Katy cats, rejoice! After dropping the lyric video for her new single “Chained To The Rhythm” in early February, the pop star has now released a flashy new music video that combines the singer’s love of bright, bold colours with her recent political activism.
Ushering in the new era of Perry’s “purposeful pop,” the new video has a 1950s futuristic feel, opening with Perry and hundreds of extras excitedly rushing to a theme park named ‘Oblivia.’ Filmed in January at Six Flags Magic Mountain in California, Perry and the rest of society excitedly ride rollercoasters and something called the ‘American Dream Drop,’ all while being told exactly where to walk and what to do. If you were looking for a music video with subtle imagery, this isn’t it.
The lyric video’s hamster wheel theme with a hamster logo and life-sized hamster wheel for patrons to ride is continued throughout the big-budget music video, directed by Matthew Cullen (“Dark Horse,” “California Girls”).
During a screening of a ‘Nuclear Family’ film, Perry has her moment of woke-ness when Skip Marley’s track begins and the reggae star emerges from the black and white TV. This inspires Perry to take on the hamster wheel herself and ‘unchain’ herself from the rhythm.
The reggae-influenced track is Perry’s call to arms for people to get engaged in their community, singing, “Living our lives through a lens / Trapped in our white-picket fence / Like ornaments / So comfortable, we live in a bubble.”
Sharing vocals with Bob Marley’s son Skip, Perry wrote “Chained To The Rhythm” with Max Martin and Sia, who both worked on Prism.
It’s been four years since Katy Perry released her fourth studio album Prism, but in 2016, Perry dropped her inspirational single, “Rise,” and promised fans that she was back in the studio working on more new music. Perry has yet to announce when her new album will drop, but we wouldn’t be surprised to get album details and tour info soon.
If you need a bigger Perry fix, you can watch her, Ed Sheeran, Bruno Mars, Shawn Mendes, The Chainsmokers, Noah Cyrus, Big Sean and Thomas Rhett and more perform during the 2017 iHeartRadio Music Awards, airing live on Sunday, March 5 at 8 pm on CTV Two.
