2010: When Katy Perry Ruled America with "California Gurls"

In the summer of 2010, queen of California Katy Perry took the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with her smash hit track “California Gurls” on June 19, 2010. 

Released as the lead single from Perry’s Teenage Dream album, "California Gurls" paid homage to the golden state as a flirty follow-up Jay-Z’s New York City anthem “Empire State of Mind," Perry confessed to Rolling Stone. 

"It's so great that ‘Empire State of Mind’ is huge and that everybody has the New York song, but what the f**k?" she remarked. "What about LA? What about California? And it's been a minute since we've had a California song and especially from a girl's perspective."

Recruiting Long Beach rap legend Snoop Dog, Perry co-wrote the infectious, pop tune with Dr. Luke and Max Martin, the duo behind her first hot and heavy hit "I Kissed A Girl."

"We thought it would sound so cool and give the song another dimension," she explained. "Snoop is as West Coast as it gets."

Replacing Usher's reign with "O.M.G.," “California Gurls” took over No. 1 for six straight weeks before it was succeeded by Eminem and Rihanna’s mega-hit “Love the Way You Lie.”

The sun-kissed song marked Perry’s second No. 1 hit single and the third for her collaborator Snoop Dogg.