Dear Gossips,

Earlier this week I posted about Katy Perry being a judge on the American Idol reboot and whether or not it’s a good move. It’s becoming more clear now why she and her team think it’s a good move. Unlike previous hits from previous albums, Katy’s songs Chained To The Rhythm and Bon Appetit have not been chart-toppers. Witness, the new album, comes out June 9th. And the third single from Witness was just released last night – Swish Swish ft Nicki Minaj.

Everyone’s wondering whether or not the track is a clapback at Taylor Swift. We don’t need to spend any time doing gossip forensics on this issue, of course it’s a clapback. But…is it a GOOD clapback? First of all, I’m not sure Nicki Minaj is the one you want to be clapbacking with. Nicki’s part in Swish Swish is stronger than Katy’s, and the best part of the song, but Nicki’s own clapback game isn’t exactly strong right now. Remember, it took Nicki practically a lifetime to clap back at Remy Ma…and when she finally did, she couldn’t do it alone, she had help from Drake and Lil Wayne. Second, like Nicki’s No Frauds, Swish Swish…? Is not a good song. The lyrics are corny as f-ck.

Your game is tired
You should retire
You're 'bout cute as
An old coupon expired
And karma's not a liar
She keeps receipts

It’s been two years. And this is the best you could do?

Here’s the thing though – Taylor Swift’s Bad Blood isn’t a good song either. The advantage that Taylor had with Bad Blood however was that it was the fourth single off of 1989 and the three singles that came before it were major bangers: Shake It Off, then Blank Space, then Style, and only then did Bad Blood follow. By that time, 1989, the album, was already a certified smash.

So Katy’s already playing from behind. Chained To The Rhythm and Bon Appetit haven’t matched any of the hits from 1989 so far. Which puts added pressure on Swish Swish to close the gap. Which means Swish Swish had to be a really good song. And… well... I guess we need to wait for the video. It needs to be saved by a buzzy, probably controversial video, like Cry Me A River styles, with a lookalike. 

American Idol then is making more and more sense. And that’s kind of a surprise to me. Because a month ago, on Show Your Work, Duana and I led with Katy Perry after she covered VOGUE. As Duana pointed out on that episode, it was the first time I thought maybe I could get more into Katy Perry. But Swish Swish isn’t doing it for me at all. I was hoping that Katy Perry could out-work or at least work-match Taylor Swift. Now I’m not so sure.

Have a great weekend! 

Yours in gossip,

Lainey