Pop superstar Katy Perry has shared a new song called “Rise,” and we are saddened to learn that it’s not a cover of the Public Image Ltd. hit.
Instead, the track was written and recorded by Perry for the upcoming 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, which begin August 5. “Rise”, as SPIN notes, will be used by NBC during its games coverage, which run until August 21. So, in other words — get used to hearing it, because it’ll be everywhere over the next month.
“Rise” was released last night through iTunes and Apple Music, and a snippet of the dramatic track can be heard below.
“This is a song that’s been brewing inside me for years, that has finally come to the surface,” Perry tells media outlets in a press release. “I was inspired to finish it now, rather than save it for my next album, because now more than ever, there is a need for our world to unite. I know that together we can rise above the fear — in our country, and around the world. I can’t think of a better example than the Olympic athletes, as they gather in Rio with their strength and fearlessness, to remind us how we ALL can come together, with the resolve to be the best we can be. I hope this song can inspire us to heal, unite, and rise together. I am honored that NBC Olympics has chosen to use it as an anthem before and during the Rio Games.”
Perry’s latest album was 2013’s Prism.
TOGETHER WE #RISE https://t.co/wP3dnMEdAx
— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) July 15, 2016