"At my second record label, they told me and other female artists that some of us were going on the chopping block. I was 19... and it was devastating"
About this Quote
"They told me and other female artists" widens the frame beyond a single career anecdote. She’s not just recounting heartbreak; she’s describing a pattern of risk management where women are bundled, compared, and culled as a category. The subtext is corporate: A roster is a spreadsheet, and "female artist" becomes a market segment that can be trimmed when a strategy shifts. It’s sexism expressed through portfolio logic, which is harder to call out because it wears the suit of "business decisions."
"Chopping block" is the line that makes the story land. It’s archaic, violent imagery dropped into a glossy industry that sells aspiration. That collision exposes the power imbalance: labels don’t merely reject songs; they end momentum, identity, and the fragile sense that talent will be rewarded. Saying "it was devastating" is plain, almost small, which makes it believable. The point isn’t melodrama; it’s the emotional cost of being evaluated as replaceable before you’ve even had time to become yourself.
Quote Details
| Topic | Career |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Perry, Katy. (2026, January 15). At my second record label, they told me and other female artists that some of us were going on the chopping block. I was 19... and it was devastating. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/at-my-second-record-label-they-told-me-and-other-157359/
Chicago Style
Perry, Katy. "At my second record label, they told me and other female artists that some of us were going on the chopping block. I was 19... and it was devastating." FixQuotes. January 15, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/at-my-second-record-label-they-told-me-and-other-157359/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"At my second record label, they told me and other female artists that some of us were going on the chopping block. I was 19... and it was devastating." FixQuotes, 15 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/at-my-second-record-label-they-told-me-and-other-157359/. Accessed 17 Feb. 2026.


