#never really over

[larussoslostdaughter]

I love how the tumblr comunity isnt over cobra kai yet Either.

This is my happy place ❤️❤️

COBRA KAI NEVER DIES!!

[messofthejess]

What kinda kills me about Katy Perry is that there was one fleeting moment in 2019 where she could have mounted a comeback if she played her cards right, and she didn't. The song that could have done it for her is "Never Really Over".

Lyrically, "Never Really Over" is about being torn between wanting to move past an old romance and delighting in the bittersweet taste of nostalgia. Not new ground for a pop song, but a tried-and-true topic. It is distinct from "The One That Got Away", because it still holds hope of future connection with the ex in question.

Musically, the song features some of Perry's best vocal work, between the fast-paced chorus and the belting at the end of the bridge. Given her origins in gospel music, I've always favored her performances in songs like "Wide Awake" and "Unconditionally" over her bigger hits (yes, even with the awkward-as-hell scansion of the title in "Unconditionally"). Also, crucially, the producer of this song is Zedd and not, you know, a guy who was credibly accused of abuse by Kesha. I happen to think the ticking clock you hear throughout the song (a Zedd signature) fits pretty well with the theme of time passing by yet being stuck in an emotional loop.

Visually, "Never Really Over" gets a kitschy music video featuring Perry going to a sort of retreat/rehab facility for the broken-hearted. To further illustrate the point (because Katy Perry has never been subtle), she has a tattoo of half a heart on the palm of one hand. Toward the end of the video, she sees the hand of someone else being picked up in a retreat van hanging out the van window, the other half of her heart tattoo on their palm. Eyes lighting up with hope, she chases after the van, truly showing that this romance is "Never Really Over". Other visuals include Perry dressed in flared overalls and smooshing herself against a glass window while reminiscing about her perennial ex, her spinning in a sunset-inspired dress in a field, and having what appears to be a spiritual release while sitting around a campfire with other purported broken hearts. The whole thing is giving "free-spirited, New Age-adjacent auntie who's always out 'finding herself' but never seems to finally find herself", and it's a vibe that really suits Perry.

So given all these positives - a strong vocal performance, paired with production from a known, successful producer, plus a distinct visual identity - why the hell didn't Katy Perry move forward with this? It could have parlayed well into a album with a theme of healing from the raw disaster that was Witness and evolving into a place of maturity as a genuinely great pop singer. Because she is great as a technical performer, and she should have the songs to back it up.

I think the answer is simple: Katy Perry is a self-conscious pop star, not a self-aware pop star. I don't think she's ever reconciled her deeply religious upbringing with her raunchy, campy persona, and that results in this undercurrent of embarrassment that partially cropped up in the Prism era and really jumped out in the Witness era. And all she's done since Witness is spiral further into irrelevance, save for the brief infamy sparked by "Woman's World".

If Katy Perry wants to taste success again, she needs to take a good, hard look in the mirror and decide whether she wants to grow or remain stuck in old glory. In the meantime, at least I've got one last great song of hers to replay.

[jessmalia]

obsessed with the ship dynamic “character a caught feelings first but character b fell in love first” 

[vintage-tigre]

[starxcxboy]

— Never Really Over by Katy Perry, directed by Philippa Price, 2019

[microwaveexplosion]

[khudson]

| 𝗡𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿 🪻

[fishyyyyy99]

Never Really Over by Katy Perry is such a good song for Benvi! I'm just posting some scenes that reminded me of certain lines from the song. There are definitely more. Sadly, there is a 10-image-per-post limit.

I'm losing my self control

Yeah, you're starting to trickle back in

But I don't wanna fall down the rabbit hole

Cross my heart, I won't do it again

I tell myself, tell myself, tell myself, "Draw the line"

And I do, I do

But once in a while I trip up, and I cross the line

And I think of you

Two years, and just like that, my head still takes me back

Oh, we were such a mess, but wasn't it the best?

Just because it's over doesn't mean it's really over

And if I think it over, maybe you'll be coming over again