Katy Perry has spoken out about the criticism she’s received for choosing to work with music producer Dr Luke on her new album.

The chart-topping singer previously worked with Dr Luke on her first three studio albums, but their professional relationship came to an end around the time his former protegée Kesha accused him of sexually assaulting her.

Luke – whose legal name is Łukasz Gottwald – always vehemently denied the allegations made against him by Kesha, and later counter-sued for defamation.

The two eventually reached a settlement in 2023, with Katy reuniting with her former collaborator on a number of tracks on her upcoming album 143.

Katy faced a wave of backlash for this, particularly as her comeback single Woman’s World was intended as a feminist anthem.

During an interview on the podcast Call Her Daddy released on Wednesday, host Alex Cooper pointed out that “a lot of people have expressed disappointment” and “upset” about Katy working with Dr Luke.

Asked why she chose to work with him, Katy responded: “Look, I understand that it started a lot of conversations. And he was one of many collaborators that I collaborated with. But the reality is, it comes from me. The truth is, I wrote these songs from my experience of my whole life going through this metamorphosis. And he was one of the people to help facilitate all that, one of the writers, one of the producers.

“And, I am speaking from my own experience. Like when I speak about Woman’s World, I speak about feeling so empowered now, as a mother, as a woman, giving birth, creating life, creating another set of organs – a brain, a heart! I created a whole-ass heart! And I did it! And I’m still doing it, and I’m still a matriarch, and feeling really grounded in that, that’s where I’m speaking from.

“And so, I created all of this with several different collaborators, people that I’ve collaborated with from the past, from [the] Teenage Dream era, all of that.”

Katy’s sixth album 143 (named after the Grammy nominee’s so-called “angel number”) is slated for her release later this month.

Lead single Woman’s World was met with a tepid response due to its supposed “regressive” and “dated” lyrics – as well as her choice of producer – and failed to hit the top 40 on either side of the Atlantic.