Katy Perry Talks Family While Receiving Key to the Las Vegas Strip
"My parents met here and got married here, so it's only natural that I would be onstage here eventually," said Perry during a ceremony on June 8 — which is now "Katy Perry Day" in Clark County
By
Jack Irvin June 09, 2022 04:25 PM
Katy Perry
Katy Perry has received a major Las Vegas honor!
The pop diva, 37, was presented with a key to the Las Vegas Strip during a ceremony held in the AYU Dayclub at Resorts World Las Vegas — where Perry currently performs her
Play residency — on June 8, which is now considered "
Katy Perry Day" in Clark County, Nevada.
Presented by Clark County commissioner Tick Segerblom as well as Resorts World President Scott Sibella and AEG/Concerts West Vice President John Nelson, Perry received the key at the outdoor ceremony and spoke about her family's long history in Las Vegas.
"I have a lot of roots here, and this just feels so natural to be here," said Perry at the resort, which broadcast the reception on the side of its building, which features a giant LED screen that can be seen for miles. "My aunt was a showgirl here, my grandma was a seamstress here, my dad grew up here and ended up being a chauffeur."
Katy Perry
| CREDIT: ETHAN MILLER/GETTY
"My parents met here and got married here, so it's only natural that I would be onstage here eventually," she continued, before cracking a joke amid the sentimental speech. "But I did not think I would be getting a key to the Strip, which I hope unlocks some better HVAC. It is really hot."
Perry then spoke at length about the creation of her ongoing
Play residency, for which she recently announced new dates for October. "I think there is a through-thread in my whole career of just being a little OTT [over the top], and that's exactly what Las Vegas is, so it's a perfect match," she told ceremony attendees.
"When I sat down to create the show with my team, the first question was: Who is my Las Vegas audience?" continued the "Teenage Dream" performer. "You're not on tour, it's not based off one record, and it's not going to always be just my hardcore fans."
Katy Perry
| CREDIT: ETHAN MILLER/GETTY
"It's going to be a real hodgepodge of wonderful people, people that are just passersby, people that are here celebrating something special, from their bachelorette to their 21st birthday," added Perry, who then referenced one of the cheeky, larger-than-life props that accompany her onstage during the 19-song set.
"Maybe they've seen something online about the poop puppet [in the show], and they're putting it together that this looks strange and fun, and it looks like we can escape a little bit," she said. "And that's what I set out to do."
RELATED: Katy Perry Exits Jimmy Kimmel Live Taping in Giant Poop Costume Identical to Her Vegas Show Prop
Elsewhere in her speech, Perry hinted at extending her Las Vegas residency even further. "I'll keep doing this show for as long as it makes me happy … and for as long as it brings joy to my fans."
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Katy Perry Exits Jimmy Kimmel Live Taping in Giant Poop Costume Identical to Her Vegas Show Prop
A giant, dancing poop appears from within a toilet and sings "California Gurls" alongside Katy Perry during her Las Vegas residency Play
Katy Perry is never one to shy away from making a fashion statement.
While leaving a taping of Jimmy Kimmel Live Thursday evening, the singer, 37, was photographed wearing a giant poop costume — identical to a prop featured in her Las Vegas residency, Play.
(During her residency, Perry sings beside a larger-than-life orange toilet while dressed in a white minidress and matching headpiece. As she belts her popular song "California Gurls," the giant, dancing poop appears from within the toilet and sings along with her.)
Prior to changing into the costume, Perry arrived to the late night show set, which is recored at the El Capitan Entertainment Centre studios in Los Angeles, in an all-black leather ensemble, which included a cropped blazer and high-waisted pants.
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During her time on JKL, Perry appeared alongside her fellow American Idol judges Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie — who both also currently have Las Vegas residencies.
Perry explained during the broadcast that performing in Vegas was always something she aspired to do given her family's history with the location. "I always thought a residency would be in the cards for me, and I wanted it, and then when I decided I was going to do it, I started to remember all this family folklore," she said, before detailing familiar connections.
"Like, my aunt was a topless showgirl. My grandma was a seamstress for the showgirls. My dad was a chauffeur. My parents met in Vegas and then got married in Vegas," Perry noted.
But, as Perry continued to explain, the weird coincidences don't end there. "What's even stranger is that I realized the hotel that my aunt worked at was the Stardust Hotel, which is now the Resorts World hotel, [where I perform]."
"Well, people think backstage is pretty scandalous, but for me, for a decade, it's pretty much been the same," Perry told PEOPLE in January. "We're just getting ready, we're eating well, we're doing a pre-show workout. We're doing lots of different business things and really sticking to the meditation."
"So the [things] that I do, and have done for over a decade, has given me a lot of help with fatigue and exhaustion," she continued. "Especially getting through these shows, because I think this is probably the most physically grueling show I've done."
In the fun-filled show, Perry performs alongside massive, colorful visuals, including a pink and yellow checkerboard stage and a colossal rubber duck.