Katy Perry has many hits–and no doubt will continue to produce more now that she is returning to the studio. One of those hits, “Waking Up In Vegas,” helped to skyrocket her career. Uncover the meaning behind this Sin City night gone awry, below.
Videos by American Songwriter
Behind the Meaning of “Waking Up In Vegas” by Katy Perry
You’ve gotta help me out
It’s all a blur last night
We need a taxi ’cause you’re hungover and I’m broke
I lost my fake ID but you lost the motel key
Spare me your freakin’ dirty looks
There have been many songs about getting hitched in Vegas. The romantic informality and freedom of Sin City have inspired songwriters for generations. Perry’s song in that vein, “Waking Up In Vegas,” is reckless and fun-loving–everything you want in a good Vegas story.
One of the songwriters, Desmond Child, once recounted the writing of this song, calling it a “Very spontaneous and natural song.”
“We had started writing a song called ‘My Last Cry,’” Child once said. “It was me and Katy and Andreas Carlsson. It was kind of an angry, Alanis Morissette-type style that she had mastered. It was very dark and modern. But then when we weren’t writing the song, she was a barrel of laughs. She was so much fun … I said, ‘Why aren’t we writing songs like how you really are?’”
Enter “Waking Up in Vegas.” This up-tempo hit showcases Perry’s humorous, tongue-in-cheek side. Perry “wakes up” from a long night out, paying for all the fun she had the night before. We need a taxi ’cause you’re hungover and I’m broke / I lost my fake ID but you lost the motel key / Spare me your freakin’ dirty looks / Now don’t blame me, she sings.
On top of trying to capture Perry’s essence, a memory in which she got fake married in Vegas was another source of inspiration for the songwriters.
“We took all the pictures with the minister, with the fake cake, in the fake chapel and got a fake marriage certificate,” Perry once said. “We went and bought a wedding dress and a suit at a thrift store, and scanned the pictures and the certificate to my family members, my manager at the time [and] totally freaked the s*** out of them.”
In the end, Perry ended up with a song as irreverent and fun-loving as she is. Revisit it, below.
Shut up and put your money where your mouth is
That’s what you get for wakin’ up in Vegas
Get up and shake the glitter off your clothes now
That’s what you get for wakin’ up in Vegas
(Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images)
Leave a Reply
Only members can comment. Become a member. Already a member? Log in.