Part of Me

“This is the part of me
That you’re never gonna ever take away from me, no
Throw your sticks and your stones, throw your bombs and your blows
But you’re not gonna break my soul
This is the part of me
That you’re never gonna ever take away from me, no”

Part of Me – Katy Perry

When Part of Me was released, there was rumour after rumour this song was Katy Perry’s song to kick Russell Brand’s behind and tell him she was fine without his antics. It made sense; after all, the lyrics do seem to lean that way. Katy Perry denied this fact – she said it was a song she had up her sleeve for a while, but gossip mags refused to believe her.

That is, until the video clip was released. When I saw the video for this song, my brain when into analytical mode and I read the message very differently. Armed forces? Check. Giant US flag? Check. American and patriotic? Double check.

Before I launch into the messages of this video clip, let me get one thing straight. I know little of American culture. I go by the pop culture lessons I’ve learned from American Pie, Lady Gaga and The Simpsons, and the big news stories which reaches our shores. I’ve never been there and I’m not sure exactly what American culture completely entails. But it still seems to me Katy Perry has taken a song and led us to believe a message while meaning something completely different – something which she only portrayed in her video clip. I mean, how many other people took Part of Me as a relationship break up and the part of her you couldn’t take away was a bit of strength or power or something? And yet, it seems the part of Katy we can’t take away is her patriotic bond to her country.

It makes me wonder how many other songs have different messages from what we are led to believe. Take Hotel California by The Eagles for example. That song seems to be about a stay at a hotel, but really it is a song portraying the drug culture and the dwindling path taking drugs will make you walk down. And what about those Meat Loaf songs – he was one to take us on an adventure and tell us a story without never quite knowing what he meant, and yet we were more than willing to take a journey into this music without ever fully knowing what he is meaning. Is this bad? Of course not, it’s just yet another mystery of the music.

As for Katy Perry, a bit of country love is never a bad thing. After all, California Girls are undeniably, fine, fresh and fierce, and that is the part of her you’ll never ever take away.