Katy Perry Acknowledges Theory That She's JonBenét Ramsey

The singer recently jokingly mused on the notion, writing, "Wait am I?"

April 23, 2025

A couple months before her Denver show, Katy Perry acknowledged the Ramsey conspiracy theory. Michael Roberts / Brandon Marshall

Audio By Carbonatix

[
          {
            "name": "GPT - Billboard - Slot Inline - Content - Labeled - No Desktop",
            "component": "23668565",
            "insertPoint": "2",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
          },{
            "name": "STN Player - Float - Mobile Only ",
            "component": "23853568",
            "insertPoint": "2",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
          },{
            "name": "Editor Picks",
            "component": "17242653",
            "insertPoint": "4",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
          },{
            "name": "Inline Links",
            "component": "18838239",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 8,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
            "maxInsertions": 25
          },{
            "name": "GPT - 2x Rectangles Desktop, Tower on Mobile - Labeled",
            "component": "24956856",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 8,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
            "maxInsertions": 25 
          
          },{
            "name": "Inline Links",
            "component": "18838239",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 12,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
            "maxInsertions": 25
          },{
            "name": "GPT - Leaderboard to Tower - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
            "component": "17676724",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 12,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
            "maxInsertions": 25
          }
        ]

On April 23, Katy Perry kicked off her Lifetimes Tour, which will head to Ball Arena on May 15. But lately, the singer has been making headlines for things other than her music (actually, that's usually the case for her). For starters, she's been catching flak for her participation in the all-women, eleven-minute Blue Origin space flight on April 14, which took less time than it did for countless memes and backlash to flood social media.

On another side of the Internet, that weird part in which people craft conspiracy theories about murdered children, a different Katy Perry story was being resurrected: that JonBenét Ramsey grew up to be the Grammy winner.

The theory first began circulating in 2014, when a fifteen-minute YouTube video spun the yarn and was echoed by several other accounts. Then, in 2016, the idea exploded, with the Huffington Post humorously detailing just what the theories were laying down: "JonBenét's murder was a hoax," "Katy Perry and JonBenét Ramsey look alike," "Perry and Ramsey's parents also look alike," "Perry and Ramsey have similar eyebrows," "Perry's true identity is revealed in one of her biographies."

Our favorite? "Perry and Ramsey both know the lyrics to 'God Bless America.'"

When you get down to brass tacks, it's not in good taste to theorize about Ramsey, who was murdered on December 26, 1996.

But Perry herself has jokingly leaned into the notion. After an account posted an AI video of Ramsey morphing into the pop star in late March, the star showed up in the comment section with this: "wait am i."

If you want to see what started it all, take a look at the video below:
Katy Perry will be at Ball Arena, 1000 Chopper Circle, at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 15; tickets start at $78.

Emily Ferguson has been the music and culture editor atWestword since November 2021. In her role, Emily writes and edits profiles of local and national musicians, previews of upcoming performances and guides to the best of Denver’s entertainment scene. Her previous work experience includes contributing to the arts sections of the Wall Street Journal, The Spectator and the Free Beacon. While attending the College of Charleston, Emily was a fire performer and worked at music festivals.

A message from Emily Ferguson: If you value independent journalism, please consider making a contribution to support our continued coverage of Denver’s music, events and entertainment scenes.

Support Today