Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
The Schmooze

Katy Perry Angers Fans With ‘Pray for Israel’ Tweet

It seems that some Katy Perry fans have proven they can turn “Hot N Cold” at the mere posting of a tweet. While some were getting hot under the collar, others were now giving their once-favorite singer the cold shoulder.

Why? Because, as conservative writer, columnist and Fox News contributor Michelle Malkin wrote on her blog today, Perry offered a sympathetic response Monday to a fan in Israel who asked her by Twitter to pray for Israel (presumably because it was under a missile attack from Gaza at the time). “I am! My prayers are for you guys tonight, SHALOM!!!…@katyperry #prayforisrael please pray with us.”

While a few Israelis thanked the singer for the gesture, it appears that most responding tweets were of a more accusatory nature. What was Perry doing asking followers to pray for a country that’s “killing Palestinian babies at the moment” and “bombing a caged civilian population?” One person suggested to Perry, “You best be praying that Israel leaves Palestine ALONE.” And those were the more tame examples of the group of tweets reprinted by Malkin.

Taken aback by the strong negative response to what she thought was an innocent tweet in support of a fan, the singer tweeted the following retraction: “a kid asked me to pray for him & I did. I don’t support ANY side of violence in ANY place for ANY reason #peaceinthemiddleeast #sheneutral !”

Looks like it’s Katy Perry herself who is “Hot N Cold.” The whole episode was weird anyway. As one follower tweeted, “So @katyperry is praying for Israel. Does she look like the kinda girl who prays?”

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly. 

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at editorial@forward.com, subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.

Exit mobile version