Katy Perry [1] is headlining the Super Bowl halftime show this Sunday [2], a gig that the singer called "the biggest event of my career." Ahead of the game, Katy spoke to Billboard Magazine [3] about everything from her plans for the big performance — including outrageous costumes [4] and a few high-profile guests [5] — and her thoughts on past halftime show performer Beyoncé, saying, "She's an icon. . . I'm not." She also touched on her reported "bad blood" with Taylor Swift [6] after the release of 1989. Check out the most telling quotes from Katy's Billboard interview, and be sure to check out her sexiest photos [7] ahead of the Super Bowl.
- On the vibe of the halftime show: "I want the show to be quintessential Katy. It's like the exclamation point on the whole last cycle. This is the cherry on top of everything I've already done."
- On her nerves: "Everyone has been asking me if I'm going to be nervous before the halftime show. I'm like, I'm f*cking human. This is the biggest event of my career."
- On prepping for her performance by watching videos of past performers Madonna [8] and Beyoncé: "Those performances are clean and streamlined. They're about the catalog, the songs. I like Madonna for the graphic effects she brought. [And Beyoncé] brought so much strength, so much sassiness and just the right amount of sex. She's an icon. Elvis, The Beatles, Michael Jackson [9] — she's in that category. I'm not. She's like five notches above me, and those levels are compounded in difficulty."
- On her LA "compound": "I always dreamed of living commune style. I want my own Neverland ranch at a some point, but not with the salacious parts."
- On her biggest dream: "My own Starbucks on the property. I have to create my own world because it's hard to go into the other world sometimes. Barbra Streisand has a mall downstairs in her basement — just weird, amazing stuff like that. I get it, because it becomes such a thing to go out in the world."
- On Taylor Swift [10]'s song "Bad Blood" being about her: "If somebody is trying to defame my character, you're going to hear about it."