Growing up in southern California and the daughter of two pastors, Katy Perry was raised listening to gospel music and singing in church. In 2001, at the age of 17, Perry released her first album. The Christian pop album was released under her birth name (she born Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson) but she eventually reverted to her mother's maiden name to avoid confusion with the actress Kate Hudson. In 2004, Perry began work on her first mainstream album. During this time, she was touted as a 'next big thing' by various media outlets. However, the album never saw the light of day. As well as working on her own material, Perry appeared on recordings by the likes of P.O.D. and Miley Cyrus. One of the Boys, Hudson's mainstream debut, saw the light of day in June 2008. The album contained the chart-topping single 'I Kissed a Girl' and the grammatically questionable 'Ur So Gay'.