So, tonight, while eating dinner with my family, my mum mentions going on a trip to London. I immediately piped up with my familiar, excited tone, "When Katy Perry is there?!?!" My mum threw me a look of disgust, "No.."
As we carried on eating, I felt the need to tell my mum that I was going to go down to London during the summer with a few 'KatyCat' friends for the launch of Katy's new perfume. She had mentioned to a few of them a couple of days before that she would 'probably' launch her new perfume in the UK during the summer. I was ecstatic at the thought of it.
My mum and dad immediately started protesting my plans, bearing in mind that I am 21 years of age, telling me that it would be a complete waste of money, my mum and brother jokingly telling me that I was a stalker. I agreed with them at first, knowing that they were just having a laugh at my expense. I even laughed along with them for a bit. As the joking subsided, my mum decided to continue the protest by re-assuring me that it would in fact be a waste of my money and time, that it was a completely ridiculous idea for me to travel 8-9 hours there and back to see one woman. "HOW would you even get there?!", she said, as though London was on a whole different planet.
"She's JUST Katy Perry. She's JUST a singer."
"You're obsessed with her. You're actually a stalker."
My brother reciting over and over again in a creepy voice with a rather psychotic look in his eyes, "I drew you a picture, Katy.. I wrote you a book, Katy.."
Believing that she was still only kidding around, my mum's words and her tone of voice were beginning to worry me. 'Is this really what people think of me when I talk about Katy Perry?' I thought to myself.
I began trying to explain to her that I wasn't a stalker, and that I wasn't obsessed with Katy, for those words have a very negative meaning to a lot of people. I barely got the words, "I like her because.." out of my mouth when my mum said the same thing again,
"You're a stalker."
By this time, I was beginning to feel a little hurt. I could feel my eyes starting to well up because of what my own family thought about me. If she had have thought otherwise, she would have stopped saying it after the first time and just listened to what I was trying to tell her.
The conversation that had started off with me being excited about the possibility of my idol holding a perfume launch in the summer, had rapidly turned into something I could not longer handle. I stopped talking in a desperate effort to prevent myself from crying. I couldn't hold back the tears. The fact that I had begun weeping only fuelled even more spite in my mother's words. The fact that my own mother wouldn't take the time to let me explain to her why I was so 'obsessed' with JUST one woman eventually broke me down. I tried to explain to her why I had gotten so emotional by shouting over her malicious words, but she still would not listen. I eventually gave up trying to explain myself and instead descended into cursing out of frustration. I never got to rationalize my 'obsession'.
So here goes;
Katy Perry. She's the girl with the blue hair. The majority of people know who she is, or have heard of her, or have heard her songs on the radio. Some people don't like her, don't like the things she says or does or don't like the meanings of her songs. To me, and to so many other people, she is like a Deity. This, however, does not make us stalkers or lunatics or 'obsessed'.
Perhaps some people are truly obsessed with her. Perhaps they do follow her around, try to get her to notice them, try to approach her and do or say things that any self-respecting person would never even DREAM of saying to anyone, let alone their idol. These people are fans for all the wrong reasons.
Every fan wants to gain the attention of the person they admire most. Whether it's a touch of their hand, a SECOND of eye contact in a crowded room, a smile, a handshake, or even a short conversation. For the lucky fans who have had the complete pleasure of actually meeting their idols (as I have) it is one the most gratifying experiences ever to be had. It will stay with you forever, because we all know that this person is virtually untouchable. Only a select few fans who work their asses off and join EVERY blog and EVERY website, enter EVERY competition and befriend EVERY other fan they can find will eventually have their dreams come true and get to meet the person they all ultimately love.
However, this is certainly not true for Katy Perry. She works as hard as any fan to create meaningful music, predicated from her own personal experiences throughout life. She tries her damnedest to give every fan she comes into contact with even the slightest token of her affection, in her own individual way. This tweet, glance, smile, wink, word, or maybe even conversation is enough to make one ordinary fan feel like the most special person in the world.
THIS is what I love about Katy Perry. After ALL of her hard work, being at the bottom and giving it all of her heart, never giving up on her dream, to make her way up to the very TOP, she is still the same person. She may not look the same. Her dress sense may not be the same. Her songs may be of a different genre, but her attitude towards her work, her sincere gratefulness towards her fans, her ability to capture such intense interest of an audience, her quirky personality and her complete disregard of what she says or does in the presence of ANYONE are very much still there. Even in her live shows, such as any of the 122 dates (Yes, you read correctly, 122 in under a year) in her recent California Dreams World Tour, she was able to get the WHOLE audience involved in what she was doing at every possible moment.
She knows how to be herself. This trait is most likely what the majority of fans will adore about her. The manner in which she puts her point across, the words that she makes up, the faces she pulls and gestures she makes. All these little quirks are the perfect combination to go along with her amazingly unique voice and heartfelt lyrics. THIS is why she is so successful, and is such an inspiration to so many people across the globe. In any sense, all anybody wants is to be able to be themselves. I guess this is the moral of my story. I just want to be able to be myself, and love what I love, do what I want to do, without being judged.
The fact that I am writing this will most likely make a lot of people believe that I truly am obsessed. All I want to say is, if you don't understand it in the context of Katy Perry, apply it to the artist, writer, actor, politician, whoever or whatever you are passionate about. Then come back and try to put me down.
What would the world be without the dynamic of superstars of any genre and their fan bases?
Where would we be if we had nobody to look up to? Nobody from whom to draw inspiration? Nothing to look forward to?
Sincerely, Robyn.
