Pop star Katy Perry embarked on a cosmic performance of new heights last week: a trip to space aboard Amazon co-founder and space flight entrepreneur Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket.
According to Blue Origin, Perry was joined by an all-female crew that consisted of Bezos’ fiancée, journalist Lauren Sánchez, TV host and award-winning journalist Gayle King, civil rights activist and bioastronautics researcher Amanda Nguyen, former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe and film producer Kerianne Flynn.
Liftoff was at 8:30 a.m. Monday from Blue Origin’s Launch Site One in West Texas. The trip lasted approximately 11 minutes, according to ABC News. The New Shepard astronauts, as the crew was referred to, traveled more than 60 miles above Earth, passing the Kármán line, the boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and space that is 62 miles above sea level, according to Blue Origin. While there, the crew got to experience zero gravity and admire the view of Earth from above, while also listening to Perry sing “What a Wonderful World” by Louis Armstrong.
Perry used part of the trip to promote her upcoming “The Lifetimes Tour,” set to kickoff on April 23 in Mexico City. While spending approximately four minutes floating around in the capsule and getting the chance to experience the weightlessness of microgravity, Perry not only showed the camera a daisy she brought with her on the trip, but also a butterfly cutout inscribed with song titles. What many assumed to be the setlist for her tour is now confirmed with Perry taking to X/Twitter to post a close up of the butterfly note, which includes 23 of her song titles. “California Girls” and “Firework” made the list, alongside songs from her latest album release, “1432,” such as “NIRVANA” and “WOMAN’S WORLD.”
Daisy, Perry’s daughter, also cheered on her mother during the spaceflight. Perry explained her reasoning on why she brought the flower with her on the trip.
“Daisies are common flowers but they grow through any condition,” she said. “They grow through cement. They grow through cracks. They grow through walls. They are resilient. They are powerful. They are strong. They are everywhere. Flowers to me are God’s smile, but it’s also a reminder of our beautiful Earth and the flowers here.”
The crew members returned to Earth after a successful trip. When Perry exited the capsule, she pointed to the sky with a smile before dropping to her knees and kissing the ground, an image that was captured and went viral. After landing, Perry said in a post on X/Twitter, “there is no place like home.” The singer also said she felt “super connected to life” and “so connected to love.”
The public’s reaction to the event was mixed. While many congratulated the all-female team, many, including other celebrities and companies, posted negative remarks about Perry and her crewmates.
The X/Twitter account for the popular fast food chain, Wendy’s, commented, “Can we send her back” under a post that said Perry returned from space. A writer for The Atlantic, Ellen Cushing, published an article about the situation with the headline, “The Perfect Pop Star for a Dumb Stunt.” Additionally, Model Emily Ratajkowski said in an Instagram video, “Look at the state of the world, and think about how many resources went into putting these women into space, and for what? For what, what was the marketing there? I’m disgusted. Literally, I’m disgusted.”
