Beyonce has Sasha Fierce. J-Lo has Lola. Lady Gaga has… well, herself.
And Katy Perry has …Kathy Beth Terry?
Katy Perry channeled her inner geek- a less-than-popular 13-year-old named Kathy Beth Terry as inspiration for her new single “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.).”
The music video, filmed over the last month, was originally scheduled for an online world premiere on June 14.
Days ago, Katy Perry tweeted, “I told someone about my new music video I just filmed & they responded with ‘wow, that’s gonna break the internet.’ … Should I knock on wood?”
And with that tweet like clockwork, the official 8-minute full length music video was leaked today and premiered hours later on the comedy website Funny or Die. The music video since gone viral from it’s unofficial leak to it’s official premiere and bloggers are positively buzzing over it’s star-studded cast.
In the video, Kathy (played by Perry), a nerdy teenager outfitted with braces and oversized glasses has just woken up the morning after her house party. There are flip cups stacked on the floor, streamers strewn along her ceiling, and a shirtless stranger in bed next to her (meaning a few seconds of eye-candy for us ladies).
A leftover partygoer, Aaron Christopherson, (played by Glee star Darren Criss) opens the door to congratulate her on “the best party ever! Wooooooohooo!” His is the first of many recognizable faces that appear in this video.
Kathy, left alone to mull over her thoughts (and nurse a killer hangover), tries to remember what happened the night before, taking us into flashback-mode. Twenty-four hours prior, Kathy is sitting in her bedroom alone (well, that’s not entirely true, she does have at least a hundred stuffed animals on her bed), solving a Sudoku puzzle while her considerably cooler neighbor, Rebecca Black, is hosting the biggest party of the year.
That’s right, you heard me- Rebecca Black.
The teenage YouTube-sensation-turned-overnight-pop-culture-phenomenon plays herself in the video as hostess to the next door party. When Kathy stomps next door and bangs on the front door, trying to confront her, Black invites her in.
This is when the music video really turns into a teen movie, featuring every stereotype imaginable. There’s the nerdy teen Everett McDonald (played by Glee star Kevin McHale), who has a secret crush on Kathy, and the popular varsity-jacket-donning jock Steve Johnson who recoils at Kathy’s advances.
At this point Black takes the uncool Kathy under her wing as co-hostess and into her bedroom for a makeover.
It’s kind of odd that whoever directed this video, expects us to believe that Katy Perry, a 26-year-old is somehow BFFs with 14-year-old Rebecca Black. It’s like seeing Justin Bieber serenading a taller, 20-something woman in his music video or any one of Lady Gaga’s concert get-ups: it’s just too weird to be believable.
Let’s be real: Rebecca Black and Katy Perry trading bras and waxing upper lips was something you never thought you’d see in a music video.
After a considerable makeover (thanks, Rebecca), Kathy makes her transformed debut to the party. In the formulaic teen movie arc of 10 Things I Hate About You and Pretty in Pink, Kathy suddenly transforms from the school nerd into the mysterious hot chick, trading in her headgear and braces for heels and a push-up bra. She’s a bonafide 80’s glam goddess in a zippered neon green skirt and teased-out hair, and she takes the party by storm.
The ‘90s heartthrob trio Isaac, Taylor, and Zac Hanson star as the party’s band. Meanwhile, Kathy’s Uncle Kenny (played by Kenny G) jams out on saxophone. The party moves from Rebecca’s to Kathy’s house and at the end of a long night of partying (which among other things, involves dancing on the Wii, chanting “T.G.I.F.,” and Kathy vomiting into a rollerskate), she passes out.
The video flashes forward to Kathy’s thoughts being interrupted by an abrupt walk-in by her parents, Kirk and Tiffany Terry (played by Corey Feldman and Debbie Gibson). Kathy gets little more than a slap-on the wrist by her parents (although realistically, I don’t think anyone’s parents are that cool), and falls back into bed to “sleep it off” (albeit, with a huge smile on her face).
Katy Perry’s Kathy Beth Terry is that teenage underdog we’re all rooting for. And I don’t think it was a coincidence that they cast Rebecca Black in the role of her cool party co-hostess (besides the whole “Friday” thing). Black could be considered an underdog in her constant fight with cyber-bullying since her “Friday” video went viral on YouTube. The music video is fun considering Perry’s fun, geeky alter ego and the teen movie storyline.
On the other hand, the fact that Kathy (an eighth grader barely out of braces) is co-hosting a blowout house party, doing shots, and getting groped by the school jock seems out of place. Apparently to Katy Perry (oops, I mean, “Kathy Beth Terry”), discovering photos of yourself on the internet licking a guy’s stomach warrants a lackluster “oh well” response. Isn’t all of that a little hardcore for a girl who’s young enough to be my sister?
You can take Katy Perry’s “Last Friday Night” one of two ways. It’s either a fun, revenge-of-the-nerdy-girl story or another forgettable pop tune in a seemingly endless stream of rehashed let’s-party-because-it’s-Friday party anthems.
While the music video is “a blacked-out blur” that “ruled,” as far as the song goes, it’s “an epic fail.” I’m all for party anthems, don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing I love more than a fun song with a bass-thumping beat and some catchy lyrics. I love tuning into that perfect billboard hit to blast on the radio while driving to the club with girl friends, ready for a night of partying.
But for me, Katy Perry’s new song is just another one of those me-and-my-friends-got-totally-drunk-and-danced-until-we-blacked-out pop anthems.
What is it about singing about days of the week, anyway? Whoever thought that was a good idea? It’s not original and it’s not cute. It’s hackneyed and it’s kitschy at best.
That’s the issue with Katy Perry’s new song- it’s by far not the worst I ‘ve heard, but it’s definitely not the best either.
Quite frankly, between Ke$ha’s b***h fights, kickin’ it in the front (or back) seat with Rebecca Black, and now, Katy Perry’s ultimate teenage blowout, I’m getting sick of hearing about Friday. I think, at the least, it’s time for pop singers to pick another day in the week.
What do you collegiettes think? Check out the video, hear the song, and post your thoughts in the comments box below!