Why did Katy Perry stop working with Max Martin, Dr. Luke, Bonnie McKee, etc.?

[Urbanney]

Not to make this any more of a “KatyHeavy” site but why did Katy Perry stop working with the rest of her hardcore producing/songwriting team since after Witness?

I can understand Dr. Luke due to Kesha’s allegations, but they all are the ones that launched her career and kept her successful imo. Katy has been really struggling to get a successful single since, and Smile is getting mixed “meh” reviews.

Is it because she’s trying to separate herself from “Katy Perry” the popstar to be Katherine Hudson? Is it because Witness did worse than expected and she blames them? Is it because she can’t afford to have them write/produce her songs anymore? Do they not want to work with her anymore since she’s fallen from her top tier status? Is she trying to prove she doesn’t need them? I’m honestly so curious. Has she said anything about this?

[PokemonSpears]

What if Max Martin is the one that doesn't want to work with her anymore?

jk, maybe because if she flops it's easier to justify, like saying that she wasn't trying to be commercial, so it fits her narrative that she doesn't care about hits anymore

[dritney]

These producers have been the heaviest hitters in the game. They work with the top act of the time and move on to the big act.

While the GP can get tired of a star (if they’re not innovating), they don’t see who is behind the scenes.

Max Martin produced Baby One More Time, his first #1 hit, as well as Blinding Lights, his latest #1, probably the biggest song of the last year, responsible for the major shift in sound.

Max Martin is a pop music genius. I wonder when it’ll end.

[Arthurfleck]

Max Martin did most of witness and we all know the results. She has a lot of chemistry with bonnie and dr luke tho.

[LeglessJamie]

She literally explained it multiple times and in her song Smile she's finally happy not caring about charts and hits and she has found her hapiness with something she really is rather than the popstar they made her be.

She disliked the pop Katy and she finally got back her Smile.

 

[Urbanney]

9 minutes ago, IForgotYouExisted said:

She literally explained it multiple times and in her song Smile she's finally happy not caring about charts and hits and she has found her hapiness with something she really is rather than the popstar they made her be.

She disliked the pop Katy and she finally got back her Smile.

 

I don’t necessarily agree that her not caring about charts anymore has to do with her not working with them though. She co-wrote with them in the past, so why couldn’t she write with them in more genuine ways now, unless she didn’t like her old music? However, she compared Smile to her past albums, which would signal to me that she didn’t dislike her old music and is not trying to separate herself or her new music from it.

I get that she was tired of being in the pop star persona, but to me, it doesn’t sound like she regretted or disliked any of her past music that she also co-wrote often. That’s why I’m not automatically assuming that’s the reason she’s not working with those writers/producers anymore.

[Blackout2006]

I think Smile is her healing record, just like how Joanne gave Gaga a stronger perspective into how her next record should be like. I truly believe that Smile is the album that will give Katy a vision as to where she should head with her music in #KP6 , to make a strong comeback, like how Gaga did with Chromatica.

Moving back to discussion, I really think she wants to experiment with producers? I mean if we take Britney’s case, Max Martin too was the mastermind behind the success of her first 3 records. Then in her 4th record, she didn’t appoint him as a producer because she knew she couldn’t stick with the same formula as her relevancy would not stick for longer and wanted to extend her artistic boundaries. So she got together with Bloodshy & Avant and Danja, who have produced two of her Magnum Opuses, In The Zone and Blackout, and found 2 new producers who have spectacular chemistry with her.

Thats what I think Katy is trying to find right now. Even though Teenage Dream and Prism will always be her Magnum Opuses, she is trying to find a producer who can create the same formula she created with Luke and Max

[Barajas]

HMM I think somebody as recognized as Max Martin should be expensive to work with.  Also probably she was in all this journey of "I dont want to be Katy Perry anymore" so she wanted to try new stuff. 

I wondered the same thing some months ago but after I saw Martin did a lot of her songs in Witness and how that album came, probably the problem with her career are not the songs, but her energy and her visual concepts maybe .

[Stefani]

Her label couldn't afford Max Martin's fee, and Bonnie McKee moved on.

[DougFrmBrazil]

43 minutes ago, Urbanney said:

Not to make this any more of a “KatyHeavy” site but why did Katy Perry stop working with the rest of her hardcore producing/songwriting team since after Witness?

I can understand Dr. Luke due to Kesha’s allegations, but they all are the ones that launched her career and kept her successful imo. Katy has been really struggling to get a successful single since, and Smile is getting mixed “meh” reviews.

Is it because she’s trying to separate herself from “Katy Perry” the popstar to be Katherine Hudson? Is it because Witness did worse than expected and she blames them? Is it because she can’t afford to have them write/produce her songs anymore? Do they not want to work with her anymore since she’s fallen from her top tier status? Is she trying to prove she doesn’t need them? I’m honestly so curious. Has she said anything about this?

"Not to make this any more of a “KatyHeavy”". This isn't BritneyHeavy a long time ago, so who cares. 

Katy already peaked with Teenage Dream and Roar while Taylor/Ariana was on the rise, so it was normal to her mega pop status fade for some time. 

[DougFrmBrazil]

28 minutes ago, dritney said:

These producers have been the heaviest hitters in the game. They work with the top act of the time and move on to the big act.

While the GP can get tired of a star (if they’re not innovating), they don’t see who is behind the scenes.

Max Martin produced Baby One More Time, his first #1 hit, as well as Blinding Lights, his latest #1, probably the biggest song of the last year, responsible for the major shift in sound.

Max Martin is a pop music genius. I wonder when it’ll end.

"Max Martin is a pop music genius. I wonder when it’ll end." Hello, when he dies, perhaps? LOL.

[dritney]

1 minute ago, DougFrmBrazil said:

"Max Martin is a pop music genius. I wonder when it’ll end." Hello, when he dies, perhaps? LOL.

It’s just impressive that he doesn’t miss the mark after so long.

[BONO Productions]

Maybe she's trying to rebrand herself? I think she felt pressured to top her previous records and maybe she doesnt want to be labeled as the "California Gurl with bubblegum Max Martin hits"

[BONO Productions]

Or maybe she wants people to take her more seriously as an artist like how Gaga did it with Joanne, genre and sound shifts.

[PokemonSpears]

21 minutes ago, Blackout2006 said:

I think Smile is her healing record, just like how Joanne gave Gaga a stronger perspective into how her next record should be like. I truly believe that Smile is the album that will give Katy a vision as to where she should head with her music in #KP6 , to make a strong comeback, like how Gaga did with Chromatica.

Moving back to discussion, I really think she wants to experiment with producers? I mean if we take Britney’s case, Max Martin too was the mastermind behind the success of her first 3 records. Then in her 4th record, she didn’t appoint him as a producer because she knew she couldn’t stick with the same formula as her relevancy would not stick for longer and wanted to extend her artistic boundaries. So she got together with Bloodshy & Avant and Danja, who have produced two of her Magnum Opuses, In The Zone and Blackout, and found 2 new producers who have spectacular chemistry with her.

Thats what I think Katy is trying to find right now. Even though Teenage Dream and Prism will always be her Magnum Opuses, she is trying to find a producer who can create the same formula she created with Luke and Max

The difference is that Britney was heavily criticized for sticking to the same producers three albums in a row.

Katy, Taylor, Ariana, etc, they can keep repeating producers, video directors, etc, and no one bats an eye.

[xzede25]

35 minutes ago, Arthurfleck said:

Max Martin did most of witness and we all know the results. She has a lot of chemistry with bonnie and dr luke tho.

I really dont know how Witness floped so hard when it had some great songs in it.

Roulette being one of them and produced by Max Martin.

 

[Invitation]

4 minutes ago, PokemonSpears said:

The difference is that Britney was heavily criticized for sticking to the same producers three albums in a row.

Katy, Taylor, Ariana, etc, they can keep repeating producers, video directors, etc, and no one bats an eye.

Most of the criticism Katy Perry received was that she never tried to change her sound or kept making the same music.

[Adriannn]

I think it’s healthy for artists to expand their boundaries and try different producers. However, I think budget is playing a role here. If we look at some of the credited producers and songwriters (Oscar Holter, Oscar Görres, Ilya, Savan Kotecha), they are all Max’s protégés, which might well make them more affordable. I’ve chosen to stick to the songs I liked, ‘Tucked’, for example 

[PrettyGorl]

1 hour ago, IForgotYouExisted said:

She literally explained it multiple times and in her song Smile she's finally happy not caring about charts and hits and she has found her hapiness with something she really is rather than the popstar they made her be.

She disliked the pop Katy and she finally got back her Smile.

 

That’s all PR spin imo. She obviously liked pop Katy. It’s just not the popular genre rn and witness was a loss for her label I’m sure. So why shell out the big bucks for max if the albums gonna flop anyway? She’ll go back to chart music.

[bas che]

I honestly love and miss Dr. Luke production. He gave us and the GP so many addictive hits and if you’re saying otherwise you’re just lying to yourself.

Kesha’s allegations were not entirely true and I feel like it tarnished his reputation and he can’t give us the great music that we deserve which such a shame. I am not defending him, but no one can deny the amazing music he can create.