Why Katy Perry’s Backup Singer Tasha Layton Said No to Fame and Yes to Faith

Why Katy Perry’s Backup Singer Tasha Layton Said No to Fame and Yes to Faith

Contemporary Christian Music singer Tasha Layton recently shared how she went from being a backup singer to pop artist Katy Perry to making Christian music. In a recent interview, Layton, 41, told CBN News that her journey taught her the importance of “trusting God with a single step.”

“Before I entered music to do my own music, there were a lot of years that I wasn’t sure how God was going to work it out,” she said. “I didn’t understand why I was taking this path, or going in this direction, or how He was going to work it all together for His good.”

In retrospect, Layton sees how God has been working in her life and encourages others to do the same, saying, “He’s got it, and He is essentially carving the way if you are surrendering to Him.”

The singer added that she continues to trust the Lord in navigating the challenges in the Christian music industry. 

“It’s easy to get burned out,” she said. “It’s easy to let someone else try to tell you who you are. So, it’s that continual lesson of trust.”

After touring with Perry around the world for years, Layton shared that she had been given an opportunity to perform secular music. However, she felt God was leading her to do something else entirely.

“I was offered a deal on … the secular side, and I felt so firmly that it wasn’t what I was called to do,” she said. “And there were compromises in that world. I wanted to connect people to God with my music, with my actions, with my team, with my integrity — and I didn’t feel like I could fully do that with freedom, going that route.”

Layton said it was an “easy decision” to reject that offer and pursue Christian music instead, which she prayed and dreamed about as a teenager.

“The cool famous venues, the cool private plane thing — I’d already done all that,” Layton said. “And there’s a reason Paul says, ‘You can gain the world and lose your soul.’” (Matthew 16:26)

“I’m so fulfilled, she added. “I’m standing in the fulfillment of prayers.”

Her journey to Christian music is an example of how it is never too late to follow God’s calling on your life.

“I didn’t even start walking in what I really felt called to do till I was 35 or 36, she said. “And so, I’m a late bloomer.”

Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Terry Wyatt/Stringer


Milton QuintanillaMilton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.