"Waking Up in Vegas" is a song by American singer

Katy Perry Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson (born October 25, 1984), known professionally as Katy Perry, is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. Known for her influence on modern pop music and her campy style, she has been referred to ...

, released as the fourth and final single from her second studio album, '' One of the Boys'' (2008). Perry wrote the song with

Desmond Child John Charles Barrett (born October 28, 1953), known professionally as Desmond Child, is an American songwriter and producer. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2008. His hits as a songwriter include Kiss's " I Was Made for Lo ...

and

Andreas Carlsson Andreas Carlsson (; born 3 April 1973) is a Swedish music producer and pop songwriter. Biography Carlsson was part of the Cheiron Studios team until the studio was closed down in 2000. In January 2001, former Cheiron-members Andreas Carlsson, K ...

, and Greg Wells produced it, who is also credited for playing all the instruments on the song. It was officially released to US radio stations on April 21, 2009. "Waking Up in Vegas" is a

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, ear ...

track about an underage couple getting drunk and blowing their money in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Veg ...

, paying homage to the phrase " what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas." The song reached the top ten in eight countries, including the United States, where it peaked at number nine and became Perry's third top ten single. It also reached number one on the

Mainstream Top 40 Pop Airplay (also called Mainstream Top 40, Pop Songs, and Top 40/ CHR) is a 40-song music chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' Magazine that ranks the most popular songs of pop music being played on a panel of Top 40 radio stations in the U ...

subchart and on Hungarian radio. The

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...

was directed by Joseph Kahn and it features Perry and actor

Joel David Moore Joel David Moore (born September 25, 1977) is an American character actor and director. Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, Moore studied acting in college before relocating to Los Angeles to pursue a film career. His first major role was as Owen ...

in Vegas partying and gambling. Perry performed the track during her

Hello Katy Tour The Hello Katy Tour was the debut concert tour by American singer Katy Perry, in support of her second studio album ''One of the Boys'' (2008). It ran from January 23, 2009 to November 28, 2009. The tour visited North America, Europe, Asia, and A ...

and

California Dreams Tour The California Dreams Tour was the second concert tour by American singer Katy Perry, in support of her third studio album '' Teenage Dream''. The tour played 124 shows beginning February 20, 2011 in Lisbon, Portugal and concluding on January 22 ...

, and an acoustic snippet was sung during the Las Vegas show of Witness: The Tour. The song is a playable track in the 2015 video game ''

Guitar Hero Live ''Guitar Hero Live'' is a 2015 music rhythm video game developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision. It is the seventh main installment in the ''Guitar Hero'' series. The game was released for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Wi ...

'' and was added to ''

Rock Band 4 ''Rock Band 4'' is a 2015 music video game developed and published by Harmonix. ''Rock Band 4'' allows players to simulate the playing of music across many different decades and genres using instrument controllers that mimic playing lead and bas ...

'' in March 2022 as DLC. The song was used to promote Perry's concert residency at Resorts World Las Vegas, which began in December 2021.

Background and release

According to A&R Chris Anokute, "Waking Up in Vegas" played a significant role in initiating Perry's pivotal move to

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of not ...

. Having been recorded while still under contract with

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the A ...

for an album that was then shelved, Anokute later heard the track on a three-song demo and tried to convince his employers at Capitol to sign Perry, claiming it was a number-one single and its singer a star talent. In an interview with

HitQuarters HitQuarters was an international music industry publication and contact database founded in 1999. It was noted for its in-depth interviews with industry figures, as well as its A&R and manager contact directory, free artist promo pages and song ...

, one of the songwriters of the song,

, claimed that he worked together with Perry and

to write "Waking Up in Vegas". Carlsson remarked that they "really wanted to tell the story that described that moment when everybody's checking out on Vegas after they've had their fun. And Katy is the perfect artist to tell such a story – she has humour, and she knows how to deliver it." Carlsson also said that two of the first aspects of the song to be composed were the main guitar riff – which he already had pre-prepared – and the phrase "put your money where your mouth is," which they were very keen to use and which for a time was almost used as the song's title. Katy Perry @ Campo Pequeno 02

In an interview for ''Pop Eater'', Perry revealed the inspiration behind the track:

What inspired it asthis boy I was dating at the time. I was 21. We went to Vegas on a whim and we decided to get fake married. We took all the pictures with the minister, with the fake cake, in the fake chapel and got a fake marriage certificate. We went and bought a wedding dress and a suit at a thrift store, and scanned the pictures and the certificate to my family members, my manager at the time ndtotally freaked the shit out of them. It was the most hilarious, stupid prank I've ever pulled. I still have the wedding dress and the certificate.

"Waking Up in Vegas" was eventually picked as the album's fourth and final single, being sent to US radio stations on April 21, 2009. On the single's artwork, Perry is seen with two

dice Dice (singular die or dice) are small, throwable objects with marked sides that can rest in multiple positions. They are used for generating random values, commonly as part of tabletop games, including dice games, board games, role-playing ...

behind her, giving more emphasis to the song's lyrical content of being in Vegas. A digital

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

containing the radio edit,

Calvin Harris Adam Richard Wiles (born 17 January 1984), known professionally as Calvin Harris, is a Scottish DJ, record producer, singer, and songwriter who has released six studio albums. His debut studio album, ''I Created Disco'', was released in June ...

remix,

Jason Nevins Jason Nevins (born December 15, 1972) is an American songwriter, record producer and remixer, who is most widely known for his pop and dance productions, including his multi-platinum, multi-million selling production of " It's Like That" by Ameri ...

remixes and

Manhattan Clique Manhattan Clique is a group composed of producers, remixers and songwriters Philip Larsen and Chris Smith, also known as "MHC". Their successes have been reflected in the ''Music Week'' Club and Pop charts in the UK, plus the ''Billboard'' dance ...

remixes was released on June 5, 2009. Later in June, the

CD single A CD single (sometimes abbreviated to CDS) is a music single in the form of a compact disc. The standard in the Red Book for the term ''CD single'' is an 8 cm (3-inch) CD (or Mini CD). It now refers to any single recorded onto a CD of any s ...

featuring the radio edit version of the song and the Calvin Harris remix edit was released in United Kingdom and Germany.

Composition and lyrics

"Waking Up in Vegas" was produced by Greg Wells, who is also responsible for all instruments in the track, as well as for recording the track at the Rocket Carousel Studio, in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com, by

Alfred Music Publishing Alfred Music is an American music publishing company. Founded in New York in 1922, it is headquartered in Van Nuys, California, with additional branches in Miami, New York, Germany, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. History In New York Cit ...

, the song is written in the key of

F major F major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative minor is D minor and its parallel minor is F minor. The F major scale is: : F major is ...

, and moves at a tempo of 126

beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ...

. Perry's vocals span from the low note of A3 to the high note of C5. Musically, the song has been described as a

song. Lyrically, according to

Plugged In Focus on the Family (FOTF or FotF) is a fundamentalist Protestant organization founded in 1977 in Southern California by James Dobson, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The group is one of a number of evangelical parachurch organizations ...

, "Waking Up in Vegas" talks about an underage couple get ingdrunk and blow ngtheir money before iterally'waking up in Vegas'." Perry added that the song is not about apologizing, " t'sbasically a song about getting into trouble with your best friend or your boyfriend or your girlfriend – or whoever you're with – and not having any 'I'm sorry for what I did'."

Reception

Following the disappointing chart position of her previous single " Thinking of You", "Waking Up In Vegas" saw Perry return to the top ten as it peaked at number nine on the

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online stream ...

, becoming her third top-ten single. "Waking Up In Vegas" debuted on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

at number 107, following her performance on ''

Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway ''Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway'' (referred to simply as ''Saturday Night Takeaway'' or ''SNT'') is a British television variety show, created and presented by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly (colloquially known as Ant & Dec), an ...

'', and peaked at number 19. "Waking Up in Vegas" also went on to become Perry's second number one hit on

, matching the airplay success of "

Hot n Cold "Hot n Cold" is a song by American singer Katy Perry. The song was written by Perry, Dr. Luke, and Max Martin and produced by Luke and Benny Blanco for her second studio album, '' One of the Boys'' (2008). It was released as the album's second ...

". In Canada, the song peaked at number two. On the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...

, it peaked at number eight. Ultimately, the song's success was considered a rebound for Perry after "Thinking of You" failed to ignite the charts. The single also helped ''One of the Boys'' return to the top 50 of the ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart. "Waking Up in Vegas" was the 33rd most purchased song on iTunes in the US during 2009. As of January 2015, the song has sold 2.3 million copies in the U.S. The song also peaked at number nine in New Zealand and is certified Gold. ''Billboard'' gave the song a positive review, stating it's Perry's "most radio-friendly song yet." Digital Spy gave "Waking Up in Vegas" 3/5 stars, calling the song "a giddy pop-rock romp featuring an ace sing-along chorus."

Music video

The music video was directed by Joseph Kahn, and was shot in

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

, on March 26, 2009. It was released on April 28, 2009, on the Australian, UK, and U.S.

iTunes Store The iTunes Store is a digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It opened on April 28, 2003, as a result of Steve Jobs' push to open a digital marketplace for music. As of April 2020, iTunes offered 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,00 ...

. The video begins with Perry holding hands with her love interest, played by

. They are in a laundromat, standing in front of a slot machine. It is the morning after the night before, setting the theme of the song's lyric, "That's what you get for waking up in Vegas". Moore drops one coin into the slot machine and pulls the handle. Three "blazing 7" symbols land on the payline, and the machine delivers a jackpot in quarters. Moore and Perry look at each other in astonishment. The next scene shows them winning at roulette the night before. They then head to the hotel room, where they kick out

Penn and Teller Penn may refer to: Places England * Penn, Buckinghamshire * Penn, West Midlands United States * Penn, North Dakota * Penn, Oregon * Pennsylvania ** Penn, Pennsylvania * Penn Lake Park, Pennsylvania * Penn Township (disambiguation), several mu ...

. Subsequent scenes show the couple playing various casino games and parlaying their winnings into millions, defeating poker legend

Daniel Negreanu Daniel Negreanu (; born July 26, 1974) is a Canadian professional poker player who has won six World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets and two World Poker Tour (WPT) championship titles. In 2014, independent poker ranking service Global Poker I ...

, and being welcomed into the Palms Hotel by owners Gavin and

George J. Maloof Jr. George Joseph Maloof Jr. (born September 2, 1964) is an American entrepreneur and businessman. He is the former owner of the Sacramento Kings, the former owner of the now defunct Sacramento Monarchs, and was minority owner of the Palms Casino ...

As the winning streak continues, Perry and Moore enjoy a lavish lifestyle, racing through the streets of Las Vegas in his-and-hers Lamborghini Murciélagos. At the height of the streak, they are dressed in show costumes while riding in chariots down

Fremont Street Fremont Street is a street in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada that is the second most famous street in the Las Vegas Valley – and Nevada – besides the Las Vegas Strip. Named in honor of explorer and politician John C. Frémont and located in the h ...

, accompanied by a fire-breather and an elephant. They end by feasting at a Roman-style banquet, with visuals that recall the

Last Supper Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, Depictions of the Last Supper in Christian art have been undertaken by artistic masters for centuries, ...

. Perry and Moore kiss in a

money booth A money booth, also known as cash booth, money machine, and cash cube, is an arcade game and merchandiser in the form of a phone booth in which paper money (or, alternatively, coupons, tickets, or gift certificates) are blown through the air. A ...

. After the kiss, the couple's luck changes. They begin to argue. They lose all their winnings except a single quarter and are ejected from their hotel suite (which Penn and Teller reclaim, even performing a card trick before slamming the door on the couple). Perry steals food from a room service tray. The video ends in the laundromat where it began. The couple is broke; Moore places their single remaining coin in the slot machine and pulls the handle. Three "blazing 7" symbols land on the payline, and the machine delivers a jackpot in quarters. Moore and Perry look at each other in astonishment as the screen goes black.

Live performances

Perry performed "Waking Up in Vegas" on '' Later... with Jools Holland'' in September 2008. She was also a guest on ''

'' in March 2009 where she performed "Waking Up in Vegas" instead of her then-current single, " Thinking of You", which had been released that month. She performed on a Las Vegas-themed stage with her backing band dressed as

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

. The single was released to Australian radio on March 23, where it became the fourth most added song in its release week. Perry performed the song on ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to ...

'' on May 13, 2009. During the performance, she was dressed in an Elvis-themed outfit and a cape emblazoned with

Adam Lambert Adam Mitchel Lambert (born January 29, 1982) is an American singer and songwriter. Since 2009, he has sold over 3 million albums and 5 million singles worldwide. Lambert is known for his dynamic vocal performances that fuse his theatrical tra ...

's name on it. Perry performed the song on July 24, 2009, on NBC's ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * Day of the present, the time that is perceived directly, often called ''now'' * Current era, present * The current calendar date Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Today'' (1930 film), a 1930 ...

'' show in New York's Rockefeller Plaza. The song was a part of the Perry's set list on

Warped Tour The Warped Tour was a traveling rock tour that toured the United States plus three or four stops in Canada annually each summer from 1995 until 2019. It was the largest traveling music festival in the United States and the longest-running touri ...

and her opening act for

No Doubt No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1986. For most of their career, the band has consisted of vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal, and drummer Adrian Young. Since the mid-1990s, ...

's Summer Tour 2009. It was the main set closer for the

and ending the first segment of

, which Perry danced with Elvis impersonators and Vegas showgirls, before chasing a slot-machine offstage. During the Vegas stop of Witness: The Tour, Perry sang an acoustic snippet of the song for fans, before performing " Thinking of You".

Track listing

; Digital

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

# "Waking Up in Vegas" (Radio Edit) – 3:24 # "Waking Up in Vegas" (

Extended Remix) – 3:44 # "Waking Up in Vegas" (

Electrotec Club Remix) – 6:41 # "Waking Up in Vegas" (Jason Nevins Electrotec Dub) – 6:02 # "Waking Up in Vegas" (

Bellagio Remix) – 6:18 # "Waking Up in Vegas" (Manhattan Clique Luxor Dub) – 6:06 ; German and UK CD Single # "Waking Up in Vegas" (Radio Edit) – 3:22 # "Waking Up in Vegas" (Calvin Harris Radio Edit) – 3:43

Remixes

;

Mixes * "Waking Up in Vegas" (Calvin Harris Extended Mix) – 5:41 * "Waking Up in Vegas" (Calvin Harris Radio Edit) – 3:43 ;

Mixes * "Waking Up in Vegas" (Jason Nevins Electrotec Club Mix) – 6:40 * "Waking Up in Vegas" (Jason Nevins Electrotec Dub) – 6:04 * "Waking Up In Vegas" (Jason Nevins Electrotec Edit) – 3:23 ;

Mixes * "Waking Up in Vegas" (Manhattan Clique Bellagio Remix) – 6:22 * "Waking Up in Vegas" (Manhattan Clique Luxor Dub) – 6:08 * "Waking Up In Vegas" (Manhattan Clique Radio Edit) – 3:50

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from CD single liner notes and Tidal. ;Publishing and recording locations * Published by When I'm Rich You'll Be My Bitch/Desmando Music/Andreas Carlsson Publishing AR/WB Music Corp * Recorded at Rocket Carousel Studio, Los Angeles, California * Mixed at MixStar Studios, Virginia Beach, Virginia * Mastered at Bornie Grundman Mastering, Hollywood, California ;Personnel *

– vocals, songwriting , production *

– songwriting *

– songwriting * Greg Wells – production, recording assistant *

Serban Ghenea Șerban Ghenea (born October 13, 1969) is a Grammy award-winning Romanian-Canadian audio engineer and mixer. Early life and education Ghenea was born in Bucharest, Romania in 1969. In 1976 he moved to Montreal with his family. He later attended ...

– mixing * John Hanes – mixing engineering * Joe Zook – mixing engineering * Tim Roberts – mixing engineering assistant *

Brian "Big Bass" Gardner Brian Knapp Gardner, also known as Brian "Big Bass" Gardner, is an American mastering engineer. He has worked on a number of recordings since the mid-1960s, including classic rock, funk, disco, alternative rock, R&B, hip hop, pop punk and danc ...

– mastering

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2009 singles Katy Perry songs Music videos directed by Joseph Kahn American pop rock songs Songs written by Desmond Child Songs written by Katy Perry Songs written by Andreas Carlsson Songs about Las Vegas Song recordings produced by Greg Wells 2009 songs Capitol Records singles American power pop songs