It didn’t have to be like this.

Katy Perry’s announcement of new music was met with solid enthusiasm from pop fans. Her previous two albums had underperformed but there remained a strong affection for her brand of bubble-gum pop that prized camp joy and nothing heavier than a candyfloss wig. As musicians like Chappell Roan and Charli XCX became the new faces of 2020s poptimism, the market seemed ready for Perry’s return, for some old-school bops and vibes-only tunes. The first snippet of her latest single, ‘Woman’s World’, was promising. If there was ever a moment for Perry to return to the top of the pop pile, this was it.

Then we saw who had produced the song: Łukasz Sebastian Gottwald, known professionally as Dr. Luke, a.k.a. the man who Kesha accused of raping her. Within hours, that anticipation dissipated. This was the real Katy Perry and it stank of desperation.

The reviews for ‘Woman’s World’ have been disastrous. ‘What regressive, warmed-over hell is this?’ asked The Guardian. ‘If Perry was willing to cop the built-in bad press of making a song about women’s lib with an alleged abuser, shouldn’t the song at least be a banger?’ lamented Pitchfork. ‘Instead, it’s unfathomably tepid, irritating at best. In the immortal words of Sister Catherine Rose Holzman, uttered moments before she died: “Katy Perry, please stop.”’ Accompanied by a music video that claims it’s satire but is a product-placement-laden cringe-fest that is indecipherable from the Perry videos of 15 years ago, the entire piece is both exhausting and perplexing. It’s try-hard-ism from a woman whose entire career has been defined by her eagerness to do too much at any given time.

The flop sweat panic over this floundering debut was driven home all the harder by Perry being forced to release a behind-the-scenes video that repeatedly emphasized that this was meant to be satire. Yeah, we know, but it didn’t work. In an era where Charli XCX has been playing around with hyper-pop ideas of stardom and femininity, Perry’s diluted pandering felt 12 years out of date.

This is what she sold out for? This is what she got back together with an accused rapist for, knowing full well that, even if the song was good, it would be tainted by association? And it’s not good so it’s all the more baffling a moral and creative decision. It was a move that not only revealed Perry’s arrogance and desperation but her increasing disconnect from a genre she once dominated. It couldn’t out-silly ‘Espresso’ or reach the joyous peaks of ‘Hot To Go.’ The video makes the song seem more disastrous than it is, but mediocrity simply doesn’t fly at a time when pop is thriving.

Eternal stardom is the exception in the world of celebrity, not the rule. For every Madonna, there are 50 wannabes who had a couple of hits in the ’80s then disappeared. The history of pop culture is littered with one-hit wonders, true, but also people who were big for many years then simply fell behind with the times or lost their luster. You’re more likely to be Paula Abdul than Janet Jackson. Even your most dedicated fans are unlikely to stick around forever once the hits dry up, not unless you’ve built a brand for yourself so impenetrable that it can withstand mere mortal concerns like a flop album or semi-cancellation. Lady Gaga can release a disappointing album, and her fans will stay loyal because she’s such a distinctive figure that it’s easy for her fans to remain devoted. The same goes for Taylor Swift and Beyoncé. There are plenty of Katycats who are still out there harassing victims for daring to call out the bad optics of making a girlboss anthem with an accused rapist, but they’re a fallible force.

It’s easy to start listing all of Perry’s problems here, which have been a cultural talking point since she kissed a girl and hoped her boyfriend would be cool with it. Her work has frequently been bad taste in a way that felt with the times in that frenzied period of mid-to-late 2000s when Perez Hilton ruled the roost, Britney shaved her head, and calling other women ‘skanks’ was just what we did. That kind of maximalist girlie pop was the soundtrack to an era, and Perry’s never been able to escape that hyper-specific moment she embodied.

When she was promoting her album ‘Witness’, she talked about wanting to make ‘purposeful pop’ for that Trump era when we needed to dance but be awake to the troubles of our time. ‘Chained to the Rhythm’, the only song from that album that really fit the wonky theme, is actually a solid bop, but I’m not sure anyone wanted the woman who was queen of the distracting fizzy song to be lecturing us about how we’ve all been blinded by pop music and are ignoring the real issues. Perhaps she felt like it was time to get political. It was an admirable idea, but then she followed it up with ‘Bon Appetit’, one of her worst songs, which is all about being eaten, but in a hot way. That album feels curiously unconfident, which you could never say about Perry’s best work. Post-‘Witness’, you can practically see her straining to get back to that feeling and it just isn’t working.

It worked with her contemporaries. Gaga made plenty of silly pop songs but was always far more committed to a wider artistic aesthetic and had the malleability to move into stuff like Tony Bennett duets and A Star is Born. Rihanna has essentially given up on music but her most recent album ‘Anti’ saw her melding multiple genres together and taking greater command over her sound. Carly Rae Jepsen went indie pop but has retained a die-hard fanbase. Beyoncé is now a one-woman industry game-changer who has turned the idolatry around her into a kind of universal music history lesson. Evolution is necessary but revolution isn’t. Kylie Minogue has never made confessional music or moved beyond her efficient pop gems but she keeps up with the times and knows what the people want. Somewhere along the line, Perry lost that. And she decided Dr. Luke had the map.

But it’s not all about Perry either. She’s not the only one employing Dr. Luke. He’s had Grammy nominations since Kesha came forward with her allegations. Kim Petras has repeatedly defended working with him. Doja Cat got some of her top-selling singles under him. Nicki Minaj recently worked with him too (because of course she did.) The industry has welcomed him back with half-open arms behind closed doors. Frankly, a hell of a lot of people would have done the same if this song with Perry had been good. It flopping the way that it has helped to cement some of those hypocrisies that we’ve been forced to stomach for years. When the work isn’t good, the fans don’t want it, the critics hate it, and sales are bad, what’s the point?

I think a lot about what Perry could have done differently. Maybe work with Jessie Ware or Annie Clark? Surely Jack Antonoff would return her calls since he’ll work with literally anyone? Go full retro like classic Janet or maybe make your IDGAF album and show what true power looks like. But Katy took what she thought was the easiest route and the result is her worst-ever single and a dent to her image that will take more than good music and a great dress to fix.