Doja Cat released her fourth studio album “Scarlet” on Friday, Sept. 22 amid a whirlwind of controversy. Amala Zandile Dlamini is no stranger to being in the spotlight, holding two #1 spots on the Billboard Hot 100 in the last two years. One of which being the radio-pop hit “Say So” and the other her single “Paint The Town Red” released in August of this year.
However, Doja Cat is making it clear that she is no longer the same artist who released “Say So.” Most know Doja Cat for her breakout 2019 album “Hot Pink.” Even the success of her song “Say So” could be partially attributed to the popular social media app TikTok, whose users created a dance to accompany a 15-second snippet of the song, slingshotting it into the limelight.
The first look (or listen) we got of “Scarlet” was on Aug. 4 with the release of her single “Paint The Town Red,” which also happens to be the opening song of the album. The song opens with a sample of Dionne Warwick’s 1964 Grammy-nominated song “Walk On By,” which loops before Doja actually begins rapping. The repetition of the phrase perfectly encapsulates the carefree attitude and persona Doja is adopting in her new era.
This song is a direct message to not only her haters, but her fans as well. In a now-deleted Instagram Thread, she shared that “My fans don’t name themselves. If you call yourself a ‘kitten’ or ‘kittenz,’ that means you need to get off your phone and get a job and help your parents with the house,” upsetting many in her fanbase; although, that may have been her goal.
Many of her fans and haters alike thought that this rebrand was more of a publicity stunt than anything, with TikTok user @hashtaglaugh going as far to say that “[He] was expecting her to put out electronic punk screamo music with a bridge that was just harsh noise,” it is evident that while that wasn’t quite the case she is returning to her roots as a rapper with the remainder of the album.
The trap beats of songs like “Go Off” are a stark contrast to her previous studio albums, which could be described as radio pop. In this song and others Doja Cat adopts subject matter more native to this genre of music, singing “she mixed the Fendi with the Shein, she don’t slide in no DM.” The danceable, energetic beat and frankly enchanting background vocals by Doja make it an incredibly fun listen.
“Agora Hills” is the song on the album that is possibly most reminiscent of her previous projects. The song is told from the perspective of someone, possibly Doja herself, who is in a relationship with some sort of famous artist and the love but possible toxicity that can arise from that. The ethereal vocals and synthesizers used throughout the song coupled with her smooth cadence makes one feel as though they’re speeding down an open California road with a convertible roof down rather than sitting at home with one AirPod in.
Possibly the most lackluster song comes in the form of the sixth track on the album, “97.” While the majority of the other songs on the album feature a very rigid and percussive trap beat, this one consists of an odd syncopated clap rhythm with some sort of string-like synth overplaying it. And in true Doja Cat fashion, she incorporates some frankly goofy lyrics on this track, including but not limited to “They ain’t even ready-spaghetti, baby, they sauceless.”
This album is a diversion from the radio-pop box she feels she has placed herself into over the course of her previous 3 studio albums. Now many of her fans are unwelcome to this change, but that seems to be exactly what she wants. Her evolution as a rapper simply reminds us that artists are constantly changing human beings on a creative journey of self-discovery.
