Not particularly news, as it’s a nine-year-old story that anyone could’ve found on Wikipedia, but the internet is a peculiar beast, and thus here we are with message board bump for the fact that in 2006, a 23-year-old Katy Perry, then a relative unknown in the Christian circuit and going by a different pseudonym, sang backup vocals on what was apparently a 2006 hit for P.O.D., “Goodbye for Now;” [LISTEN]
Maybe you knew that, or maybe you didn’t. Maybe you also don’t even know who P.O.D. is. They made Christian nu-metal in the late-90s and early aughts. Apparently they continued beyond that, outlasting the very JNCOs hanging off their fans. Sure, anyone with a bit of a bit of radio-friendly middle-school angst could get down with a bit of their stuff back then, but no one’s going to admit to that now. Perhaps that’s why Perry has distanced herself from this ball of clichés in her new superstardom:
We’re still smilin’ as the day goes by
And how come nobody
Ever knows the reasons why
Bury you deep so far you can’t see
If you’re like me
Who wears a broken
Heart on your sleeve
Pains is troubles that
You know so well
Either time don’t
It can’t or you just won’t tell
At the same time, one could argue that the overall message — “goodbye for now” (but we shall meet again later) — matches the relationship between her success and Christian rock roots; she abandoned them for Super Bowl Halftime domination, but she’ll be back to sing for the Lord someday.
Still, that track is cringe-central, just like all nu-metal memories. It’s even more embarrassing than your breakout 2008 hit being called out for exploiting and fetishizing the LGBTQ community (like Katy Perry’s “Kissed a Girl”), but probably less embarrassing than finding out that Christ-KoRn band you provided backups for also has no understanding of basic anatomical science nor respect for women’s autonomy.
Either way, no wonder Perry’s mum on the past collab.
