Katy Perry bounces back from breakups like a boss.
The "Birthday" singer covers the October 2014 issue of Harper's Bazaar and reveals about what she's taken away from her failed marriage to Russell Brand and her former relationship with John Mayer.
"What I've learned is that if you don't have the foundation of self-love first, you really have nowhere to pull love from to give it away," the 29-year-old pop star tells the magazine. "I had to learn about taking care of myself before I could take care of others. I want to mommy everyone. I want to take care of them. I want to save them, and I forget myself in the meantime. I learned that through therapy."
Characterizing herself as "open," Perry says she has "less time for bulls--t" as she approaches her 30s. Aside from honesty, what else is she hoping to find in a partner? "I look for the same characteristics: a sense of humor—someone who makes me laugh off the charts—someone who is sensitive, someone who loves and understands music, and who is really smart," she says. "A lot of times I've ended up with people who have been intimidated by me, unfortunately. They say they're not, but it comes out in the long run. They're threatened, or there's resentment because they don't know how to handle it."
"I'm looking for someone who's inspired and could be inspiring with me," she adds. Perry also admits that a man who can carry a conversation turns her on. "I've always been very attracted to gentlemen who have quite large vocabularies. One of my favorite apps is the Dictionary.com app," the "Firework" singer says. "In my late 20s, I've educated myself more than I did growing up because I wasn't able to have a great education. I was taken out of school, put in these weird, janky, kind-of-not-really schools."
The "Dark Horse" singer is looking forward to entering a new decade on Oct. 25. "I hear that the 30s are a better version of your 20s, because you know what you want for yourself," she tells Harper's Bazaar.
How does someone with her level of fame meet men, anyway? "Well, I'm not really on the street," Perry says. "It's usually just through friends of friends. We have a lot of dinner parties. I'm definitely not on Tinder, even though I joke about it. Sometimes I feel like a sense of humor does not translate into print."
Perry also addresses another issue: when she plans to start a family. "When I do these interviews, a lot of these clips people pull out are like, 'Katy Perry doesn't want a man to have babies. I'm like, 'I didn't say that. I just said, I'm good.' Why am I a baby machine? Why can't I be a mogul? I want to have a baby, sure, but I want to have a career. I want to have a record label. I want to have an incredible tour. So, I'm going to have all of those things," the singer says. "It's like, get out of my ovaries, OK? I'll do it in time."