Here we are, well into the year 2020 and the winds of time are continuing to signal change. The music industry is always changing even though some want to keep things the same. Yes, that was a little statement about the dilemma facing the Grammy Awards right now. They seem to be at a crossroad, but I’m sure things will work out fine and the awards will evolve with time. Regardless of what many might think, the world continues to change with the young people who grow up and force change. If you look back at history, every industry and institution of the world has moved along with the growth of people. That said, I’m moved to discuss our featured artist this week – Doja Cat.
Weekly Music Commentary has featured many artists throughout the past ten years. Some very young, some a little older and established. Nevertheless, the music they create does reflect the audience of today. An audience that has moved forward as young people grow up. Each time I feature a younger artist, there seems to be a common theme of our day. With the evolution of their music, there is also a change in the language and filter. In fact, most folks my age and older consider much of today’s music vulgar. I tend to steer clear of such debates, choosing to judge artistic endeavors within parameters of modern music itself. I also tend to realize that artists strive to create music uniquely their own. Therefore, this week I will work to feature the music and artistic direction of Doja Cat. First, we’ll look into her career start and more.
Amalaratna Zandile Dlamini was born October 21, 1995 in Los Angeles, California USA. She comes from a very artistic family. Her father Dumisani Dlamini, is a South African actor, composer and film producer best known for Sarafina!. Interestingly, Sarafina! is one of my favorite films. Years ago I bought the video for myself, along with another film for my daughter who was pre-teen at the time. Needless to say, my daughter loved Sarafina! as the protagonist is a fifteen year old girl living in Apartheid ruled South Africa. It is a musical and a very good story starring Whoopi Goldberg. Please view it when you get a chance.
Doja Cat’s Jewish-American mother, Deborah Elizabeth Sawyer, is a painter, and her grandmother was an artist as well. This laid a foundation for her to thrive only needing a vehicle to drive her artistic ideas. She studied piano and danced as a child and teenager. Her brother would rap to her and she would listen which motivated her to develop her writing and rapping skills. She is noted to be inspired by Nicki Minaj, Erykah Badu, Pharrell, Jamiroquai, PartyNextDoor, and Drake. She explains in a interview how she knew that rap was something she wanted to do besides just singing.”As a teenager, I lived for five years in a fairly affluent area where people were accustomed to doing rap battles on Myspace. That’s how I started: writing rhymes a little weak, and the rapping on the Internet. I always knew I could rap.”
Doja Cat released her debut single “So High” on the streaming platform SoundCloud in 2013, coming to prominence in March 2014 when she signed to RCA Records then signed a joint venture deal with Kemosabe Records in 2017 and released her debut EP, Purrr! in 2014. Premiering the video for the single “So High”, Vibe described her as an “18-year-old psychedelic prodigy”.
She started releasing more music on SoundCloud and YouTube as she started gaining more attention. In mid-2015 Doja was also signed to OG Maco’s label, OGG. Following this signing, the two artists collaborated on “Monster” off of Maco’s 2017 album, “Children of the Rage”. She had also started collaborating with other artists, such as Elliphant, Hellboy, Skoolie Escobar, Pregnant Boy, and frumhere. On July 13, 2017, Doja Cat was featured on L8LOOMER’s single “Right Side”. The song was then featured on L8LOOMER’s debut album Soulm8s in 2018. During this time, she also released multiple songs that she produced and wrote by herself on her soundcloud account exclusively.
At this point, it was apparent Doja Cat was unique. Why? Was it her artistic parents and grandparents? Was it her religious beliefs? She is inspired by Indian Culture such as Hinduism which she grew and practiced for a few years. She likes how the religion is based on vibes which is how she runs her life. Possibly both things contributed to her creative activity. However, there were some similarities between her music and other young artists. Much of Doja Cat’s music is filled with profanity, as well as vivid, yet crude sexual depictions. What’s the problem?
It depends upon who you ask. As I mentioned earlier in this post most folks my age and older most likely will be turned off or offended by Doja Cat and other artists of today. However, younger fans listen to her and other musicians, understanding that communication of today can be unfiltered. This is one of the aspects of today’s artists that creates the great divide between younger and older music buyers. What can be done to bridge that gap? I’m not really sure.
One thing that helps me understand young artists is interviews. Recently, I watched an episode of Genius on YouTube where Doja Cat was asked to explain the lyrics to her hit song Juicy. She struggled a bit to explain a few things, realizing she was speaking to an audience of wide age range. Doja Cat did as well as she could with her description of the lyrics, but I was more impressed by how she spoke about the song. The young artist displayed respect, intelligence and a great deal of humility. That alone told me a lot about Doja Cat – the person, not the persona.
Another interview gave me even more insight. On the YouTube channel Capital XTRA, classical music expert Kyle MacDonald sat down with Doja Cat and also wanted a more thorough explanation of the song Juicy. The very button-down British MacDonald approached with an extremely open mind. Without being snide or condescending, he asked many questions of Doja Cat, and she explained using much restraint. Respectfully, the young artist explained the meaning of much of the song.
Another interesting thought about Doja Cat’s interview with MacDonald is that he viewed the music video. At this point I realized that more than any other time, today’s music is extremely visual. We automatically want to see the video, more than just listen to the song. In my younger years we started with the birth of MTV. The music video then was a good promotional tool. Now, the video is an integral part of modern music. Once again this is one place where Doja Cat separates herself from the rest. Her videos truly help her tell the story through the song.
What’s next for the young rapper? On November 7, 2019, Doja Cat released her second full length album Hot Pink to generally favorable reviews. It peaked at number 19 on the Billboard 200 chart. The new music just might help to push Doja Cat to new heights. At the very least, her music and videos should further help to separate her from everyone else.