These days, our knowledge of celebrities too often originates with paparazzi images and snarky quotes by anonymous "insiders." After a while, it's easy to forget that stars are real people. That's why HuffPost Celebrity decided to launch its all-new #nofilter quick-fire question-and-answer series. Because how well do you know someone until they've shared their guiltiest pleasures?
Ke$ha is calling from Las Vegas where she's been in rehearsals all day for her upcoming tour with Pitbull, which kicks off in Boston on May 23. From there, she'll spend Memorial Day weekend performing at the Golden Nugget in Atlantic City, where she'll also be on hand to host Haven Nightclub’s opening on May 25.
HuffPost Celebrity caught up with the 26-year-old pop star before she heads out on her 51-date world tour in support of her sophomore album "Warrior," and learned fans are in for a wild ride this time around. Plus, the singer, who has described herself as the "dirty little sister" of the pop world, opened up about her love of glitter, ghosts she'd like to get down with, and what actually grosses her out.
Your last tour was crazy. Can you give fans any hints as to what to expect this time around?
It's a massive production and we've been in rehearsals for months, and I've just been preparing for this for the past year. I'm really excited. What can I tell you without giving anything away? Well, at one point in the show, I could potentially chop my leg off and it's really unsafe, so I'll just say that.
You will be hosting the opening of Haven Nightclub on May 25. What do you think makes a good club and makes you want to go out and dance?
For me, it's just all about the people I'm with and good music. And I can kind of dance anywhere. If I'm bored, I'll just start dancing. People think I have some sort of mental disorder because I just start dancing anywhere if there's good music playing. I'll just start dancing when I'm totally sober, people think I must be on something, but no, I just like to dance. It's my favorite form of exercise, and it also raises endorphin levels and there's just nothing wrong with it. I think people should dance through life.
A while back you claimed you had sex with a ghost. If you could choose, which are the top three ghosts you'd want to have sex with?
Well, they'd have to be dead so ... Well, I'd like to have sex with a dinosaur, Liberace and Patrick Swayze. [When asked what kind of dinosaur, Ke$ha said, "Obviously it would be with a T-Rex."]
Glitter has become your signature, and you might be single-handedly keeping the glitter industry afloat. Do you have stock in glitter at this point?
No, but the entire basement of my house is full of glitter and I actually have two glitter pools in my house. Pools full of glitter that you can just dip any part of your body -- like anything you have, your nails or your head-- and it's just glitter everywhere. It's become more or less a way of life. If you are part of my crew you'll find glitter in the most interesting places. And everybody walks away from the tour with a really funny or scary glitter Ke$ha story.
What is your spirit animal?
I think that honestly I'm a lion, but a baby lion. I spent time in South Africa with lions and I'm just really feline, and I kind of look like a lion with my hair. [Lions] were actually my style inspiration for this album. I dyed my hair like white, white, to look like a baby white lion.
You've done a lot of things many people would consider gross. Is there anything that actually grosses you out?
I really don't like worms; like, they really bother me. They are just so disgusting and they make me want to cry and run away. I just don't like them, they scare me and they are gross. They just make me want to throw up, they are disgusting.
You're also known for being incredibly open and have done some things that would make some people blush. Is there anything that embarrasses you?
There's not a lot that embarrasses me. I can't think of anything. If I pooped in my pants I'd probably be embarrassed, but hopefully that won't happen.
You have a unique look and sound. Who do you consider your peers or competitors in the music industry?
You know, I actually have no idea and I don't really know how to gauge that. I just think I'm kinda in a league of my own.
I don't feel competitive with other women, and honestly, I'm not saying this to sound PC. I actually really love strong, fierce women that are just, like, killing it. It makes me really happy to see women who are just killing it at life. So, I don't really feel competitive. I'm pretty friendly with all the people I'm on the radio with.
Lady Gaga sent me animal crackers and we've had a nice rapport. I know Katy Perry and I did a song with Nicki Minaj, and I wrote a song for Britney [Spears]. I mean I just have mad respect for whoever my peers are, but all the people that I've ever met with that are women I don't feel competitive with. I'm actually, like, way into women ruling sh*t.
Tell us about your song "C'mon" -- specifically the lyrics "Feeling like I’m a high schooler/Sipping on a warm wine cooler." and "Feeling like a sabertooth tiger/ Sipping on a warm Budweiser." What was the process for writing hilarious lyrics like that?
It's actually one of my proudest moments on the record that I got away with saying that I was feeling like a sabertooth tiger. Usually the "fun police" try to take out all my "stupid" lyrics, but that one got on the record so I'm excited that one made it.
And that's one of my favorite lyrics to sing live, and it just means I'm feeling super f**king feisty. Like I'm just ready to, you know, bite some shit. It's just my way to be as ridiculous as possible, and fitting one of my favorite animals into a pop song. Usually I like to write songs about my favorite things; I have a song called "Dinosour" and there's ["C'mon"] with the tiger line, and then I have a song about cannibalism -- so I just like to write about things I think are funny.
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