"Firework" is a song by American singer Katy Perry from her third studio album, Teenage Dream (2010).

It is a dance-pop self-empowerment anthem with inspirational lyrics, and Perry felt it was an important song for her on the record.

"'Firework" received mixed to positive reviews from critics upon release, lauding Perry's vocals but finding the lyrics "clunky".

On January 5, 2012, "Firework" was ranked the fifth-most-played single on US radio during 2011 by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems, with 509,000 plays.

However the trend caught on and in live performances I now sing 4th of July, which happens to make great sense for the song name.

Sure, the would-be inspirational lyrics ('Baby you're a firework/Come on show them what you're worth') are nonsensical, ... but the chorus gains some momentum and the song would work well enough in a club setting that you could forgive its otherwise glaring weaknesses.

"[10] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic chose "Firework" among the top tracks on the album,[11] Nick Levine of Digital Spy gave the song five out of five stars, calling it "a straight up self-empowerment anthem wrapped in a Coldplay-on-poppers club banger from the Stargate team.

[14] Al Fox of BBC Music said that the song "displays a breezy maturity and serious set of pipes, a true demonstration of Perry's musicianship without contradicting the kittenish mischief of the bigger picture.

This made Perry the first female artist since Monica to have three consecutive singles from an album top the chart.

[21] In 2014, she became the first artist in digital history to sell 5 million or more copies of six different songs with "Firework", "Hot n Cold", "California Gurls", "ET", "Roar", and "Dark Horse".

[28] It peaked at number three and was certified six-times platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for sales over 350,000 copies.

A struggling young performer walking home in a dark alley uses tricks from his magic act to win over a group of street toughs who were trying to rob him.

Soon the youth of the city are converging upon the courtyard of Buda Castle, dancing and lighting up the night with their fireworks, as the camera pans up to the sky for their popping sounds, ending the video.

[46] Perry performed "Firework" live for the first time on the Late Show with David Letterman on August 24, 2010.

[citation needed] Perry also performed the acoustic version on the 12th Annual A Home for the Holidays special on CBS.

[citation needed] On May 1, 2011, Perry sang "Firework" at the 53rd TV Week Logie Awards in Australia.

On October 13, 2012, Perry performed the song as a duet with Jodi DiPiazza, an 11-year-old girl with autism, as part of the Night of Too Many Stars benefit, later broadcast on Comedy Central.

[51] For Obama's 2012 presidential candidacy, Perry performed several of her hit songs dressed as a ballot, including "Teenage Dream", "Firework", and "Wide Awake".

[54] Perry was the headliner of Super Bowl XLIX halftime show, which took place on February 1, 2015, and "Firework" was the last song of the performance.

A massive firework display was coordinated to appear near the Washington Monument, to serve as a backdrop for her performance.