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 singlesâ"California Gurls", "Teenage Dream", "Firework", "E.T.", and "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" â 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.
Playing house
Katy Perry Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With such a big world outside
How do we shut it out?
At a fork in the road
Should I stay or should I go?
I?ll keep the cat
Leave a spare under the mat
If you need to crash one day
Cause I know we swore forever
But it seems so far away
Don?t you think we?re just too young
To play these grown up games?
Cause you know me too well
It?d be like me lying to myself
But I?m so scared to be alone
And go back to sleeping with the lights on
Cause I can be myself
Drunk or sober fat proactive poster
Wouldn?t it be nice
If we were older
Cause I know we swore forever
But it seems so far away
Don?t you think we?re just too young
To play these grown up games
Some days I wanna take my chances
Not live so modernized
Some day I wanna be a Mrs.
But it?s not yet quite right
No it?s not yet quite right
So there go our future children?s names
I put the rest of us in a box in the closet
That I cannot open without getting full
Full of emotion
Because you know I loved you
You know I loved you
You know I loved you
You know I loved you
You know I loved you
Cause I know we swore forever
But it seems so far away
Don?t you think we?re just too young
To play
One day I wanna take my chances
Not live so modernized
One day I wanna be a Mrs.
But it?s not yet quite right
No it?s not yet quite right
No it?s not yet quite right
"Playing House" by Katy Perry is a nostalgic reflection on a relationship that has run its course. The lyrics are centered around the idea that the singers had pledged to be together forever, but over time they learnt that it might have been a hasty promise. The first verse, "We canât keep playing house/ With such a big world outside/ How do we shut it out?", shows the singers trying to figure out how they can isolate themselves from the pressing issues of the world, which are getting between them. The next line, "At a fork in the road/ Should I stay or should I go?" signifies that the singers are at a crossroads where they must decide if they need to stay together or go their separate ways.
The chorus further emphasises the idea that the singers are too young to understand the intricacies of the relationship. When Perry sings, "Donât you think weâre just too young/ To play these grown-up games?" she estimates that maintaining a long-term, serious relationship requires more maturity than she currently possesses. The second verse explains that Perry is afraid of being alone and the security that her partner provides, yet at the same time, she wants to be herself, "drunk or sober fat proactive poster." Additionally, in the bridge, Perry reflects on her yearning for a more traditional life but admits that she is not there yet.
Line by Line Meaning
We can?t keep playing house
We cannot pretend to be a family anymore
With such a big world outside
There's a whole world outside of our make-believe home
How do we shut it out?
How can we ignore the real world and stay in this fantasy?
At a fork in the road
We have a decision to make
Should I stay or should I go?
Should I keep pretending or move on?
I?ll keep the cat
I'll keep a small connection to you
Leave a spare under the mat
In case you need a place to stay
If you need to crash one day
If you need a place to stay
Cause I know we swore forever
We made a promise to each other
But it seems so far away
That promise feels distant and unattainable now
Don?t you think we?re just too young
We're too young to be playing house and making forever promises
To play these grown up games?
To pretend to be adults with a family when we're not ready
Cause you know me too well
You know me intimately
It?d be like me lying to myself
It would be a lie to pretend I am someone I am not
But I?m so scared to be alone
I am afraid of being alone
And go back to sleeping with the lights on
I am afraid of the dark, and being alone in it
Cause I can be myself
I am comfortable being myself
Drunk or sober fat proactive poster
I am comfortable being myself, even if that means being imperfect or vulnerable
Wouldn?t it be nice
It would be pleasant
If we were older
If we were more mature and able to handle our make-believe family
Some days I wanna take my chances
Sometimes I want to live without fear
Not live so modernized
Not fall victim to modern-day expectations
Some day I wanna be a Mrs.
Someday I want to be married
But it?s not yet quite right
But it doesn't feel right yet, it feels forced
So there go our future children?s names
We had planned our future together, including children's names
I put the rest of us in a box in the closet
I put away our pretend family
That I cannot open without getting full
It brings up emotions that are difficult to handle
Full of emotion
Filled with strong feelings
Because you know I loved you
Because I really did love you
No it?s not yet quite right
It's not right to keep pretending when we're not ready
Contributed by Ella L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@StephanieRne
Omg this is one of the best songs I've ever heard her sing and the lyrics are amazing WHHHHYYYY was this not released!?!?!? Could see her doing this at the Grammys or vmas SO GOOD KATY!!!! hope this comes out in the future too good not to. <3
@deshnyvincent1368
Really wish she released this, it's amazing.
She was still good even though she had flu, you can tell she gave it her all.
#KatyKatFuhLyfe
@cicocice
12 years waiting for this song
@cdub722
wow this is the first time i heard this song..what an incredible song,absolutely LOVE katy,shes never stops amazing me with her songs and lyrics :)
@1um1n0us975
i absolutely love this. hope she comes back this, cannot wait for her new album
@TNA02
i miss this katy perry so much
@vanessa02porto
one of her best live performances, one of her best songs, i love her since 2009 and i always will, THANK YOU FOR PUTTING THIS ON YOUTUBE
@RelyaVoy
same here, I watch this video from time to time again since 2009, and I still love this song so much. i wish there'd be a studio version of it.
@vanessa02porto
@@RelyaVoyyessssssss plus kp5 is coming and im here for it
@RelyaVoy
@@vanessa02porto omg yes! i can't believe, you're like the second OG KatyCat I saw here on YouTube who knows songs like "Playing House" but still also is a fan of her latest stuff! can't wait to hear Daisies :D! I don't want to spam but today I just released a song with a video ("Take Me Back", on my channel) and I wanted to mix the PRISM sound with a One Of The Boys chorus, maybe you'd like to check it out :)!