Singer Katy Perry just got real about her mental health. While chatting with Howard Stern for a new interview, the songstress looked back at making her upcoming album, Smile — set to be released on August 14 — and she revealed that she was “clinically depressed” while making the record.

“This record is full of hopefulness and resilience and joy because it was made during a dark time when I was clinically depressed because I had a change in my career,” the 35-year-old said. “The last record didn’t necessarily meet my expectations.”

The “Teenage Dream” singer went on to explain that she suffered from “bouts of depression” in the past, but this one was particularly dark. Katy also revealed that she was “ashamed” of taking antidepressants when her previous songs — like the fan-favorite “Firework” — had an upbeat and positive message.

“It was one of those things where I’d sprained my brain a little bit,” she explained. “I felt like I needed crutches for my brain, and I did. And I used those crutches to get back on my feet.”

As fans know, this isn’t the first time she opened up about struggling with mental illness. In June, Katy revealed that after she split from Orlando Bloom in 2017, she had suicidal thoughts.

“My career was on this trajectory when it was going up, up and up and then I had the smallest shift, not that huge from an outside perspective. But for me it was seismic. I had given so much out, and it literally broke me in half. I had broken up with my boyfriend, who is now my baby daddy-to-be, and then I was excited about flying high off the next record. But the validation did not make me high, and so I just crashed,” she explained to Sirius XM at the time. “It was important for me to be broken so that I could find my wholeness in a whole different way. And be more dimensional than just living my life like a thirsty pop star all the time.”

She continued, “Gratitude is probably the thing that saved my life. Because if I did not find that I would have wallowed in my own sadness and probably just jumped. But I found the ways to be grateful. If it gets really, really hard I walk around and say, ‘I am grateful, I am grateful,’ even though I am in a s**tty mood.”

If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or considering suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention LifelineOpens in a new Window. at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

Love J-14? Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for fun, exclusive videos with your favorite stars.