Katy Perry

Lifting the lid on the chart-topping, girl-kissing, trend-setting princess of pop

In 2006, Katy Perry was on the brink of packing it all in and giving up - Hollywood had almost got the better of her. Two hit albums later and she practically owns the place.

The gorgeous singer, best known for her flirty hit ''I Kissed a Girl'', likes to flaunt her feminine side with inch-long eyelashes, maraschino-cherry lips, and playful retro outfits like polka-dotted hot pants and tube dresses, but Katy''s path to fame was far bumpier than her glamtastic image lets on. Raised in Santa Barbara, California, she started her musical career in the church, her parents were both born-again Christian pastors. Her first album, released in 2001, was Christian gospel and the rules for her early years were ''no pop, no snacks, no boys''. At 16 she dropped out of high school and made the move to L.A., and her life was forever changed.

It took more than eight years of false starts, winning and losing three record contracts, before she scored the million-selling album One of the Boys. But once `Ur So Gay'' was declared by Madonna as her song of the year, ''I Kissed a Girl'' ignited all that controversy, and Katy met her husband-to-be Russell Brand and so became one half of one of the most exciting and endearing Hollywood couples, Katy Perry was propelled to the top of the Hollywood A list.

Jo Berry''s insightful and honest biography reveals the incredible story of the life and loves of the artist and performer Katy Perry.