Katy Perry nearly falls off flying prop during concert malfunction

WASHINGTON — Pop star Katy Perry suffered a scary mid-air prop malfunction while dangling high above the crowd during her “Lifetimes Tour” performance Friday night in San Francisco. 

During her song “Roar,” Perry was riding a large flying butterfly prop around the lower bowl of the arena when it suddenly lurched and dropped several feet, videos posted on social media show. 

Clips posted on X and TikTok show the “Fireworks” singer briefly stopped singing for a few seconds and looked up at the cable rigging as the prop continued to sway back and forth. 

Perry then resumed singing a few seconds later and the prop eventually started moving again.  

The singer appeared to address the situation on her Instagram Stories with a blurry, close-up photo of her reaction during the malfunction, along with the caption, “Good Night San Fran.” 

Friday’s issue came after a different prop malfunctioned less than three weeks ago during one of Perry’s Australia concerts. In that July 30 issue, a sphere designed to lift her above the audience tilted to one side as it began to rise, forcing the singer to grab onto the frame.  

Perry isn’t the only performer who’s had her share of mid-air concert mishaps recently.  

Last month, a technical issue brought one of Beyoncé’s performances in Houston to a sudden stop when the car prop that the superstar was seated in high over the crowd started to tilt. In video posted to social media, you could hear Beyoncé call out, “Stop, stop, stop, stop…” The show was briefly stopped for the car to be lowered. Beyoncé was able to get out safely and then get back onto the stage.