Taylor Swift walked the carpet at the iHeartRadio Awards last night without giving interviews because that’s her thing now. It’s also a status thing. The big ones can breeze in, take some photos, and bypass the press line. Katy Perry doesn’t have that option though. As one of the judges on American Idol, she has to be out there talking, being interviewed, promoting the show. And while Katy has had a lot of success, she’s not quite yet up on there on the level of Beyoncé and even Taylor. Also, it’s not really her style. Katy doesn’t do detachment. Not even when she’s trying to be a robot. 

Here’s A.I. Katy, with Zedd, promoting their single. It makes sense if you’ve seen the video. She’s the robot who gets attached. I felt like I was missing something when it came out a few weeks ago and people were like, holy sh-t, this video. Is it because I’ve seen Ex Machina? Anyway, Katy’s not the first entertainer to play a robot in a music video but there is something about her look that lends itself well to the role. I think it’s her makeup. You know how Jennifer Lopez is known for skin glow in her makeup? That’s not Katy Perry’s look. The texture of Katy’s makeup, through the years, is almost a throwback. It’s applied to make sure you know it’s there. Like she’s a mannequin, which is why she can pull off being a robot. Even the way she dresses, often cartoonish and costumey, adds to the whole effect. Take this outfit last night, for example. I could see her in it even if she wasn’t playing a character. This would actually be something that Katy Perry would wear to dinner. 

As for what she said in her interviews, there are some headlines today about her response to a question about working with Taylor Swift. 

Katy sent Taylor flowers last year to congratulate her on the tour so there’s no story here anymore but they were at the same event last night and I guess taking a photo together is still a step too far because that moment never happened. Will it ever happen?