This weekend marks one of the largest annual events across the United States, and by extension, one of the most watched sporting events across the world.  As the eyes and ears of over 150 million viewers fixate upon Phoenix and the Super Bowl, they will be treated to the music of pop star Katy Perry for the all-important half-time show.

But while what we see and hear in performance can be attributed to Perry and her team, much of what we hear from a composition standpoint will be the work of an artist that is not on stage at all… Singer/ Songwriter Bonnie McKee.

As co-writer, McKee is responsible for some of Katy Perry’s biggest hit songs, including Roar, Teenage Dream, Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F), and the perennial summer anthem California Gurls.  To date, McKee has 6 US number 1 singles to her credit as a songwriter.

As the contents of Katy Perry’s halftime show remain top-secret, there’s no telling which songs she’ll choose to perform until Sunday. But audiences can be almost certain that they will hear lyrical contributions by Bonnie McKee.  A fantastic singer in her own right, Bonnie McKee has released two albums, and is rumored to be working on a third.  Check out her 2013 single American Girl below…

Though it didn’t chart quite as well as some of her other songs, the McKee-pinned Katy Perry song Birthday is a great contemporary Disco anthem, and my favorite song by the artist to date.  Check out the lyric video for Birthday here.