Passengers Trapped in Rocket With Katy Perry Wished She Would Sing Something Else

Oh God.

Singed

This morning, a crew of six women — including pop star Katy Perry, CBS News broadcast journalist and TV personality Gayle King, and Blue Origin CEO Jeff Bezos' fiancé Lauren Sánchez — rocketed to an altitude of 66 miles, just past the internationally agreed-upon edge of space.

The 11-minute journey on board Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket appeared to have left a lasting impression on Perry, who was emotionally stirred by the experience.

During the trip, she reportedly broke into song, singing "What a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong, which was originally conceived in the 1960s to bring a fractured nation together following the Kennedy assassination, the beginning of the Vietnam War, and widespread racial injustice.

The other passengers, though? They encouraged Perry to sing one of her own hits instead.

After all, what better time to advertise your own work than during an ultra-expensive and vacuous PR stunt that nobody but the participants have anything to gain from?

Making Space

Perry said that the choice was inspired by some new-age mumbo jumbo.

"I’ve covered that song in the past and obviously my higher self is always steering the ship," she rambled, "because I had no idea that one day I’d be singing that song in space."

After touching down, Perry got on her knees to kiss the dirt below her in a symbolic gesture.

Not long after, the performer had an eye-roll-inducing answer when prompted why she chose to sing Armstrong's classic instead, arguing that wealthy one-percenters going for a thrill ride to space was somehow about female empowerment.

"It's not about singing my songs," she said during an interview following the launch. "It's about a collective energy and making space for future women. It's about this wonderful world that we see right out there and appreciating it."

"This is all for the benefit of Earth," she added.

But how exactly a brief trip to the edge of space is of any benefit to the planet remains to be seen.

Unfortunately, while she didn't opt for her own work during the launch, Perry did promise to write an entire song inspired by her seemingly life-changing trip — an homage we could probably do without.

More on the launch: Chat Relentlessly Mocks Katy Perry's "Space Trip"