The singer-songwriter, who recently stepped down from her judging role on American Idol after seven years, is now facing scrutiny for her own musical endeavors.
Musician Steven James recently posted a viral TikTok video expressing his disapproval of Perry's new song, "OK."
In the video, James reacts with visible discomfort to the song, captioning it with, "This can't be the same person who eliminated me on American Idol 5 years ago."
The video sparked numerous comments from viewers who shared James' sentiment. One user commented, "Sounds like a theme song of a PBS kids show," while another simply stated, "Damn, when you put it that way."
"OK" is one of four bonus tracks included in "1432," the deluxe edition of Perry's latest album.
Perry's departure from American Idol earlier this year signaled a shift in her focus back to music. Since joining the show in 2018, she released "Smile" in 2020, which, unlike her previous albums since 2010's "Teenage Dream," did not reach the top of the US charts.
Her latest album, "143," released in September, has been widely criticized. Further controversy arose from the lead single, "Woman's World," promoted as a female empowerment anthem despite being produced by Dr. Luke, who has faced accusations of sexual assault from singer-songwriter Kesha.
In response to the criticism surrounding her collaboration with Dr. Luke, Perry stated on the "Call Her Daddy" podcast, "I understand that it started a lot of conversations, and he was one of many collaborators that I collaborated with. But, the reality is it comes from me. The truth is I wrote these songs from my experience of my whole life going through this metamorphosis, and he was one of the people to help facilitate all that, one of the writers, one of the producers."
