Getty Katy Perry attends the Los Angeles opening night performance of 'Dear Evan Hansen.'
To celebrate the launch of the national tour of Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, Dear Evan Hansen, a deluxe version of the Grammy-winning soundtrack was released digitally last night at 12am EST. In addition to unreleased songs, acoustic versions, and cast and creative team commentary, fans were promised a new version of the show’s hit, “Waving Through A Window,” sung by Katy Perry. You can listen to the 31-minute Youtube Live Listening Party below:
Yesterday, Perry posted a teaser of the song to her Instagram, along with her very personal reason for wanting to record it. In her post, she recalls her “emotional transformation” after seeing Dear Evan Hansen for the first time, and how the song she was later asked to sing “embodied the mental isolation [she] sometimes fought” when struggling with her depression. Of her involvement in the album’s deluxe release, she says it’s not only to support the tour, but “to continue the conversation on mental health and all its complexities.”
To listen to Perry’s version of “Waving Through A Window,” and the rest of the deluxe Dear Evan Hansen album, you had to subscribe to the Dear Evan Hansen Youtube channel and be ready at 12AM EST. Atlantic Records released the updated album on all major music streaming platforms; a physical version will be released at a later date.
And while you listen, Perry says: “I hope this song helps you know that you are not alone, and that I’m waving back at you.”
To build excitement in the weeks ahead of the release, Dear Evan Hansen’s Youtube channel uploaded full versions of a previously-unreleased song, “Part of Me” (written as a precursor to “You Will Be Found,” before it was cut from the show), and an acoustic version of “Disappear” (sung by Taylor Trensch and Alex Boniello, who were not in the original Broadway cast). Listen to both below: