By the Grace of God

"By the Grace of God" is a song by American singer Katy Perry from her fourth studio album, Prism (2013), included as the standard edition's final track. The song was written and produced by Perry and Canadian record producer Greg Wells. It was conceived following Perry's divorce from English actor and comedian Russell Brand. This initially made Perry consider making a "darker" album, but instead was channeled into the song. Throughout its autobiographical lyrics, Perry is depicted finding her strength and standing up for herself. The track was first unveiled at Perry's headlining set at the 2013 Apple Music Festival. Upon the release of Prism, "By the Grace of God" received generally positive reviews from music critics, who appreciated its vulnerability and picked it as one of the musical highlights from the album. Following the album's release, it has entered various musical charts due to strong digital downloads. Background and production After English actor and comedian Russell Brand divorced Perry in late December 2011, she was so distraught over the event that she considered committing suicide. Greg Wells, who assisted Perry with the composition of "By the Grace of God", commented on the situation: "I think she felt so kicked in the head and so publicly embarrassed at being divorced by a text message". After overcoming her suicidal thoughts and initial shock, she felt prompted to create a "darker" project as compared to her previous albums. Instead, she channelled the entire divorce event into "By the Grace of God", in which its lyrics depict Perry battling against her suicidal thoughts while lying on her bathroom floor. During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Perry spoke on how she felt during the breakup: "Imagine what you go through. Imagine what happens when you go through a break up. We all go through break ups and we all get very depressed and desperate."