Katy Perry's Album News: 'Witness' Fails to Top iTunes Chart

By Edward Leano, Christian Post Contributor Thursday, June 15, 2017

Katy Perry's new album, "Witness," did not get enough support to claim the top spot on the iTunes chart, to the surprise of Perry fans. The number one slot for the music distribution channel instead belongs to the "Dear Evan Hansen" official soundtrack.

Fans and followers of Katy Perry may have been disappointed by what could be a mislabeled album, as Billboard speculates. When the singer called "Witness" her take on "purposeful pop" during the 2017 Grammys, fans may have expected an album filled with her take on the political and social issues today.

A politically-charged live debut of "Chained to the Rhythm," the leading single from the album, could have further cemented the expectations of listeners looking forward to Katy Perry's stand against the Trump administration. After all, the self-branded activist has publicly supported Hillary Clinton in last year's elections, even singing at venues for the presidential candidate. By the time that "Witness" came out, listeners were already bracing themselves to hear Katy Perry the advocate.

What was eventually released to the airwaves were pop entries that did not carry any political context at all. Reviewers point to "Bon Appetit" and "Chained to the Rhythm" as prime examples of the album's lack of activism, something that could have contributed to "Witness" missing the top spot on the iTunes charts.

Things could have been different had Perry explained the tone of her new album better, such as the time she told Billboard how "Witness" is her self-exploration album, touching on topics like her personal "mental liberation, sexual liberation, negative liberation, [and] spiritual liberation."

"Dear Evan Hansen," meanwhile, has beaten out not only Katy Perry's "Witness" but also True Crime Garage's "The Bricca Family Murders" to claim the number one rank. According to Entertainment Weekly, this is just indicative of the success of the musical. The album debuted at number eight on the Billboard album chart.