Katy Perry recently revealed that she made a pact with Orlando Bloom that she wouldn’t drink alcohol for three months.
"I've been sober for five weeks today. I've been doing a pact with my partner and I want to quit," she said at a curated cocktail event in New York.
She attended the event with American Idol judges Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan. Host of the show Ryan Seacrest was also there. When Luke asked her if she was reneging on her promise, she made it clear she is a woman of her word:
“I can't cave. I made a promise. Three months."
It’s all very relatable - the idea of celebrities, just like us, having to find a way around the temptations of alcohol and her honesty about not being able to toss them back like she did in her 20s. What’s not relatable is the fact that it’s happening against the backdrop – quite literally – of her mocktail line.
At the event, the bar was stocked with De Soi, her line of non-alcoholic aperitifs. She launched the line of sparkling beverages containing natural adaptogens in 2022. The French name translates to “pleasure with restraint”.
To her credit, she has been open about the changing impact alcohol has had on her over the years.
"On a weekday, having a couple of alcoholic drinks will take me out of the presence game for the next day or two. So I like to have a bit of self-control on the weekdays and then have dinners with friends and stuff on weekends or when I'm not working, et cetera," Perry said to People in 2022. "But really it's about balance.”
But on the other hand, there is a sense of flippancy in her discussions about alcohol that undermines the connection between mental health and addiction.
"Sometimes I'm not drinking and I'm really focused," she says. "And then sometimes I'm like, it's not a big deal."
For anyone who knows anything about sobriety and having an unhealthy relationship with alcohol or marijuana or any substance for that matter, it really is a big deal. And the implications of stopping and starting can have detrimental effects on people genuinely trying to change their relationship with any given substance. This is especially the case when you don’t have the resources and access to help that celebrities do.
Last year, I wrote about Matthew Perry revealing he had spent an estimated $9 million trying to get sober – an astronomical and impossible amount for anyone without his level of celebrity, success and privilege to spend, even if it was on something as crucial as sobriety. I also wrote about the luxury rehabs celebrities check themselves into when they fall off the wagon.
But as someone who currently works in a marketing role, it’s tough to not appreciate the marketing strategy that goes into this. At the event, her signature Golden Hour drink was altered to be The Golden Ticket to make it themed with the show. On top of that, it was all just hugely promotional for American Idol itself, which is now in its 21st season. Leading up to the event and the season premiere of the show, Katy shared a throwback photo of herself on her 21st birthday, describing that she spent her day renting out a roller skating rink and having a bunch of Big Macs catered, with a line urging people to tune in to the show’s newest season. She’s got 195 million followers – that’s more than the population of entire countries. Certainly some of them took heed.
But as much as this is also marketing, be it for the show or for her drink line, how can we measure the sincerity of it all? And does sincerity negate the impact of her business endeavours?
According to Square, a technology company, mocktail sales hit an all-time high in the first few weeks of January this year. The year over year growth was 123%. Non-alcohol companies are reporting record sales due to the popularity of campaigns like Dry January and Dry February, and restaurants are cashing in big time by having something other than soda and water to offer to non-drinkers. So Katy’s timing is impeccable, and so is her decision-making when it comes to the type of product she chose to invest in.
But going back to sincerity, are there other ways to support and encourage sobriety, other than starting a business, that lines her pockets in the meantime? Of course. She could partner with AA, lend her celebrity to some meaningful causes that promote sobriety, the possibilities are endless. But by her choosing this route instead, does that render De Soi useless? No. In fact, non-alcoholic beverages are a great way of encouraging sobriety. It also helps that she’s actually not drinking and being open and honest about the difficulty of staying true to her pact – even if it only lasts three months.
I truly believe that Katy has a sincere, vested interest in wellness. In the past, she’s worked with companies like Bragg, America’s original health food company; Apeel, which helps protect your fruits and vegetables from going bad; and Impossible Foods, which is a plant-based meat, fish and dairy substitute company. And I don’t doubt that she has a sincere, vested interest in changing her relationship with alcohol, either. And as nice as it would be for her to partner up with those causes I mentioned, she’s at least off to a great start.
