Katy Perry rewrote her new revenge anthem, “Part of Me,” and sharpened its lyrics for the song’s Grammy debut Sunday to take aim at her soon-to-be ex-husband, Russell Brand.
After using the 2011 Grammys to herald Brand with scenes of their India wedding, she took the music industry’s biggest night this year to blast their short-lived union.
Perry didn’t originally write the bitter song about Brand. But the lyrics — including, “You chewed me up and spit me out/Like I was poison in your mouth,” and its theme about moving on from a toxic relationship — seem timely.
She co-wrote the song in 2010. An earlier version leaked online included the lyrics “You can keep the dog/I never liked him anyway.” But on Sunday’s Grammy night, those words were changed to, “You can keep the diamond ring/it don’t mean nothing anyway” — a parting shot at Brand, whom Perry is divorcing after just 14 months of marriage.
Brand, according to reports, is not going after Perry’s $44 million fortune made during their marriage, even though the two didn’t have a prenup.
It was just a year ago on the Grammys that the diva trumpeted her nuptials. She was lifted into the air on a swing as grainy footage of her wedding to Brand screened behind her.
This time, she kissed their marriage goodbye with lyrics including “You rip me off, your love is cheap/was always tearing at the seams/I fell deep, and you look me down/But that was then and this is now.” Ouch.
The single, with the new lyrics, was released yesterday, and it remains to be seen if it will take its place in the pantheon of revenge classics, including Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain,” which was famously rumored to be about Warren Beatty, or even Taylor Swift’s more recent “Dear John,” reportedly about playboy crooner John Mayer.
Revenge was a Grammy-night theme, with Adele taking six awards for an album, “21,” she said was about a “rubbish relationship.”