. Katy Perry needs our prayer, yes, but also, don't make the same mistake her parents made.
Thanks for this alert.
I've recently been trying to find some fun old music for my dh and I to listen to in the car that I don't mind the kids listening to also. It has been so hard because I don't want my 3 & 7 year olds hearing damaging lyrics over and over again... they learn that stuff. I've always stuck with worship music, but then I read about you taking your kids to a Journey concert and I feel like maybe I'm being too stuffy with them. Then I hear about things like this and I agree with Kim (connorcolesmom) and just want to pack it all in and move to a deserted island.
So I guess I'm asking... what's a parent to do? My kids don't have iPods nor are they on iTunes or anything on their own yet so I'm in control of what music they hear for now. I'm just concerned about finding balance.
I know there is nothing new under the sun--but it's still hard to live in this day and age! Maybe with all of us praying for her...bless her poor family. I might even have to use my mom's prayer when I think of this girl.."God do whatever it takes..."
Ok, I kinda take a different view on this Vicki...
It's an enormous dis-service to hide all the "bad stuff" from you kids.
First off, she's from a christian family, pastor's kid. How many kids get the real at-home attention and care they need from their ministry involved parents? Not that many.
Did anyone notice that in the video she stated that when she goes home for holidays, that her family makes it a "let's make fun of Katy Holiday"????
I was a run-away from God gal for many years....You wanna know why? It was the exact pressure of "everything's wrong and disgusting and bad bad bad if it's not Biblical Christianity"
The view points most Christian leaders teach the kids is literally making the stuff you want to keep them out of, more attractive.
This gal, she listened to Queen at a friend's sleep-over...ok, what kid hasn't heard about the glory days of Queen?
I tell ya, the moment your over-sheltered child (and I mean this generally, Vicki, not you personally) is let out of the house, say college, they're gonna feel more than peer pressure.
I felt stupid, hated, I was cursed at, a marked target for my virginity, frequently turned down for study hall, etc, etc, etc...the list goes on and on and on.
Think of it like this, you're a very professional business worker 9 to 5er....suddenly deposited to work in one of New York's top kitchens a 10 - 2 am job. The environment is dangerous, foul-mouthed, testosterne driven and HOT.
Same feelings, friends, for your precious kids going out in the big bad world not having a clue about lingo, those hushed wispers behind their backs, what in God's green earth is a ( fill in blank ) anyway, and not to mention the added stress of having to absorb and actually learn the new job/class/etc in the new environment.
My advice? Well, maybe I'm being a little too over-the-edge, but, watch the late night news with your kid. Watch the occasional entertainment news with your kid. And yes, by yourself, the parent(s), watch MTV, BET, VH-1...look up those repeated names online. Find out a bit about today's world, talk about these folk with your kids the same way you talk about politicians and the presidential nominees. Don't just say that this and such is wrong because God says so...that won't do in the long-run...say WHY....where it leads, how glamorous it really is (who wouldn't want a lot of money to go ahead and pay that manicure with?) but what kinda destruction it leads to in the "end"....
Endings are far to final dear christians, and I was almost an ending. Christian Parents need to step up and not trivialize our kids interests...and totally, 100 percent LISTEN....
It's the only way to catch that evil in the bud....
I am a college student, and this song disgusts me. I think a good thing for parents to do with this song is think about why it was written in the first place. Girls today are so lost--even the Christian ones. They lack self-esteem and instead of finding their worth in Christ, they find their worth in romantic relationships. Even if your daughters aren't allowed to date until a certain age, like me, they are still finding their worth through the attention they get from boys. It's sad, but true. This song plays up on girls with low self-esteem who will do anything to get attention from guys. Girls are acting like they're lesbians to get attention from guys.
Parents, talk to your girls about their worth. Talk to them about finding love through Christ and not boys. Talk to them about how easy it can be to use their sexuality as power over boys and how they must guard themselves against it.
I believe that if young girls are taught from a young age to find their worth in Christ and not in boys, a lot of dangerous "innocent" experimentation can be prevented.
Take it from a college student who sees it every weekend--it's too important to not have that conversation with your daughters.
Music has so much power, both for praise and the profane.
This song is insidious. Seriously. The lyrics are disturbing on so many levels and I would never choose to listen to a song like this for entertainmnt.
However, I listened to it once, not even all the way through, when I took a look at Katy Perry's site and I've been humming the tune ever since, and I KNOW better. How do girls combat this stuff? Scary.
Wow. It's hard to imagine as a parent. Thanks for the post.
I think she's rebelling against her strict upbringing. I may be a Christian, but even Ned Flanders has his faults! It doesn't mean living in an abbey.
I have heard songs in my day that make Katy Perry sound like Sandi Patty!
Ugh! Thanks for the heads up on this, we need to know what is out there, nonetheless it just sickens me. How I wish I could protect my daughters, but since they must live in this world, as we all must, I struggle with knowing the best way to prepare them without compromising their hearts.
On a separate note, we are having a sleepover with two of the girls little buddies, and the 9 year old has her own cell phone (NOT my child, the friend). When i went in to tuck them in, they were all hovering around her phone trying to decipher a cryptic message. Thankfully it was just a number, but the reality that it could have as easily been a pornographic picture stopped me cold. I don't allow my girls to have phones to protect them, but it hadn't yet occurred to me that a friend visitng would also be something I need to beware of. Oh, sometimes it makes me tired to think of all the things out there after our children.
This is very eye opening and I will definitely be praying for Katy and her family.
Thank you for always keeping us updated.
I have had a burden for young girls for a long time. My prayer is that they will know at a very early age that they are valued and loved or they will go elsewhere looking and searching.
Since we have an empty nest now at our home, I feel like I'm not in the know of what all's going on out in the world as much as I used to. I know a lot...more than I care to know, but when the kids were home they would watch MTV and The Real World....shows like that occasionally. They were in their older teens. I'd come in and sit and watch it sometimes too, mainly just to see what really is going out there. Like someone else commented, it gave us a chance to talk about it and talk about how disgusting certain lifestyles are and what the result of this behavior can be. My kids definitely knew where we stood/stand on certain issues.
I am a preacher's kid too and I think my parents did an excellent job raising us. All four of their daughters are Christians and love the Lord so very much to this day. All of our children have been saved and baptized. My parents had rules and expectations, but we were free to discuss anything... mainly it seemed like over dinner every evening (something most families don't do on a regular basis anymore & VERY IMPORTANT) My parents allowed me to go to concerts like "The Eagles" "Willie Nelson" on and on I could go. I remember one time I went to see "Bread" (very oldies!!!!) and people were passing joints down a row of people in front of me. I was exposed to lots and always knew that my parents loved the Lord and served Him with all their hearts. I never wanted to disappoint them or disrespect them. It would have killed me. I admired them and wanted to honor them. They trusted us girls & there was a healthy balance in our family. Parents can't say one thing and live another. It's all about balance.
I pray for those who are with young today. Times keep getting worse and worse. I'd hate to be raising a child today.
Stay in the Word! Pray the Word over your children every day! Don't just preach to your child, but talk and discuss.
I can think of at least two different kids my children were friends with and the parents were so strict about every little thing. One of these families has two children who are homosexuals now. They thought they were doing the right thing by being so legalistic about so many things.
I'm not meaning to be judgmental, but it all boils down to showing love and showing God's love. Take every advantage to share honestly with each other.
I'm thankful that I allowed my kids to watch and listen to a few things to know what was going on.
My kids both have jobs where they have seen and heard some pretty shocking stuff.
Also, they've always felt very comfortable telling me and my husband anything & everything. When there's no fear of a certain reaction, your kids will trust you to talk to you more.
Back to Katy....this is so sad. I hate the lyrics to that song.
I will keep her in my prayers that God will send very special people into her life who will lead her back to her God.
(Sorry so long!)
Valerie
Thanks for all your work! Attawaytogo!
My daughter and her friends all read your blog. We agree that Miss Katy's song it ICKY! and gross and wrong AND ALL TOO ACCEPTED! I love that my girls choose to change the station when they hear it. I am blessed with girls who are exposed to the secular but choose the Godly. Prayer that they will continue in their love of Jesus and willingness to do His will.
Love the Alerts! Love the blog! Love your magbook! Can't wait for the conference this summer!
Attawaytogo!
thanks for the heads up. Thanks for taking the time to post! I love your site and books.
My heart sank just a few minutes ago--days after first reading this post--when I heard my 11 year old singing the lyrics to this song. She heard it on her friend's ipod. Great. The truth is had you not already informed us I probably would have handled this very differently,but I was able to calmly talk to her and really give the impression I know everything when I told her I knew about the song, the singer and her story. Thank you for how you do so much of my Homework for me. You are a gift to moms everywhere!!
PS--I was also grateful to hear her say "It has a great sound, but bad words."
Thanks to you, I had the discussion. I'm pleased that my daughter said she "loved the song but hated the lyrics" and what's more, she and her friends were so uncomfortable with the lyrics so they changed them. They now sing along with these words, "I kissed a boy and I liked it. I hope his girlfriend doesn't mind...."
Still not the ideal message, but vastly improved.
Ever since I read this post last week she has been on my heart quite often. Thank you for encouraging us to pray and stand in the gap that she use her God-given gifts to glorify Him!
Last week I was driving with my three children (11, 9 & 8) when they started humming this song. I then found out they heard it at swim team practice over the loud speaker. Their coach, who they look up to and think is so cool, said this was her favorite song. It makes me sick, sick, sick...and sad, sad, sad.
My teen daughter also thinks this song is "catchy", but right now she doesn't see this "worldly" stuff happening yet. I warned her, she will, & when she does see it, she will have to decide what to believe in; The One who created her and His love letter to her or believe in what the world tells her. Oh how we need to pray for this younger generation daily.
My 11 year daughter and I were looking for ring tones the other day and this song came up. My daughter commented that it was a good song and started to sing it. When I caught the words, I double checked the name of the singer and confirmed with my daughter that in fact it was a female ( you can't be too certain these days!) I asked her if she had any idea what the song was about and she said no she just liked the beat. Needless to say we had a mother-daughter talk about it and other topics of similiar subject. One of the problems, especially with the younger kids, is that they DON'T always pay attention to the lyrics or meaning of songs, they just like the beat or their friends like it or the artist is someone familiar to them(Lizzie Maguire or Mylie Cyrus for example). I believe it is more important to communicate with our kids and be aware of what they are being exposed to rather than trying to shelter them from everything. They WILL be exposed whether you like it or not and it is best to be as informed as possible and keep the lines of communication open so when the need for dialogue presents itself, there will be no fear or hesitation.
I am a 20 year old pastor's daughter. I found your blog while searching for what Katy Perry's parents thought about her now...
My parents were very strict on me growing up, and I was not allowed to listen to secular music at all. Now that I'm an adult, there are few Christian artists I can tolerate. To be perfectly honest, I think the concept of "I kissed a girl" is disgusting and I do not support the GLBT lifestyle, but yet I can totally understand where Katy is coming from. After watching the video interview with her, I don't hold her intelligence in high esteem at all...
I'm not saying that there's a better way, but I know that my parents raised me rigidly and they would die if they knew I were "normal." Katy is just brave enough (or maybe likes the fame and money enough?) to be honest.
I think that people have personal choices they have to make. I believe parents should raise their children morally, but to be so rigid as "no secular music!" while shoving church down your child's throat three times a week... Katy Perry, myself, and 90% of the pastors kids I know are proof that it doesn't work.
Anonymous, I greatly appreciate your comments, especially since you are a pastor's daughter. I would love to tap your brain on a few more issues related to this topic of raising our kids in a challenging culture all the while, providing a reasonable balance. Of course, I would respect your anonymity and never disclose your identity. I feel you could offer great insight to my audience of blog readers. If you're game for a few questions, please email my Asst., Shawna at shawna@virtuousreality.com.
Thanks!
Katy is soooooo behind the times, not cutting edge and passé that it is sad.
Its been done.
see: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpI7znS8Fuc
Jenny came over and told me about Brad
He's such a hairy behemoth she said
And dumb as a box of hammers
But he's such a handsome guy
And I opened up and I told her about Larry
And yesterday how he asked me to marry
I'm not giving him an answer yet
I think I can do better
CHORUS:
So we laughed, compared notes
We had a drink, we had a smoke
She took off her overcoat
I kissed a girl
I kissed a girl
So she called home to say she'd be late
He said, he worried but now he'd feel safe
I'm glad you're with your girlfriend,
Tell her "Hi" for me
then I looked at you, you had guilt in your eyes
But it only lasted a little while
And then I felt your hand above my knee
CHORUS:
And we laughed at the world
They can have their diamonds
And we'll have our pearls
I kissed a girl
I kissed a girl
I kissed a girl, her lips were sweet
She was just like kissing me
I kissed a girl, won't change the world
But I'm so glad
I kissed a girl
And we laughed at the world
They can have their diamonds
And we'll have our pearls
I kissed a girl (for the first time)
I kissed a girl (and I may do it again)
I kissed a girl
I kissed a girl
I kissed a girl, her lips were sweet
She was just like kissing me (but better)
I kissed a girl
I kissed a girl, won't change the world
But I'm so glad
I kissed a girl (for the first time)
I kissed a girl (won't be the last time)
I kissed a girl
I kissed a girl
Jill Sobule did it first.
In the end I suspect this is more about capitilization on heterosexual male titilation about lesbianism... If they new the full story, they would not be half as impressed.
Oh wow. What to say?
I'm a 30 year old mom of two...raised quite similarly to Katy and am also a singer. This story broke my heart...it very easily could be my own minus the paparazzi.
Her answers in the video were awkwardly telling. I could FEEL the conviction. What I hate for her is the celebrity vortex she is living in which will only keep her high and busy, squelching the voice of the Spirit. I praise GOD for the prayers of my parents and others who knew I belonged to Christ but was living like an enemy of truth!
I "religiously" watched Sex in the City and devoured Cosmo magazines like gospel...I wanted so badly to be the "it" girl: stunning, witty, fashionable, and, above all the sexually active but unattainable beauty who partied hard and still looked great. Who was I kidding? I was RUNNING.
It wasn't until I was date raped and conceived my precious son that I slowed down long enough to feel the hurt of my actions. It was so painful but the very best thing for me. Ah, discipline.
I will pray for her...
Love the blog...I'm bookmarking it. Thank you for doing what you do.
I will pray for katy Hudson aka Katy Perry
Thank you thank you thank you for this post. She happened to be the guest artist on So You Think You Can Dance this week. I'd read this post just a few days before and watched the video while little eyes weren't around. When I saw her face and heard the first few bars of the song, I looked at my husband and said, "Turn it off right now." He was a little puzzled, but he did it and when I told him why later, he was shocked. I hate to even think of what kind of explaining I'd have had to do for my girls if they'd listened to the whole thing! Keep up the good work...
First of all, I just want to let everyone know that my intention is not to offend others and their views, but, to offer another view on this topic. I really understand exactly whhat Katy is going through. I was a minister's daughter. Infact, I was the eldest child in my family. I was raised in a very strict Christian home with seemingly similar values and restrictions as Katy was. I was not allowed to listen to secular music and I was not allowed to listen to "christian pop". My father felt that christian pop merely wet the appetite for the secular circle. The pressure put on me from both my parents and the church was incrediable. I was a teenager wanting to express myself, fit in, find myself and yet I was bieng strangled with dos and donts. For the longest time, I could not understand how my father would preach that following Christ was a personal decision, and yet, I was literally being forced to follow him. Suffice to say, I entered the secular world at 18 and never looked back. It was only through the grace of God, that I did not end up in serious trouble because I was pretty wild. Katy is rebelling. I rebelled and I survived. The thing that I want to say is to not give up on praying for her. And, even if your children ( after raising them in your values and morals etc ) go astray...Your words and teachings will always remain in the back of their minds. So even when they are making wrong choices...they will one day realize that what you have taught them was true...I can not undo my past, I can only work on the future. Thanks to the teachings of my father, I have always retained a sense of morality and the difference between right and wrong...
Some people will do anything for a buck even changing one's God. For Katy, she's turn to fame, fortune, money as a replacement. What a sad world this has become.
www.godzillachai.blogspot.com
www.patientking.blogspot.com
have you listened to her song called Lost?
Thank you for this. I'm seeing firsthand how this is affecting her, and as a media insider, I really feel we need to pray for Katy Perry. In the world I now live in (entertainment industry), it is basically a laughable prospect to bring up God into the equation. Please pray for Katy and the industry at large, and also Miss Amy Winehouse who really needs to clean up her life. Thank you. We who live in this life are very often disillusioned into a world of self and it's been a long time, but God has begun to reach me, and I believe that we just need more godly Christians to work in and amongst performers, whether as makeup artists, crew, or even tour coach drivers [God used just one of these special drivers recently in my life :)] Anyways, there is a lot of opportunity for Christians to interact with these entertainers, even who aren't entertainers themselves. God reached me, and please pray that God uses others. Thank you.
I have heard this song too. What bothers me is this fad younger women and girls have with bisexuality. I have dated two women, both professing to be Christians that have experimented with other women. They both said it was in their past, but it was always in the back of my mind. It really bothered me, I never told them about it. It just seems like it's everywhere.
I would like to hear Katy Perry's reasons for this album. I am a pastor's daughter attending a Christian college, and definitely know the pain and frustration that comes with being the daughter of a pastor. Not only the rules growing up, but seeing the politics of the church. I am a Christian. I choose to try to understand people though, and see what reasons are for their actions- I made dumb mistakes as a teenager. I think it's alright to put these lyrics out there. If you don't want your children to listen to it, then be a parent and don't let them. But don't condemn Katy Perry. I would like to look at her parents' styles of parenting. My money is on the fact that they were more concerned with their church than their family.
Honestly if you get close, you can smell the money.
KP is not a singer/songwriter. She is a well-handled voice whose handled by her companies A&R people who decided that her voice and her body lent itself well to catterwailling and slinking around on video to a song about lesbianism that is the great titilation of many a heterosexual man.
In other words, she had the bod, then the voice to sing this...
She's a twenty-three year old girl with a big sense of humor, lots of talent, and obviously a drive just to be herself! Why don't you try looking up her video blogs where she talks about her parents attending her shows. They must not be too disappointed in her if they're coming to as many shows as she claims. "I Kissed A Girl" is one song, and I know some of her others "Ur So Gay" and such are provocative and such, but have you tried listening to her other music, like Lost and Thinking Of You? She's really quite talented. I'm a faithful and devoted Christian and though I would never write/perform songs I Kissed A Girl and Ur So Gay because that's just not my genre, I still admire her talent and her music.
So don't hate on Katy - she's more than just a pastors' daughter gone awry, as you seem to be implying.
BTW - Did you know she'd never really kissed a girl?
anonymous, you are mistaken about KP's parents accepting her behavior. Numerous news accounts have reported her parents' statement. Katy's mother, Mary Hudson says, "I hate the song. It clearly promotes homosexuality and its message is shameful and disgusting. Katy knows how I feel." She tells the British paper that she and her husband are "deeply ashamed" of their daughter and say that the song "promotes a sin."
She calls her daughter's recent behavior (which include jumping off the stage to kiss a 16-year-old as well as her offer to kiss Miley Cyrus) as a period of rebellion and claims to be "praying for her."
Hopefully, that clears up any misconceptions you may have regarding her parents' approval...and the "kiss."
A European, Irish to be precise, perspective on this. To me the sheltering of children that the majority of the comments here seem to favour is way over the top. What happens when your kid grows up and encounters things like this for the first time? I have seen people that have been sheltered all their lives from mainstream "secular" music etc. go completely off the rails when they reach college. On the other hand those that have had a more rounded upbringing with the freedom to choose what they listen to, view on TV etc. to settle and develop much better.
To be perfectly frank, human nature is such that the more someone is sheltered from something and told it is wrong and bad then the more the curiousity grows.
I find it quite strange that some people here find it neccessary to pray for an adult who has made a conscious decision to rebel from her strict upbringing. Is the free will of the individual not something to be respected and defended?
Thank you for reading and I await your feedback.
I await your comments.
"Is the free will of the individual not something to be respected and defended?"
Certainly... But at what age? When does free will have free reign?
My mother's words "My house, my rules" come to mind now as altogether reasonable.
Certainly... But at what age? When does free will have free reign?
My mother's words "My house, my rules" come to mind now as altogether reasonable.
This Katy Perry girl is 23 and posters here seem to want to "save" her from her own decisions, or am I reading this wrong?
"My house, my rules" is all well and good when it comes to cleaning around the house and such but when it comes to religion I am glad that my parents respected my views from around the age of 15. They had the decency to see that I was capable of logical thought and had the intelligence to make my own decisions and learn from my own mistakes along the way. This is what seems to be missing from here.
bigkev, let me interject something from a "Christian mother's" perspective. We take Jesus at His word when He says, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." (John 14:6)
Most parents would be compelled to pray for a child that called his/herself a Christian and then behaved in such a manner as to show a total lack of fear of the Lord and thumb their nose at God. Heavy on a parent's heart would be a concern that said child just might not be a Christan in the first place. Should that be the case, eternity for our child hangs in the balance. Sure, we can't MAKE our children follow Christ, but we can certainly pray that they find Him and build their lives upon His truth.
Thanks for your thoughts--I will let "a simple sinner" take over should she choose as I have a big deadline I'm working on. Thanks for stopping by!
No problem and thanks for the reply.
I really don't want to offend anyone but when discussing things like this with religious people I find that the response of least effort and conviction is to pull a quote/passage from the bible. I appreciate that for you this is a book to be taken literally and for me is something that lost all meaning a few years back.
I suppose that is where we differ and again I do not wish to offend anyone but I find the sheltering of children from music like this extremely backward and something my own country, Ireland, finished with a long time ago. No song/film/TV programme is going to make a generation of teenage girls become homosexual.
Will it open their minds to the fact that there are such people as homosexuals etc.? Yes
Is that a good thing or a bad thing? This is again where we differ I fear.
Once again, thank you for replying.
""My house, my rules" is all well and good when it comes to cleaning around the house and such but when it comes to religion I am glad that my parents respected my views from around the age of 15. "
Well let's not confuse the issue. Are you wanting to talk about Katy Perry at 23 or allowing free reign for juveniles at 15?
Let me know, we can go from there.
I have met Katy's parents and I could see the pain in their eyes regarding her decision. They are heartbroken at the path she has chosen yet at the same time, she was helped along by the other 'christian' artists that she was around that would sing the songs and live a life toatally contrary to what they said they believe. This is a time where parents need to be diligent in teaching their kids what the bible says and make sure they understand and can ask questions openly. Parenting is not something to be taken lightly we must work at it to equip our kids for the future.
This is not going to be a hateful comment, just a different opinion....
I am a christian, and I find nothing wrong with Katy Perry's music. I absolutely love her. The song is just a cute song, tongue in cheek, and is just that.. catchy. It's not promoting anything terrible. My friend was at a super-christian wedding and the DJ put it on and everyone scowled... I just don't get it.
She has a beautiful voice and sings songs about popular culture... things most non-sheltered teens would relate to.(Drinking a bit too much and doing something silly) So she dropped the F-bomb a few times at a concert.. she's just being young and vivacious.Honestly, I'm 20 and go to university.. everyone talks like that.
She also could be singing about a lot worse... Ever listened to any rap music? I've sat in cars listening to things that sounded more like an adult film than a song.
She even has a song about girls having self respect. The song "Hot and Cold" is an empowering song about girls ditching bad relationships. I just don't think she's so bad.
I don't know what my point is. I listen to Katy Perry, I also listen to Marilyn Manson. (If Katy Perry shocks you, don't even look up Manson's lyrics). I go to my church every Sunday, I believe in God, and I believe music is a form of expression. Manson had a horrific experience in his Catholic school... hence his music is a little anti-religion..
I started listening to him when I was 9 or so... and basically grew up on him. I am a very moral and good person, and I have had no negative effects from listening to this music.
When I have children, I am definitely going to censor music that puts women in a very negative/sexual role. That is probably going to include most rap music. I would avoid music that says "F" this and that until they are in their late teens. I just think you should discuss music with your child... a child who has no parental contact listening to depressing music is a danger, but someone who has a healthy relationship with their parents and understands that the songs are "just music" will have no ill effects. The song "Hotdog" by Limp Bizkit says "F" 36 times.. It's a joke, It's stupid, It's immature... but I don't think if has every corrupted anyone.
Anyways, that's my bit. Oh, and when I have kids, I'm going to listen to my Manson on headphones.
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