"Part of Me" is a song by American singer-songwriter Katy Perry from Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection (2012), the reissue of her third studio album, Teenage Dream (2010). It was written by Perry, Dr. Luke, Max Martin, and Bonnie McKee, and produced by Dr. Luke, Martin, and Cirkut. The song was not included on the original edition of Teenage Dream because Perry felt that it did not fit the composition of the album. A demo of the song leaked online in late 2010, amid speculation that the lyrics were directed to the singer's ex-boyfriend Travie McCoy. "Part of Me" was re-worked and officially released as the lead single from The Complete Confection on February 13, 2012, through Capitol Records.

A dance-pop and power pop record with electropop elements and a distinctive house beat, it has been compared to Perry's 2010 singles "Firework" and "California Gurls". Its lyrics describe a female protagonist who declares herself as unbreakable and strong following a break-up. Many critics theorized that the lyrics addressed Perry's divorce from British comedian, media personality and actor Russell Brand, although she stated it was not about him, since it was written in early 2010. The single's artwork was produced by art director Gavin Taylor and photographer Mary Ellen Matthews.

"Part of Me" was a commercial success. It was the twentieth song to debut at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, Perry's seventh number-one single on the chart, and her ninth consecutive number-one single on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart. Outside of the United States, "Part of Me" topped the charts in Bulgaria, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, and has been certified diamond in Brazil while receiving multi-platinum certifications in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States. Marketing campaigns for Adidas and The Sims 3: Showtime have featured it.

An accompanying music video was filmed at the United States Marine Corps' Camp Pendleton in Oceanside, California. The video depicts Perry enlisting in the Marines following a break-up. It garnered generally positive reviews for Perry's "Girl power" message but drew criticism from feminist author Naomi Wolf, who denounced it as military propaganda. Perry debuted the first televised performance of the song at the 54th Grammy Awards and has also performed the song at the ECHO Awards, the 2012 Kids' Choice Awards, and American Idol.

Background and release

Katy Perry wrote "Part of Me" with Dr. Luke, Bonnie McKee, and Max Martin during the 2010 Teenage Dream writing sessions, which also produced the Hot 100 number-one singles "California Gurls", "Teenage Dream" and "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)." Cirkut also helped produce the track with Luke and Martin. Perry and McKee had been casual friends prior to Perry's request for her help with a song that Perry had been writing called "Part of Me". According to Rolling Stone, McKee stayed up all night writing the lyrics. When Perry was presented the song, she shouted "We're buying you a car!" by the time she heard the third line.

Perry recorded a demo of the track that leaked in full on December 30, 2010. The song was rumored to be a leftover cut from her Teenage Dream recording sessions, and fans speculated that the track might be included in an as-yet-unconfirmed re-release of the LP. This re-release was confirmed in January 2012, when Perry announced through her official website that the album would contain all twelve songs from the original album, plus three new songs and a remix, and would be released on March 26, 2012.

On February 13, 2012, "Part of Me" received an official release as the lead single from the album's re-release. Perry had planned all along to release the song on the deluxe edition of the album rather than the original, as it did not fit that album's composition. On February 11, two days before its worldwide premiere, the song was leaked for a second time with a reworked production and slightly changed lyrics. "Part of Me" was released to most iTunes stores worldwide on February 18, 2012, following her performance at the 54th Grammy Awards."Part of Me" was released to most iTunes stores worldwide following Perry's performance at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards on February 13, 2012:

In the United States, "Part of Me" was sent to contemporary radio playlists on February 21, 2012. The song was released in England, Scotland, Wales, France, and Ireland on March 18, 2012 under the digital download and CD single formats. Perry revealed via Twitter that all profits raised from the sales of the single would be donated to MusiCares. The photograph by Mary Ellen Matthews that was used on the single cover was part of a photographic essay for Perry's appearance in episode 710 of the television program Saturday Night Live.

Composition and lyrical interpretation

"Part of Me" is a dance-pop and power pop song set to a house beat. It is composed in the key of D minor and set in a time signature at a tempo of 130 beats per minute. The melody spans the tonal range of D4 to D5, while the music follows the chord progression of Dm–F–B♭–C and switches to a chord progression of C–Dm–F–C–Dm–F–C–Dm–F–C during the bridge. Production was done by Perry's frequent collaborator, Dr. Luke. The song begins with Perry's somber and emotional delivery of the line, "Days like this I want to drive away/ Pack my bags and watch your shadow fade." At the bridge, the beat amplifies and Perry's lyrics become more aggressive as she commands "Now Look at Me!", signalling to her ex that she is still strong, regardless of what he tries to do to bring her down. The beat reaches a peak at the chorus, and Perry's tone and the song's lyrics become more aggressive and prominent as she sings, "This is the Part of me that you're never gonna ever take away from me." As the song continues, Perry's lyrics become strong and empowered: "So you can keep the diamond ring/ It don't mean nothing anyway/ In fact you can keep everything Yeah/ Yeah Except for me". Perry repeats the ending chorus as the beat fades.

James Dinh of MTV News noted that "the pop star appears strong, bold and just a tad resentful after a breakup" on the track. His analysis of the lyrics observed that "The singer declares herself unbreakable after a breakup, evident in lines such as "Days like this I want to drive away/ Pack my bags and watch your shadow fade/ 'Cause you chewed me up and spit me out/ Like I was poison in your mouth/ You took my light, you drained me down/ But that was then and this is now, now look at me." Dinh pointed out similarities between "Part of Me" and Perry's previous single "California Gurls", noting that "the tune's steady beat amplifies" as the chorus starts. Andrew Hampp of Billboard described the song as a "dance-floor rave up", and compared the song's composition to Jessie J's "Domino". Edna Gundersen from USA Today stated: "Katy Perry could be addressing her ex or her detractors on this defiant slapdown, a gleaming "Firework"-like pop torpedo propelled by slick beats and a brazen chorus." Chris Ryan, also of MTV, inferred that the song was aimed at Perry's ex-boyfriend Travie McCoy, while New York magazine journalist Amanda Dobbis described it as "another break-up anthem". Fans and media noted differences in the lyrics between the demo and the single, and claimed that the changes redirected the song's subject from McCoy to Perry's ex-husband Russell Brand, from whom she had recently divorced. Perry declared it was not about Brand, stating: I wrote it two years ago, which is funny because everybody is like "God, it sounds so current," and some people that I work with were like "You should just say you wrote it a couple of weeks ago." I'm like "I'm not a dick, I'm going to tell the truth." I wrote it two years ago when I was writing and recording Teenage Dream, [but] it didn't feel right on the record. I would've had to take out one of my other songs that [made the album] a nice, complete package.

Critical reception Jody Rosen of Rolling Stone gave the song three stars out of five, calling it "just plain predictable." Steven Hyden and Genevieve Koski of The A.V. Club were positive of the song, with Hyden, giving it a B+, noted that, although the lyrics seemed "dopey", the production and the chorus are "pretty damn sticky", while Koski, giving the song a B, noted that the song follows a similar formula to several of Perry's previous singles but went on to say that "the template works well in the context of a break-up anthem" and positively remarked that it comes off as "a chintzier, 2012 version of 'Since U Been Gone.'"

A reviewer from the Christian group Focus on the Family criticized Perry's decision to create an uplifting song about such a serious subject matter as divorce: "Framing the song in terms of her divorce from Brand, though 'Part of Me', puts a much more somber and serious spin on things. This is no mere breakup. It's the demolition of a marital covenant. So no matter how bad things were in her relationship, no matter how much better she feels now, no matter how cathartic the pulsing beats (courtesy of hitmeisters Max Martin and Dr. Luke) might feel, the ultimate end here is a very sad one indeed." Priya Elan of NME panned the song: 'This is the part of me, that you're never going to take away from me,' "she sings in that strange angry robot voice of hers. “The sentiment, as ever, is punch you in face crystal clear and probably meant something to one of the (probably) 17 writers who wrote the song.”

Commercial performance In the United States, "Part of Me" debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and the U.S. Hot Digital Songs chart, with 411,000 copies sold in its first week. It was the twentieth song to debut atop the Billboard Hot 100. "Part of Me" became Perry's seventh number-one song, and her sixth in the 2010s. The single debuted at number 36 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart, with 35 million radio impressions in its first week, and was Perry's ninth song to top the Hot Dance Club Songs chart. It is Perry's tenth single to be certified Platinum by the RIAA, for sales of over 1 million copies. As of January 2015, the single has sold 2,780,000 copies in the US.

In Canada, "Part of Me" debuted at number one on the Canadian Hot 100. In Brazil, it reached the top spot on the Brazil Pop 100. In Mexico, the song peaked in the top 10 of the Mexican Hot 100. It also peaked at number 1 in Venezuela. In New Zealand, song was Perry's first single to debut at number one on the New Zealand Singles Chart, and as her seventh to reach that spot, tied her with Mariah Carey as the artist with the most number-one hits in New Zealand. It has received a Platinum certification by the RIANZ, with over 15,000 copies sold. In Australia, "Part of Me" debuted at number 22 on the ARIA Singles Chart, and peaked at number five on the chart. The recording has been certified 2× platinum by the ARIA, with 140,000 copies sold.

In the United Kingdom, "Part of Me" debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart on March 25, 2012 – for the week ending date March 31, 2012 – selling 79,079 copies in its first week, beating "She Doesn't Mind" by Sean Paul to the summit of the chart to become Perry's third number-one song in Britain, following "I Kissed a Girl" in August 2008 and "California Gurls" in June 2010. "Part of Me" was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry for sales and streams of over 600,000. In the Republic of Ireland, "Part of Me" peaked at number five on the Irish Singles Chart and was Perry's twelfth single to reach the top ten in the Irish Republic. In Italy, the song was certified Gold for sales of over 15,000.

Music video

Background and development