AceShowbiz -

Katy Perry will ditch her carefree persona in her next studio installment. Instead of continuing her reign as a "candy queen" in an imaginary cotton candy land, the 27-year-old West Coast pop star will "step off this cloud and face reality."

The estranged husband of Russell Brand dishes on her vision for her next CD, "I think it's time for more meat and potatoes." The chart-topping singer additionally says, "I feel I have a lot to say on the next record. I have a lot to flush out of the system."

"With 'Teenage Dream', I created this cotton candy cloud with a kind of a wink and a kiss, and it was all cute and fun and playful," she explains. "(Now) it's like I'm falling from cloud nine and crashing from the sky, crashing from the sweetness of that moment."

This confirms her previous statement that revealed her plan to explore the "dark" side instead of sticking on the "fun and vibrant" road. "Well, my music is about get real f**king dark," she stated. "I'll be shoe-gazing. You'll never see my face because my hair is in my face."

In addition to preparing for a new album, Katy wants to create her own record company. "And when this record label does come to fruition, I'm going to try and avoid the things that take away any fighting chance for an artist to have financial success," she once said.