Katy Perry in Harper's Bazaar: "Russell Brand is a great man of God"

Katy Perry is the cover girl of December's Harper's Bazaar, where the newlywed gushes about her husband of two weeks, Russell Brand, calling him a "great man of God."

"I always knew I wanted a great man of God, someone who was going to be an inspiration for people and also be a lovely husband and father," the pop star tells Bazaar. "We're at different places in our lives, but we can still grow together. He's thought-provoking, articulate, a real advocate. I also definitely wanted to have a laugh. I have all that in him."

Here's more:

On her competition: She is part of a new wave of pop stars-among them, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, and Fergie- but her fellow quick-change artists are more sisters than competitors: "We're all unique. That's why we all win and we all can exist. People don't want just vanilla. They want 31 flavors. I couldn't do what Rihanna does. I couldn't do what Gaga does. They can't do what I do."

On her image: "I'm kind of a good girl-and I'm not," she says. "I'm a good girl because I really believe in love, integrity, and respect. I'm a bad girl because I like to tease. I know that I have sex appeal in my deck of cards. But I like to get people think­ing. That's what the stories in my music do."

On body image and fashion: Her particular flavor tends toward the saucy. "I'll tell you about my boobs and fashion," she says. "It can be hard to wear those looks"-like the ones shown here-"because they're best on people who have no curves or thighs. I don't have a Kate Moss body, but I'm very proud and happy with mine." Yet, at 13, she pined for a breast reduction. "I had really bad back problems and was a little bit thicker. Then I grew up and lost the baby fat and said, 'Hey, this isn't all that bad.'"

On the Sesame Street controversy: "If there had been a problem on the set, they would have said it to me at the outset. We had many different options." She came back with a sketch on Saturday Night Live in which she squeezed into a red Elmo T-shirt, the neckline slashed to showcase what all the fuss was about. "How do you respond otherwise?"