Katy Perry spotted on holiday in France amid ‘disastrous’ music comeback

Katy Perry has been spotted soaking up the sunshine on holiday in France, as critics annihilate her much-hyped new music release.

Katy Perry has been spotted enjoying a European getaway in France, as her much-anticipated music comeback flopped critically and commercially.

The US pop star, 39, spent a day at the beach in ritzy celebrity hotspot Saint-Tropez, alongside her fiance, UK actor Orlando Bloom.

Perry showed off her fit figure in a purple bikini and a straw hat, while Bloom kept sun-safe in a blue rash vest and matching board shorts.

At one point, Perry and Bloom were also seen paddle boarding in the Mediterranean.

Katy Perry is enjoying a family holiday in France. Picture: BACKGRID

Orlando Bloom was spotted paddle boarding. Picture: BACKGRID

The photos, dated July 13, were taken two days after the singer released Woman’s World, with the single and accompanying music video swiftly panned by critics.

Flash forward a week, and the song has missed the top 40 in a number of countries, while failing to chart at all in Australia.

The reception doesn’t bode well for her upcoming seventh studio album 143, which is slated for release in September and comes four years after her last album, the underperforming Smile.

Perry was spotted at the beach just two days after the release of Woman’s World. Picture: BACKGRID

Critics labelled Woman’s World – the lead single on the album – “dated” and “disastrous,” with The Guardian’s reviewer claiming she felt “stupider” every time she listened to the feminist anthem.

It didn’t help that Perry, one the biggest pop star in the world thanks to the success of her 2010 album Teenage Dream, had garnered widespread buzz about her comeback for several weeks, by way of headline-making racy promo pics and Instagram videos from behind the scenes of her equally raunchy music video.

Perry promoted her new single for weeks in a series of raunchy posts. Picture: Instagram

Shortly after her music video was rubbished online, Perry released an explainer urging consumers to view it as “satire”.

Tweeting a behind-the-scenes clip, Perry wrote on social media: “YOU CAN DO ANYTHING! EVEN SATIRE!”

Standing in front of her dancers on set, Perry explained the thought process behind the video’s opening scene.

“We’re kind of just having fun, being a bit sarcastic with it – it’s very slapstick and very on the nose,” Perry said.

“And with this set, we’re like, ‘Ooh, we’re not about the male gaze, but we really are about the male gaze. And we’re really overplaying it and on the nose.”