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"California Gurls" is a song by American singer-songwriter Katy Perry, featuring vocals and an additional rap verse from American rapper Snoop Dogg. It was written by Perry, Snoop Dogg, and songwriter Bonnie McKee alongside the song's producers Dr. Luke, Benny Blanco, and Max Martin. Originally conceived as an answer song to Jay-Z and Alicia Keys' "Empire State of Mind", "California Gurls" was one of the last tracks recorded for the album. Musically it is a mid-tempo retro pop, funk, and electropop song with influences of disco, house music, and Europop, set atop a bright, bouncy, beach-friendly vintage production composed of "shimmering", "shiny" synths, retro electro beats, while the lyrics serve as a women's ode to California and the West Coast; incorporating numerous pop culture references associated with the state.

Background and release

"I was Misplaced Pages-ing all the original West Coast people and I was thinking to myself, who is still relevant, who is like the best, cherry on top for this, and it was obvious that it was Snoop. He did 'Drop It Like It's Hot' a couple years ago, he did 'Sexual Seduction' - he's still Mr. Gin and Juice, I mean he doesn't age. He's the Doggfather."

According to Perry's A&R at the time, Chris Anokute, both "California Gurls" and "Teenage Dream" were the last two songs to be recorded for the album. In an interview with HitQuarters, Anokute elaborated further on the creation of the song. While travelling back from an Oscar after-party, Perry texted him saying: "Chris, I don't think my record is done - there is one more song I want to write, I feel it in my gut! I want to write a song about California girls." At the same time, "Empire State of Mind" by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys, an ode to the East Coast and New York City, had become a worldwide success. However, she felt that Los Angeles and California should have it's own anthem, so Perry set out to write a song about the state from the perspective of a woman. Perry used Misplaced Pages to research which rapper she wanted to collaborate with for "California Gurls", browsing West Coast artists before selecting Snoop Dogg. Initially the song was titled "California Girls", but the spelling was changed to "California Gurls" after the passing of Big Star member Alex Chilton as a nod to their song, "September Gurls". After the song was leaked online, Capitol Records decided to release "California Gurls" early, posting the song on Perry's official website and moving the radio deal up from May 25, 2010 to May 7, 2010.

In August 2010, Rondor Music Publishing, who holds the rights to The Beach Boys music, sent a warning to Perry, Snoop Dogg, Gottwald, Martin, Blanco, McKee and Capitol Records arguing that Beach Boys founding members Brian Wilson and Mike Love should receive co-writing credits because "California Gurls" uses the line “I wish they all could be California girls”, which they consider an "iconic" line in their song "California Girls". Rondor issued a statement saying: “Using the words or melody in a new song taken from an original work is not appropriate under any circumstances, particularly from one as well known and iconic as 'California Girls'. Rondor Music, who publishes the works of Brian Wilson and Mike Love, is committed to protecting the rights of its artists and songwriters, and with the support of the writers, that is exactly what we are doing." However, both Wilson and Love expressed support for Perry and Snoop Dogg. While Wilson praised Perry's "clear and energetic" vocals, Love called her "clever", saying: “We have a lot in common now: We both have done songs called ‘California Girls’ and we’ve both kissed girls and liked it.” Although Love noted similarities between the two songs, he said they were just in a "different vernacular", a different way of appreciating the same thing. He elaborated further by stating: "The Beach Boys have always accentuated the positive, and hers is a positive message about California Girls, so what’s not to like?" Wilson voiced his approval of "California Gurls", praising the songs "infectious" melody and noting he felt "flattered" by Snoop's use of the lyric, saying he "wished them both well with the cut."

Recording

"California Gurls" was written by Perry, Lukasz Gottwald, Max Martin, Benjamin Levin, Bonnie McKee, and Snoop Dogg, and Production was handled by Dr. Luke, Benny Blanco, and Martin. Aniela Gottwald assisted both Emily Wright and Sam Holland in engineering the song at Conway Recording Studios in Hollywood, California. Serban Ghenea mixed the song at MixStar Studios in Virginia Beach, Virginia, while Tim Roberts assisted John Hanes, who served as the mixing engineer. All drums, keyboards, and programming was handled by Dr. Luke, Max Martin, and Benny Blanco. Speaking of the song, Blanco said: "‘California Gurls’ came about very crazy. I had took a road trip from New York to L.A., and I really was just stopping by the studio to say what’s up to Luke, ‘cause I was super tired. I get over there, and he’s like ‘yo, man, lets make a beat.’ We’re just sitting, talking, listening to music in one of the lounges. Literally, a lounge, in the studio, that happened to have a little set up, a little bass guitar, and these keyboards that cost $25 that we got from a garage sale. We were fucking around and we made two tracks, and that was ‘California Gurls’ and ‘Teenage Dream.’ In literally twenty minutes." During a Rolling Stone photo shoot in April 2010, Perry revealed details about the song, and elaborated on the concept of it being an answer song, saying:

"It's so great that 'Empire State of Mind' is huge and that everybody has the New York song, but what the fuck? What about LA? What about California? And it's been a minute since we've had a California song and especially from a girl's perspective. We took the references of Prince, which is always a great reference, and we took a lot of the '90s, ... almost that house music, some of those references."

Speaking of the first time he heard a demo version of the song, Anokute said: "When I went to the studio and heard a rough version of ‘California Gurls’ I was like, "Katy, you’ve done it again!" Katy has incredible instinct." After deciding she wanted to collaborate with Snoop, Anokute contacted his management team with the idea that "California Gurls" would bring Snoop back to Top 40 radio, and they requested that he send them the song. However, they were unable to as Perry had just recorded her vocals, so he told them to come to the studio instead. The same day, Snoop went into the studio with Perry, Dr. Luke, and Max Martin to record his part of the song. According to Perry, the group recorded the song while high from smoking marijuana: "It was really cool. He came by the studio, played the song and rolled a 'J.' Everybody was contact high. But he was super-cool and he's been around forever. It's really amazing if you meet someone that's been around for 20 to 25 years and they're still cool, because sometimes they aren't.”

Composition

Musically, "California Gurls" is a mid-tempo pop, funk, and electropop song, which draws from house music and Europop, and has a length of three minutes and fifty-six seconds. The song is written in the key of F major and moves at a moderate tempo of 138 beats per minute in common time. Perry's vocal range in the song spans from the lower note of C♭₄ to the higher note of B♭₅. The song's expansive, bright, disco-influenced beach-pop production is a fusion of retro and modern elements; consisting of "sunshiney" synthesizers, "starry" electronic whooshes, retro electro beats, and loose, funky, "wah-wah" guitar flourishes. The instrumentation of "California Gurls" comprises a blend of “cheesy”, "fuzzy" funk synths, "tight and dry" electronic kicks, snares and claps, a mid-tone, early-80s slap-funk style synth bass, along with clean treble funk style guitars, a modulating synth-organ, and swelling, panning electronic production effects. Lyrically, "California Gurls" includes references to stereotypical Californian pop culture imagery such as sipping gin and juice, Daisy Dukes, bikini-clad women, tanned skin, popsicles, and Sex on the Beach. The song opens with a brief intro from Snoop Dogg over an 80’s-style funk-synth fade in before Perry begins the first verse, singing "I know a place/ Where the grass is really greener", before describing a scene of women laying under palm trees sipping gin and juice, a reference to the Snoop Dogg 1994 song of the same name.

Throughout "California Gurls", the verses pair early-80s elements such as a vintage synth, slap bass, 80's funk phrases, and influences of Prince and Rick James, with modern vocals and production techniques. The pre-chorus features a streamlined modern pop production, melodically creating a shift in tension coming out of the verse and going into the first chorus, as Perry sings "You could travel the world/ But nothing comes close/ To the golden coast/ Once you party with us/ You'll be falling in love" before her vocals morph into "processed staccato blips" and breaking out into "oh-oh-way-oh" chants. In his review of "California Gurls", Jason Lipshutz of Billboard singled out the pre-chorus as a "mix of bravado and restraint". The chorus sees a return to the retro funk instrumentation along with an added guitar line, while lyrics such as "California girls/ We're unforgettable/ Daisy dukes/ Bikinis on top" refers to The Dukes of Hazzard character Daisy Duke and California regionalism. The second verse of the track is split into a half-verse, with added sound effects such as giggling and car honking, and a slightly increased momentum as Perry sings about "sex on the beach", a double-reference to a sexual act and the drink of the same name, and later mentions driving a Jeep while listening to Snoop Dogg on the radio. During the bridge, Snoop Dogg raps about his ideal "California girl" — "Toned, tan, fit and ready" — and professes his love for the "Wild, wild west coast", saying: "These are the girls I love the most". The rapper also gives a shout out to the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Venice Beach, Palm Springs, and Perry herself, saying he's "all up on her" because she's "representing California".

I thought it would be perfect timing for a California anthem, and especially one from a female perspective, because there's never really ever been a female perspective about California, and everyone wondered about our little state.

Perry said she felt it was important to have a song about California from a female perspective, saying: "I think there's something about that is continually down to earth And I'm not talking about Hollywood girls, because I think we know most of those girls that are fresh off the bus that get boob jobs and climb everybody to the top of the ladder and you wanna puke. We're not talking about those girls. We're talking about girls that are like fine, fresh, fierce." During an interview with Jocelyn Vena of MTV News, the singer discussed this in further depth, telling Vena that California women were "different" and saying: "That's why there needed to be a song about them. I felt like there's something in the water. Like, you know the boys always dream about maybe dating a California girl, just because we've got the sun shining through 365 days a year." Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly remarked that the song saw Perry "strapping on her rollerskates for a Jeep-bumping neon-pop ode to the popsicle-maiming bikini vixens of the Golden State". Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone echoed these statements, saying that although there have been numerous excellent songs written about California, Perry's was "one of the girliest and most Californian." Writing for PopMatters, Steve Leftridge noted "California Gurls" has "plenty to admire: funked-out flanger guitars, new-wave synths, sun, water, plagiarism, dick jokes, car horns, Snoop, and a chorus you know by heart halfway through your first listen." Nick Levine of Digital Spy commented that the song's "snappy" electropop backing evokes "Calvin Harris grinding against Ke$ha in a '90s super-club".

Critical reception

Fraser McAlpine of BBC Online praised the song, giving it four out of five stars. McAlpine noted stark differences in the tone, delivery and lyrics of both "California Gurls" and "Empire State of Mind", and felt this demonstrated how the inhabitants of California and New York view themselves differently, saying: "So, as Katy points out, if it's grittiness and roots and inspiration you're after, pick somewhere rainy, but when you wanna feel good and have some fun, California is the place you go to. It might not be good for you in the long run, but by golly you'll love it while you're there." In his review of Teenage Dream for PopMatters, Leftridge gave "California Gurls" a positive review, declaring it a "gargantuan singalong fantasy" and the "song of the summer", writing that it built on the disco "thump" of previous singles "I Kissed a Girl" and "Hot N Cold". Writing for Digital Spy, Levine awarded the song five out of five stars, noting that in to comparison to "Empire State of Mind", the song was "almost gleefully shallow", however "thanks to an unstoppable pop chorus and Perry's charismatic vocals, just as easy to fall for. We mean, like, totally head over stilettos." Rose Lilah of HotNewHipHop praised the track, saying that it strengthened Perry's overall body of work and helped it grow in a positive direction. SheKnows editor Joel Amos complimented the pairing of Perry and Snoop Dogg, predicting the song would achieve considerable success, elaborating: "Gone are the screaming guitars of 'Hot N Cold' or 'I Kissed a Girl', which are replaced by the pulsating dance beat and a Lady Gaga meets Kesha musical feel." Willa Paska of Vulture declared "California Gurls" as one of the highlights of Teenage Dream alongside "Peacock", "Teenage Dream", "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)", "Firework", and "Circle the Drain".

The Washington Post writer Chris Richards applauded the song's "rubbery" bass line, "taffy" synthesizers, "buoyant" chorus, and overall high production value. Richards summed up his review by saying: "For an entire summer, it refused to leave us alone, tumbling out of cars, gyms, nightclubs and shopping malls as if on a mission to melt every last popsicle. To avoid Katy Perry's "California Gurls" was to live under a rock buried beneath a pile of bigger rocks - a summertime megahit so overplayed, it made the ice cream truck song jealous." Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly declared the song a "summer anthem". Edna Gundersen and Steve Jones wrote for USA Today that the track is "an effervescent toast to summer fun." In a mixed review, Matthew Cole of Slant Magazine praised some aspects of "California Gurls", saying: "As a frothy club track about beaches and babes with a high-budget video and a big-name guest spot, the song’s inevitable rise to the top of the charts was pretty well bought and paid for". However, Cole also criticized certain aspects, writing: "the chorus lacks a strong hook, the verses lack melodies, and Perry’s vocals aren’t any closer to on-key than they’ve ever been." In a weekly Phoenix New Times feature entitled "FemPop", which examines current popular songs and their messages towards women, writer Nicki Escudaro criticized the song's portrayal of women by saying: "There isn't much meaningful or emotional in the song--instead, it's all about how hot Cali girls are and why they represent. Are they hot because they're intelligent? No. Are they hot because they're ambitious? No. Are they hot because they're strong-willed and independent? You guessed it--no."

Chart performance

"California Gurls" sold 294,000 digital downloads in its first week and debuted at number one on the US Billboard Digital Songs chart. It debuted at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, making it Perry's highest debut on the chart at the time. On the issue dated June 19, 2010, the song reached number one, becoming Perry's second number-one song and Snoop Dogg's third. "California Gurls" became the first single by an artist signed to Capitol Records in nearly 43 years to ascend to the number-one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 in its fourth week since Bobbie Gentry's single "Ode to Billie Joe" reached the top after four weeks on the chart. It is Perry's third number one on the Pop Songs chart. "California Gurls" became the first song to top the 300,000 mark in digital sales more than once in 2010 with 318,000 and 359,000 copies sold in the first and second week of June, respectively. Within seven weeks of its release, "California Gurls" sold over two million downloads, which is the second fastest pace to do so in digital history behind Flo Rida's "Right Round". It debuted at number 31 on the Billboard Radio Songs chart and in the July 10, 2010, issue it reached number one on the magazine's Hot Dance Airplay chart, giving Perry her second number-one single on that chart. As of January 2015, the song has sold 5.7 million copies in the US.

Elsewhere, "California Gurls" reached number one in Canada and debuted in the top 20 in Belgium (Flanders and Wallonia), New Zealand and Norway. On May 24, 2010, "California Gurls" debuted on the Australian Singles Chart at number three, and later reached the number-one spot. On the RIANZ Top 10 Radio Airplay Charts, the song came in at number one in New Zealand and also received Gold certification from RIANZ. "California Gurls" entered the UK Singles Chart on June 27, 2010, at number one, becoming her second chart topper in the country. The single sold 123,607 copies in the UK in its first week (the second highest number in 2010 after the Helping Haiti charity single "Everybody Hurts"). After two weeks, the song sold 216,000 copies in the UK. On October 29, 2010, the British Phonographic Industry classified the single as a "platinum record" (meaning it has sold over 600,000 units). As of October 2013, the single had sold 780,787 copies in the United Kingdom, becoming Perry's third best-selling single there behind "Firework" and "Roar".

Music video

Background

Synopsis

Reception

Legacy

In a special list compiled by music journalist Bill Lamb of ThoughtCo entitled "Top 10 Pop Songs of Summer 2010", the writer ranked "California Gurls" at number one, saying the singer: "has had the biggest summer pop song for two of the last three years now, and she is the only artist to appear in the top 10 of the summer for each of the last three years. Upon release, her web site proudly announced, "Summer starts now!" and that statement was correct."

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