Katy Perry took time during her Witness tour concert in New York City on Monday night to pay homage to the victims of the tragic Las Vegas shooting. The shooting, which left more than 50 dead and hundreds injured at a country music festival, is considered to be the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.
At the concert, Perry encouraged her fans to keep their hopes up in spite of the horrific events of the day.
“I want to take this moment right now for Las Vegas here tonight,” Perry said. “Listen, I know it’s been a tough day. But music is special. It’s magic. It’s something that unites us. There’s a community here that we need to take care of, that we need to surround, that we need to lift up, and I know that we all feel really disconnected at times but I know music brings us together, and it should never be a place of fear, right?”
She then asked the crowd to engage with each other and reminded them that no one could “steal our joy.”
“I’m going to do a little exercise because you know, we all think we’re connected by all the likes and the posts and stuff like that but sometimes we forget we need to touch each other,” she said. “We need to see each other. We need to communicate with each other. So just like one of those hippie dippie exercises, turn to your right or your left and if you don’t know the person next to you, introduce yourself and say hello. Maybe shake their hand! And if you have the guts, just say ‘I love you!’ No one’s going to steal our joy. No one’s going to wilt our flowers or clip our wings. No one’s going to take our power from us.”
Watch below.
- Taylor Swift Is TIME's 2023 Person of the Year
- Meet the Nation Builders
- Why Cell Phone Reception Is Getting Worse
- Column: It's Time to Scrap the Abraham Accords
- Israeli Family Celebrates Release of Hostage Grandmother
- In a New Movie, Beyoncé Finds Freedom
- The Top 100 Photos of 2023
- Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time
