Katy Perry

As a young girl in Santa Barbara, California, Katherine Elizabeth Hudson dreamed of becoming a famous singer. Even though she was faced with multiple obstacles, her years of hard work and dedication paid off -- and the young girl, now known as Katy Perry, became one of the biggest musicians of our time.

During her childhood, Katy's exposure to music was limited to gospel -- with two Christian ministers as parents, she was discouraged from listening to popular music of the day. However, she set her sights on singing and performed at every chance. Her parents noticed her talent and signed her up for vocal lessons. During her freshman year of high school, Katy earned her GED and began to pursue music full-time -- often singing in churches. At 15, one such performance caught the attention of music professionals, who brought her to Nashville.

In Nashville, Katy Perry signed with the Christian music label, Red Hill. She released her self-titled debut album -- at just 15 -- under the name Katy Hudson. The label soon closed, and she found herself signed to another label -- with limited success. She was able to get attention from some industry professionals and press, but no label was willing to put out an album. Until Chris Anokute at Capital A&R heard her demo.

By this point, Katy was going by her current name, Katy Perry. She changed her image and began work on an album, "One of the Boys," and was quickly garnering attention for her web single, "UR So Gay," -- including a mention from Madonna. Her lead single, "I Kissed a Girl," was released in May of 2008, and quickly shot to #1 and brought her to fame. The second single, "Hot N Cold" also hit the top 3 on the charts. The album earned her multiple Grammy nominations, and sold more than 5 million copies worldwide.

Now Katy is back with a brand new album, "Teenage Dream," which has already earned her four more Grammy nominations. That's not all that's new in her life -- she recently married actor and comedian Russell Brand! She stopped by to perform her latest hit single, "Firework."