It’s safe to say that Katy Perry hasn’t gone without her fair share of controversy since she burst into the mainstream music scene in 2008 with “I Kissed a Girl.” Having started off as an unsuccessful gospel singer, she finally found her fame and talent in the limelight of the fantasy world, wearing over-the-top bras and whimsical outfits made of pure imagination. This definitely got her noticed—and opened her world to a new kind of life that her previous religious upbringing may have halted her from finding.
Last night, the singer was honored at the Human Rights Campaign Gala with the National Equality Award for her work with the LGBTQ community. Katy, who confessed to not always understanding what being a feminist meant, talked about her past religious upbringing and how the HRC—responsible for continuing the fight for civil union legislation, being a game-changer in the fight for equal marriage rights and leading to continue the fight for trans-equality—helped change her life forever, having the most inspiring words for all of us.
“When I was growing up, homosexuality was synonymous with the word abomination and hell,” Katy said. She went on to speak of her past and how her friends in the LGBTQ community changed her life. “So most of my unconscious adolescence, I prayed the gay away at Jesus camps. But then in the middle of it all, in a twist of events, I found my gift. And my gift introduced me to people outside my bubble. And my bubble started to burst. These people were nothing like I had been taught to fear. They were the most free, strong, kind and inclusive people I have ever met. They stimulated my mind, and they filled my heart with joy, and they friggin’ danced all the while while doing it. These people are actually magic, and they are magic because they are living their truth.”
Katy’s speech continued to fill the room with inspiration. “It’s been a long road for me, and I’m sure a long road for many of you out there. I know it doesn’t always feel safe to live out who you are, but here’s the thing though, I would have not chosen a different road. Priceless lessons have been learned. The path of discovery has made me, has tested me and forever changed me…many of the people I admire and trust and work with belong to the LGBT community, and without them I would be half of the person I am today.”
And on a positive note, she told the room, “No matter where you came from, it’s about where you are going, and that real change, real evolution and real perception shift can happen if we open up our minds and soften our hearts. People can change.” Here’s to hoping for that change.
Photo: Getty Images
