Katy Perry Reveals Struggles At Start Of Music Career: "A Lot Of People Said No" - Video

22 May 2012, 14:56 | Updated: 22 May 2012, 15:02

The 'Wide Awake' singer admits she never accepted defeat as she looked to become an individual in the industry.

Katy Perry has admitted she faced a lot of heartache in the early days of her music career as she struggled to get a record contract.

The 'Part Of Me' star has since gone on to become one of the most successful female artists of the time, but told Ellen DeGeneres that she was often greeted with by the word "no" during the start of her career.

"There was a lot of the word 'no' being thrown my way and I just never accepted that," she admitted.

The singer revealed that her heavily religious background caused some obstacles along the way and there were many people in the industry who wanted her to copy other popular singers of the time.

"You know overcoming everybody saying 'it's not going to work' because a lot of people wanted me to be like someone – whether that was a Kelly Clarkson or an Avril Lavigne and I was like 'I want to be Katy Perry first', and they didn't really understand that.

"Maybe because my vision was so strong, but finally I got to go with it and it's kind of worked out," she added.

The 'Firework' star also opened up on the details of her forthcoming 3D concert movie and told the chat show host that the film will contain a full account of the time during her marriage and ultimate relationship breakdown with comedian Russell Brand.

You can watch a video of Katy talking to Ellen DeGeneres about her music career below: