After singing in church during her childhood, she pursued a career in gospel music as a teenager. Perry signed with Red Hill Records and released her debut studio album Katy Hudson under her birth name in 2001, which was commercially unsuccessful. She moved to Los Angeles the following year to venture into secular music after Red Hill ceased operations and she subsequently began working with producers Glen Ballard, Dr. Luke, and Max Martin. After adopting the stage name 'Katy Perry' and being dropped by The Island Def Jam Music Group and Columbia Records, she signed a recording contract with Capitol Records in April 2007.
Perry rose to fame in 2008 with her second album, One of the Boys, a pop rock record containing the controversial U.S number one song "I Kissed a Girl" and "Hot n Cold". Three subsequent albums have topped the U.S. Billboard 200. The disco-influenced Teenage Dream (2010) spawned five chart-topping U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles–"California Gurls", "Teenage Dream", "Firework", "E.T.", and "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" — a record tying her with Michael Jackson's "Bad". Its follow-up record Prism (2013) was inspired by her divorce, and incorporates pop and dance along with themes of self-reflection, everyday life, and relationships. With the music videos for its chart-topping songs "Roar" and "Dark Horse", Perry became the first artist to have multiple videos reach one billion views on Vevo. Her 2017 electropop album, 'Witness' featured a political subtext and a theme of liberation. Her sixth studio album 'Smile' followed in 2020.
Perry has nine U.S. Billboard Hot 100 number one singles and has received various awards, including four Guinness World Records, five Billboard Music Awards, five American Music Awards, a Brit Award, and a Juno Award. She has been included in the annual Forbes lists of highest-earning women in music from 2011 to 2019. Her estimated net worth as of 2016 is $125 million. Perry is one of the world's best-selling music artists, having sold over 18 million albums and 125 million singles worldwide. In film, she released an autobiographical documentary titled "Katy Perry: Part of Me" in 2012, and voiced Smurfette in the 2011 film The Smurfs and its sequel in 2013. Her Super Bowl halftime show performance is the most watched in history. Perry also began serving as a judge on American Idol in 2018.
Last Call
Katy Perry Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With love-filled eyes and them healing hands
Hello hello I've been waiting for so long
Don't disconnect me cause it's my last call
CHORUS(1):
For help
Yeah help
'Cause it's 8-9-9-3-8-3-3
Come on and listen to me
Take my call, collect my change
'Cause Lord, I'm calling on Your name
Don't wanna leave, don't wanna say goodbye
Still fifteen minutes for my thirty-five
And where's this good in goodbye?
Cause talking to you is bringing me
This life
Yeah life
This life
Yeah
'Cause it's 8-9-9-3-8-3-3
Come on and listen to me
Take my call, collect my change
'Cause Lord, I'm calling on Your name
'Cause it's 8-9-9-3-8-3-3
Come on and listen to me
Take my call, collect my change
'Cause Lord, I'm calling on Your name
This is my last call
The song "Last Call" by Katy Perry is a plea for help from someone who is at their wit's end. The singer is searching for a man with "love-filled eyes" and "healing hands" - someone to help them in a time of need. The repetition of the words "hello hello" could be seen as a desperate attempt to reach out to someone, anyone, who can help them. The singer is worried that they will be disconnected before they get the help they need - hence the urgency in the phrase "it's my last call."
In the chorus, the singer dials a helpline number (8-9-9-3-8-3-3) and pleads for someone to "listen" to them. They ask that the person on the other end of the line "take [their] call, collect [their] change" because they are "calling on [the] Lord's name" for help. The repetition of this phrase emphasizes the idea that the singer is in dire need of assistance - they feel as though they are running out of time and options.
Throughout the song, the singer expresses their reluctance to say goodbye, despite feeling like they are out of options. They wonder if there is any good in saying goodbye, and express the idea that talking to someone (whether it's the person on the helpline or someone else) is helping them to stay alive ("talking to you is bringing me life"). The song ends with the repeated phrase "this is my last call," which reinforces the idea that the singer is running out of time.
Overall, "Last Call" is a powerful song that deals with themes of desperation, hopelessness, and the human need for connection and assistance.
Line by Line Meaning
Hello hello I'm searching for a man
I am looking for someone special to help me.
With love-filled eyes and them healing hands
Someone who is caring and nurturing, with the ability to heal me.
Hello hello I've been waiting for so long
I have been searching for a long time, and I am ready to receive help.
Don't disconnect me cause it's my last call
Please don't hang up on me, because this is my final attempt to get help.
For help
I need assistance.
Yeah help
I really need help.
Cause it's 8-9-9-3-8-3-3
The phone number I am calling for help.
Come on and listen to me
Please hear my cry for help.
Take my call, collect my change
Please answer my call and I will pay for it.
'Cause Lord, I'm calling on Your name
I am asking for divine intervention and guidance.
Don't wanna leave, don't wanna say goodbye
I am afraid to disconnect from this call because I need help desperately.
Still fifteen minutes for my thirty-five
I have 15 minutes left before my call gets disconnected automatically.
And where's this good in goodbye?
I don't see any benefit in ending this call, it will only make me feel worse.
Cause talking to you is bringing me
Talking to the person on the other end of the line is giving me hope and making me feel better.
This life
My current existence and state of being.
Yeah life
Yes, my life.
This is my last call
This is my final attempt to get help before giving up.
Contributed by Jordan F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@EmilyLovesCookee
So weird to listen to Katy's old music, not that there's anything wrong with it. I still listen to 'One of the Boys'. <3
@Gurra88
Both her albums are great imo.
@gleekissable
i really don't now that album exist but I meet it and was like omg she have a really good and gospel pass .......I LOVE IT
@ottolettuce
I LOVE THIS SONG
@MJSpiderman7116
So much better than her new crap. This is much jazzier and original! Katy hudson, come back to us!!
@tacomagnet4445
Her christian music kinda makes her sound like Florence and the Machine.
@tashacross
LOVE IT IT
@Mamamsajr
This is amazing. Why didnt this make it?
@48Iluvyourihanna11
amazing :D
@KitKatPerryfan
Whats wrong with her new stuff!? I love her new stuff and im excitedly waiting for her next album! Wake up ppl. Its still the same great katy geez she simply changed her genre.