One of our greatest living pop stars, Katy Perry, has been making the internet laugh and gag in disgust for the past couple of days, following a video that surfaced of the singer hurling pizza into a crowd at a Las Vegas nightclub.
The 12-second clip, which has now amassed 6.7 million views on Twitter and elicited a response from Perry, shows the 37-year-old placing a giant slice of pizza onto a paper plate and throwing it at a group of fans from a DJ booth. Cut to the people standing closest to the booth trying to grab the slice and accidentally knocking it to the floor. Then Perry, bopping along to EDM music without a care in the world, tosses another slice sans plate farther into the crowd like a frisbee. It’s unclear whether or not it was caught and/or consumed.
Meanwhile, the person recording the video—or someone close by—can be heard saying “ayyyeee!” as if the “Teenage Dream” singer is making it rain on the crowd and not getting grease and marinara sauce on random clubgoers’ tank tops.
It’s safe to say that this video has brought me enormous joy over the past 24 hours while simultaneously having me rack my brain. How many slices of pizza did Perry throw into the crowd altogether? What temperature was the pizza? Did anyone actually eat the pizza? Was this a mindless, inebriated gesture by Perry or does she think throwing an extremely messy food into a crowd of people who probably aren’t sober would work logistically? Does she realize how gross it is to throw loose food at people in a public setting?
The actual pizza-throwing isn’t all that’s hilarious and bizarre about the clip—although freeze-frames of a loose slice flying through the air have made me chuckle. The satisfaction on Perry’s face after she hurls the first slice and returns to the pizza box to get a second, seemingly believing that what she’s just done is all right and good, is priceless. She’s also bopping around next to this random DJ like a content child who just received an ice cream cone.
I also love that this video looks like it could’ve been taken in 2010 during Perry’s Teenage Dream era based on her bubblegum-pink attire and signature brunette hair. I’d like to think that the pop singer would make the same ill-advised decision to throw food into a crowd both in her mid-20s and when she’s approaching her 40s.
At a time when two competing viruses are ravaging our globe, the sight of a celebrity turning up maskless at a packed club and engaging in such gross, unsanitary matters should make me want to squint at my phone with disdain and shout, “Eat the rich!” But instead, I’m reminded of Perry's value in our pop-culture ecosystem.
In case you haven’t noticed, famous people are pretty boring these days. They’re either trying way too hard to appear relatable or micromanaging their images to the point that their entire existence is a brand. Perry, despite being a traditionally manufactured and commercial pop star, has never been one of those people. From wearing a hamburger costume to the Met Gala and judging American Idol dressed as a giant roll of toilet paper to sparring with elderly nuns over real estate to her latest stunt, this woman has the natural trolling abilities of three Doja Cats. Whether or not the public is digging her new tunes, she should always be recognized as an utterly amusing and odd personality.
I also would be remiss not to mention the deliciousness of Perry currently receiving good PR while her former foe Taylor Swift is being forced to exit her private jet with an umbrella over her head after being shamed about her enormous carbon footprint over the weekend.
Being a KatyCat in the year 2022 is usually a rewardless job. But I’m happy to wear my badge during moments like these.
