--- title: Katy Perry Talks Her First Kiss in Middle School in Q & A description: The 'Witness' singer discussed her first go at romance in a new interview, proving that even pop stars have rocky starts with love. canonical: https://time.com/4895230/katy-perry-first-kiss/ author: Raisa Bruner article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-08-10T14:56:03.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:46:17.662Z og:title: Katy Perry's First Kiss Story Will Take You Back og:description: The 'Witness' singer was hilariously blunt about a failed first kiss og:url: https://time.com/4895230/katy-perry-first-kiss/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf59cce608539c76a/6988d9340b72e3c23e6eefd1/katy-perry.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Chanel : Outside Arrivals - Paris Fashion Week - Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2017-2018 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Katy Perry's First Kiss Story Will Take You Back twitter:description: The 'Witness' singer was hilariously blunt about a failed first kiss twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf59cce608539c76a/6988d9340b72e3c23e6eefd1/katy-perry.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Katy Perry's Story About Her Disappointing First Kiss Will Take You Back to Middle School > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=31f61741-ef98-4dea-8c0c-6d3d916ab27a&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1)  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Aug 10, 2017 2:56 PM UTC  Katy Perry attends the Chanel Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2017-2018 show as part of Paris Fashion Week on July 4, 2017 in Paris, France. Katy Perry attends the Chanel Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2017-2018 show as part of Paris Fashion Week on July 4, 2017 in Paris, France. Foc Kan—WireImage  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Aug 10, 2017 2:56 PM UTC Even pop stars are subject to rocky starts at romance. That turns out to be the case for [_Witness_](http://time.com/4876990/katy-perry-mtv-video-music-awards/) singer [Katy Perry](http://time.com/4834987/calvin-harris-katy-perry-feels/), who opened up in a new cover interview for [_W Magazine_ ](https://www.wmagazine.com/story/katy-perry-witness-tour-american-idol-interview)about her first go at love — or at least at kissing — all the way back in the sixth grade. As with many early stories of doomed first attempts at mouth-to-mouth interaction, she doesn’t paint a pretty picture. “It got to be my turn, and I spun the bottle, and, all of a sudden, I felt like there was a wet fish in my mouth,” she shared, [blunt as ever](http://time.com/4818752/katy-perry-on-award-shows/). “That was my first kiss. When you’re in sixth grade, there’s no art to French kissing. There’s no cadence, no beautiful up and down, no waves. Instead, it just feels like your mouth is getting invaded by a slug.” Perry’s penchant for [descriptive metaphor](http://time.com/4757696/katy-perry-migos-bon-appetit/) comes in handy here to convey the true horror of the situation. Luckily, Perry chose not to name the “wet fish” involved in this sixth-grade kiss. 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