In the war of words between Katy Perry and Gossip frontwoman Beth Ditto, Perry got in the last salvo when she recently told the London Paper that she wasn't "impressed" with Ditto. Ditto, who was unaware of Perry's words until Spinner informed her, laughed it off ... at first. "Honestly, I could care less if Katy Perry's impressed with me," Ditto tells Spinner.

You see, it all started when Ditto -- who, with her band, is releasing a new album, 'Music for Men' next week -- was quoted calling Perry "a boner dyke," saying Perry and her hit single, 'I Kissed a Girl," were both "offensive to gay culture." While Ditto says she takes responsibility for the comment, she clarifies that the phrase "boner dyke" -- which is a term for a straight female who kisses girls to attract men -- was actually her Gossip bandmate Hannah Billie's phrase. "I feel guilty because it is such a funny expression and Hannah didn't get the credit for it," Ditto says. "But I don't feel differently than Hannah."

Ditto believes the issue is much greater than a little war of words on blogs. "It's not about Katy Perry," she says. "It's about this song and its innocence on her part. To [Katy], it's just this party song. But as a gay person, it's like, 'Oh, of course this straight person singing about kissing a girl goes straight to Top 40 and people buy this record. Who can give a f--- about real gay people?' That's what's really painful about the whole thing. That's what makes me laugh about 'I'm not impressed.' It's like, 'Oh, that's what you think? Of course, because you never thought about what a real gay person feels, and the impact that a song like that has on the gay world in a time of crucial civil rights.' That's just one of the examples of what the mainstream is thinking about queer culture, when actually, we are completely fighting for our rights right now."

"I hate Katy Perry! [She's one of those] straight girls who like to turn guys on by ... faking gay." --Beth Ditto

In this month's Attitude magazine, the openly gay singer accused the 'Kissed a Girl' star of "riding on the backs of [gay] culture, without having to pay any of the dues."

"When I went into the crowd, people actually ran away from me." --Beth Ditto

In a recent interview, the Gossip singer and self-described "big girl" said she "swears" that a recent crowd in Greece was afraid of her, adding, "I think men fear me sometimes."



Download Gossip Songs

"I don't give a f---," Gossip frontwoman Beth Ditto repeatedly told us during her Spinner Interview earlier this year. That much is clear. She'll cut off all her hair and dye it orange if she wants to, OK? We imagine this to be the actual execution of the hypothetical result of Natalie Portman circa '06, crashing head-on with Clementine from 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.' Anyway, here's Ditto in all her modern-day Pilgrim glory.

The Rules for Battle: Each week, we pit versions of the same song by two different artists in a head-to-head death match for musical supremacy. (Sometimes it will be the original recording vs. a cover version; other times it will be two different covers.) Then it's up to you to decide: Listen to and vote on which version you think should emerge victorious and which should be sent packing. May the best band win!



The Song: 'Are U That Somebody'

The Contestants: Aaliyah vs. The Gossip

In This Corner -- Aaliyah: Timbaland's protege was catapulted to superstardom with this beat-heavy hit for the 1998 film 'Dr. Dolittle.' He was also responsible for adding the baby babbles on the backtrack. Genius? Not really. Just appropriate, given the late singer was only 19 at the time of its release. And her nickname was Baby Girl.

Aaliyah, 'Are U That Somebody'


In This Corner -- The Gossip: No bells and whistles on this 'un -- just a thick bass line and Southern frontwoman Beth Ditto's soulful howl. Where Aaliyah's breathy pipes evoke a feeling of indifference to the question's answer, Ditto's chokehold and demand some fessin' straight out the gate. Squealing baby sold separately.

The Gossip, 'Are You That Somebody'

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In celebration of Pride month, we asked musicians to share their coming-out stories. Read the intimate accounts in their own words.

"I always knew that something wasn't right. I never had a physical attraction to boys. " --Beth Ditto

Read the full interview

Frontwoman for the Gossip, Beth Ditto -- a plus-sized lesbian with a Southern drawl and a soulful howl -- challenges the skinny white-boy indie-rock canon with riot grrrl mentality and a disco backbeat. The Arkansas-born rebel rouser takes her cues from the riot grrrls before her and, along with her bandmates, has ascended from the dirt-poor Bible Belt to magazine covers, sold-out tours, major-label record deals and coveted late-night TV appearances. The band just released their first live CD/DVD, titled 'The Gossip: Live in Liverpool.'

At what age did you begin to question your sexuality?

At five. I always knew that something wasn't right. I never had a physical attraction to boys. I can know when a boy is handsome and when they are charming. I dated a boy for three years in high school. It wasn't hard for me, but it just never felt OK. But when I was five, I remember that I was afraid of God. I was certainly afraid of going to Hell.

Was your family particularly religious?

I think every family in Arkansas is religious by association because it's just everywhere. If you just drive down the street, there are these huge billboards every mile that say, "God is watching you" -- like a generic brand or something. And you'll keep driving and a mile away there will be one that says, "Are you ready?" I mean, that stuff is so real. You can't help it -- you can't escape it. It's like advertising. That is probably the most booming business in Arkansas besides Wal-Mart.

Do you remember your first girl crush?

That's really difficult, because I think in retrospect, I was really upset about it but I didn't know why. You'll talk to a lot of gay people about it -- that feeling where you get so mad when your friends who were girls had boyfriends but not understanding why. You're like, 'Why aren't you hanging out with me now?' Well, one of my friends married my brother, and it was really upsetting for me. I was like 15 or 16 when this happened, but I was so upset and I didn't understand why. And that was [because I was gay], I think. That happened with a lot of my friends. It wasn't like I was picturing them naked in the shower, but I would get this really weird possessiveness over them. I didn't act on it. That was it. And I had a crush on our first drummer for a really long time.