Katy Perry Biography:

Katy Perry has expertly crafted an album full of standout songs on her debut album One of the Boys. From the upbeat opening title track to the rocking closing track, Fingerprints, Katy Perry has given us what is probably the most unexpected pop success of the year. Katy Perry sings these songs with a sassy voice that hits falsetto with hardly an effort. She rocks her way through these songs with sincerity and honesty. Katy Perry's songs are about topics that people can relate to.

A former Christian artist who ditched the sacred sounds of CCM for a secular mix of sass and spunk, Katy Perry combines the cheeky, club-ready pop music of Lily Allen with the commercial pop/rock of Avril Lavigne and Alanis Morissette. Born on October 25, 1984, in Santa Barbara , CA , she grew up in a Christian household as the daughter of two pastors. Though she was not allowed to listen to secular music as a child, Perry later found herself captivated by Alanis Morissette and Freddie Mercury, having discovered Queen's music during a slumber party. Religious music remained at the forefront, however, and Perry released a self-titled Christian album in 2001 under the name Katy Hudson. She would later abandon the genre in favor of a pop career.

At age 17, the burgeoning songwriter began working with hitmaker Glen Ballard, who had produced and co-written Alanis Morissette's chart-topping Jagged Little Pill in 1995. Several years later, she teamed up with the Matrix, a Grammy-nominated production/songwriting team whose résumé includes collaborations with Avril Lavigne, Shakira, and Korn. Tired of producing music for other artists, the Matrix had plans to record their own album with Perry serving as one of the group's two singers. The project was ultimately shelved, but not before Perry appeared in a 2004 write-up by Blender magazine, who hailed her as "The Next Big Thing!"

With the Matrix's unreleased album sitting in the vaults at Sony Records, Perry went back to the drawing board and ultimately signed with Columbia in 2007. Her debut single, "UR So Gay," generated some online buzz with its mischievous lyrics and accompanying music video. However, "I Kissed a Girl" proved to be her true breakthrough single, topping the charts in 20 countries and pushing its accompanying album, 2008's One of the Boys, into the Top Ten in America. Perry supported her debut by joining the Warped Tour that summer and appearing in an episode of The Young and the Restless.

Katy Perry's debut album One of the Boys is in stores now.

You may have heard her new single, I Kissed a Girl. It appears to be on everyone's mind and with good reason. It's an instantly catchy number. That track is backed up by eleven other equally great tracks on her just released album, One of the Boys.

There isn't a single bad song on the disc. One of the Boys is twelve tracks of pure pop bliss. Perry displays the songwriting skills of a seasoned vet and delivers an album that puts the high profile release of one of her reported fans (Madonna) to shame.

In an industry plagued with cookie cutter corporate, and now reality show driven, groups, Katy Perry stands out like a beacon in rough seas. She is a refreshing talent bringing enjoyable, catchy, honest, and fun songs to the masses. Well deserving of the early buzz she received from UR So Gay, Katy Perry has given us a brilliant first record. One of the Boys truly is a gem of a record.