With over 107 million followers on Twitter, Katy Perry is one of the most popular and successful musicians in the country. She has sold over a whopping 100 million records across the world. Not just supported by a massive fan-following, this California Girl has an estimated net worth of almost 125 million as of 2016.

Her 16-year long career has won her numerous accolades including a Juno, 5 AMAs and she has even managed to make it to the Guinness World Records. However, Katy Perry is someone who is definitely beyond her catchy music and eccentric dressing style. Here are some surprising things that you probably might not know about this musical diva:

Started off a career in gospel music

A little hard to believe, but Perry started her career in gospel music back in 2001. Although, this direction didn’t work for her and she switched to pop music. Both her parents were Christian pastors because of which Perry was initially inclined towards gospel music. She even sang in the Church choir for a considerable part of her childhood and teenage years.

Born as Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson

That’s right! Perry’s last name was Hudson. She changed it to distinguish herself from actress Kate Hudson. Perry is her mother’s maiden name. However, before adopting the last name Perry, Katy recorded her first album, a gospel record labeled as Katy Hudson which garnered her positive reviews from music critics but didn’t do well commercially.

Inspired by the song Killer Queen

Katy Perry revealed that when she was 15, she was inspired by the song Killer Queen performed by the British music band, Queen. Sung by Freddie Mercury, it was one of the things that truly motivated her to make a career as a musician. She says that the song’s lyrics made her feel a like a confident woman and she loved the idea of a female who reigns and has power like Queen Elizabeth in the UK. In 2013, she even launched her third fragrance named after the song.

Conservative upbringing

Perry was brought up with certain restrictions during her childhood, this was mostly because both her parents were quite conservative. She wasn’t permitted to read Harry Potter or watch films like The Smurfs. Coincidently, Katy’s first movie role was as Smurfette in The Smurfs.

Tied a record with Michael Jackson

She is the first female artiste in the history to have the maximum No. 1 singles from one album along with the legendary pop star Michael Jackson. These included songs like California Gurls, Firework, E.T., Teenage Dream and Last Friday Night from the album Teenage Dream.

Talented songwriter

Katy Perry has penned some of the memorable tracks for a lot of her fellow musicians. Some of the popular songs written by her are That’s More Like It (Selena Gomez), Black Widow (Iggy Azalea ft. Rita Ora), Passenger (Britney Spears), Time’s Up (Ashley Tisdale), Breakout (Miley Cyrus), etc.

Guinness World Book Records

Like mentioned earlier Katy Perry has made it to the Guinness World Book Records. However, she doesn’t just own one but four records including Best Selling Digital Artist (US), Most Twitter Followers, Highest Annual Earning for a Female Pop Star and First Female with Five Number One US singles from One Album.

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