Witness is the fifth studio album by American singer Katy Perry. It was released on June 9, 2017, by Capitol Records. Three singles preceded the album’s release: “Chained to the Rhythm” featuring Skip Marley on February 10, “Bon Appétit” featuring Migos on April 28, and “Swish Swish” featuring Nicki Minaj on May 19. “Save as Draft” was released as the fourth single on June 26, 2017. Witness received mixed reviews from music critics. It topped the charts in Canada, Spain, and the United States while reaching number two in Australia, Korea, Mexico, and New Zealand and the top five in nine other nations.
Following the release of her fourth album Prism in 2013 and the end of the Prismatic World Tour in October 2015, Perry told The New York Times in February 2016 that she was in the “research and development phase” of a new album.[2] She decided to take a hiatus after the tour concluded to “give my mental health a break” before starting to write new songs the following June.[3] Perry felt “refreshed” after the hiatus, and had over 40 tracks “in progress” before the year ended.[4] In August, the singer stated that she aspired to make material “that connects and relates and inspires”[5] and told Ryan Seacrest that she was “not rushing” her fifth album, adding “I’m just having a lot of fun, but experimenting and trying different producers, and different collaborators, and different styles.”[6] The album marked a departure from long time producer and co writer Dr. Luke.[7] In February 2017, Perry stated that the album was “definitely a new era for me” and “an era of purposeful pop” she was proud of.[8] Later that month, she told Capital FM that “I’ve got something swirling, but I think I want to put out some songs first before I give them the full meal.”[9] The following May, Perry revealed to Entertainment Weekly that the album will include 15 of the 40 songs she wrote for it, and described the record as “fun and dance-y and dark and light.”[10]
The album’s lead single, “Chained to the Rhythm” featuring Skip Marley, was released on February 10, 2017.[27][28] It went on to top the charts in Hungary[29] while reaching number four in the United States.[30] The second single, “Bon Appétit” with Migos, followed on April 28, 2017.[27] “Swish Swish“, featuring Nicki Minaj, was released as the third single on May 19, 2017. It was produced by Duke Dumont.[31] “Save as Draft” originally impacted American hot adult contemporary radio on June 26, 2017, as the record’s fourth single.[32][33] It debuted at number 24 on the Adult Contemporary chart the week of July 15, 2017 as the greatest gainer of the week with 129 spins and 0.452 millions in audience impressions across AC radio stations.[34][35] The song also opened at number 36 on the Adult Top 40 chart the same week as the highest debut.[36] “Save as Draft” peaked at numbers 14 and 19 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary and Adult Top 40 charts, respectively.[37][38]
Listen to “Pendulum”
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