Katy Perry had thousands of “KatyCats” (as her most ardent fans are known) purring with delight on Thursday night in Bogor.
Perry shimmied and belted out her biggest hits over two hours at the Sentul International Convention Center, as part of her The California Dreams Tour.
And her fans squealed with delight at her every move. It was Perry’s first performance in Indonesia. She was rumored to be headlining a teen festival last year, but that was canceled for “technical reasons.” According to some reports the technical reason was that the whole event was a hoax.
“I’m finally here! Jakarta, welcome to the California Dreams,” Perry greeted the crowd after performing the first two songs of the night, “Teenage Dream” and “Hummingbird.”
“You guys have been waiting for so long, it feels like a lifetime,” she said. She assured fans that it was exciting to finally be in Indonesia, and added that she was “enjoying Jakarta but I’m sunburned.”
The stage was a technocolor Candy Land, with giant lollipops and cupcakes. A large screen took fans through the concert’s various “chapters,” turning the performance into a storybook resembling “Alice in Wonderland.”
Perry performed 14 songs during the show, including “Waking Up in Vegas,” “Ur So Gay,” “Firework,” “I Kissed a Girl,” and her latest hit, “The One That Got Away.”
Just before she sang “I Kissed a Girl,” Perry asked the audience at what age a person is considered mature in Indonesia and then playfully invited “the first boy to take their shirt off to get up on stage.”
Adri, 21, was the lucky lad and climbed the stage to the cheers and screams of the crowd. The pop star gave him a kiss on the cheek, and later the young man kissed her back while taking their picture with the camera on his mobile phone.
“I’m shaking,” Adri said. He asked Perry to repeat the kiss for “a better photo.”
Known for her unusual taste in fashion, Perry changed outfits more than 10 times during the show, dressing up as a peacock and a black cat, among other unique looks.
Perry’s quirky taste in fashion inspired Indonesian actress Julia Perez, also known as Jupe, to attend the concert wearing a “dispenser” bra with both hot and cold taps jutting from it.
Another fan, Carolina Velasco, said she had been looking forward to seeing Perry’s unusual outfits.
“We’re very excited and expect that she will wear something crazy,” said the 15-year-old international school student, who attended the concert with friends.
“She is so amazing with her unique style. She wears all kinds of costumes,” said Maria Alvarez, 15, from Venezuela.
Perry was very communicative during the concert, repeatedly telling the audience how enthused she was to finally get to meet her fans here.
“It’s so exciting to finally get to Indonesia. It takes 27 hours from Los Angeles to get here,” she said.
With Perry performing her biggest hits, showing her style and getting the screaming fans to sing along, the concert was a thorough success. Fans were still hungry for more when Perry disappeared at the end of the highly anticipated event.
Although Katy Perry fans tend to be in their teens, people of all different ages were in attendance, including 50-year-old Atilla, who came with some co-workers.
“I’m not a big fan, and I actually just started to listen to her songs late last year. I’m here out of curiosity to see what she is like and just how excited her fans are,” she said, adding that she spent Rp 1.9 million ($210) for the ticket.
A younger fan, 9-year-old Alea Malika, said she loved Perry’s songs but found her outfits “pretty weird.”
“I love Katy Perry for her beautiful voice and her songs such as ‘The One That Got Away,’ ‘Firework’ and ‘Teenage Dream.’ The costumes she wears are weird, though. But there are some that I like,” said the third-grader.
“Whenever I hear Katy’s new songs on the radio, I quickly check whether the video [clip] is already available on YouTube. I’m so looking forward to seeing her now.”
Born Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson, Perry started her music career in 2001, releasing the religious-themed album “Katy Hudson.” The 27-year-old later adopted the stage name Katy Perry for her second album, 2008’s “One of the Boys,” which sent her on the way to stardom.
source: jakartaglobe
