(Screengrab from Katy Perry’s Official YouTube Account)

Smile. 

It’s something that we could all use these days thanks to everything that’s happening around the world. There’s the coronavirus pandemic and the great havoc that it is leaving in its wake, then there’s the political and racial divide that we’re currently experiencing, there’s hunger, poverty, climate change to name a few. 


And this is why we love Katy Perry’s new album called Smile even though some reviewers describe it as “bubbly, cliché-ridden pop feels especially unsuited for life in a pandemic.” I personally think that it is during the darkest moments of our lives that we could all use a little cheer and Perry’s new album managed to achieve that much.  


In a previous interview, Perry said of Smile, “This whole album is my journey towards the light, with stories of resilience, hope, and love.” In addition to these, Smile’s themes are generally of self-help and empowerment.


According to this article, Perry created Smile following a “crippling depression.” She reportedly experienced many hardships these past few years including a “major flop” fifth studio album (Witness, 2017), she also “struggled with public criticism, break-ups, make-ups” and who knows what else. 

I’m pretty sure everyone suffers from many things in private. In the end, it is how we deal with it, how we rise above it, and how we make use of what we learned from these struggles that count the most.

That being said, of the 12 songs in Smile, our favorites are: Never Really Over, Smile, and Harleys in Hawaii.


Perry herself said that Never Really Over is about “how all of our relationships – from first love, through failed love, to great love – all become a part of you so that none are ever really over: ‘You lived your past, and whatever it was, you learn.'” 

Harleys in Hawaii on the other hand, is a summery anthem inspired by a motorcycle ride in Hawaii with Orlando Bloom. Lastly, Perry said of the album’s title track Smile: 


Smile, Perry’s sixth studio album by Capitol Records, was released on August 28, 2020—just two days after giving birth to a baby girl whom she and fiancé Orlando Bloom named Daisy Dove Bloom.

What about you, guys, did you already listen to Katy Perry’s new album? Which songs are your favorites? Tell us in the comments section below!

Happy listening!

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