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Katy Perry has been quite the controversial figure since she joined American Idol as a judge during its sixteenth season in 2018. From kissing contestants to wearing culturally inappropriate outfits, Perry has been in the spotlight for the wrong reasons more than once.
Although Perry's involvement in the show has been well-received by audiences and critics alike, there have been several incidents where fans have called her out on her behavior.
One of the latest controversies surrounding the singer involves former Season 21 contestant Sara Beth Liebe, who claimed that Perry mom-shamed her on the show. During Liebe's audition, the judges were shocked to hear about her age and that she was a mother of three.
While all three judges expressed that Liebe looked much younger, Perry sparked controversy when she commented with, "Honey, you've been laying on the table too much!". Liebe has since chosen to leave the show, opting to return home to her family.
Here are five other controversial moments from Katy Perry on the show.
Katy Perry's most controversial moments on American Idol
1) The Kiss Controversy
During the audition rounds of the 2018 season of American Idol, Katy Perry surprised then 19-years old contestant, Benjamin Glaze, by giving him a kiss on the lips, which many viewers and fans considered inappropriate and non-consensual.
Glaze had revealed that he had never been kissed before, which prompted Perry to give him a kiss. Glaze later told The New York Times that he felt uncomfortable with the kiss, stating that he would have liked his first kiss to be sweeter.
2) The cruel Hollywood Week prank
For a Hollywood Week episode during the show's first season after being revived on ABC, Katy Perry told one of the groups that out of the four girls, one would need to volunteer to go home. After an emotional moment where one of the contestants, Crystal Alicea, agreed to leave, Perry announced that she was joking, and that everyone had gotten through to the next round.
Audiences were shocked and upset at Katy Perry's actions, with many calling her out on Twitter for playing such a cruel prank on the contestants. Fans of the show were not happy with Perry's behavior and she received a lot of backlash.
3) When she ripped her sparkly silver pants
Perry has faced multiple wardrobe malfunctions throughout her time as a judge on American Idol. One particular moment that stands out is when she split her pants while dancing to celebrate Maddie Poppe's performance during the 2018 season of the show.
The incident happened during the show's season finale when Perry stood up to dance with fellow judges Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan. As she got up from her seat, her silver jumpsuit split open at the back, exposing her to the audience.
Perry took the incident in good humor, laughing and joking about it on social media and during subsequent interviews.
4) When she did a shoey live on television
On Disney Night of American Idol's 2018 season, Katy Perry showed up in a full Snow White costume and maintained her character the entire night. However, the most outrageous moment of the night was when she chugged a drink from her glass slipper.
After spotting Perry's Cinderella-inspired glass slippers, host Ryan Seacrest started to talk about shoeys, an Australian tradition of drinking beer from a boot. This prompted Katy Perry to immediately grab her drink and pour it into the crystal slipper she’d been wearing all night. She went on to chug the contents of the slipper while maintaining eye contact with the camera.
5) Katy Perry's frog impression
Another viral moment from the singer was during American Idol's 2018 season when she revealed her hidden talent by imitating a frog.
One of the contestants revealed that his secret talent was being able to quote the entirety of the film Mean Girls from start to finish. After the contestant owned up to his secret talent, Perry decides to do the same and revealed that she can look like a frog. What followed was the singer's fascinating yet creepy impression of a frog's breathing pattern, including inflating and deflating her throat.
While fellow judges Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan were visibly amused, audiences too took to the internet to express their shock at Katy Perry's bizarre talent.
While the pop star seems to have caused many scandalous moments on the show, it is also evident that American Idol would not be the same without Katy Perry.
The next episode of American Idol season 21 will premiere on April 23, 2023, at 8 pm ET on ABC.
