Greg Swales
Audio By Carbonatix
Doja Cat’s new album, Vie, catches the pop singer and rapper at a necessary turning point.
The album, which dropped on Sept. 26, is a polished and playful ‘80s hip-hop and funk pastiche. Each track is adorned with hooks, from sparkling synth riffs to lush, sporadic saxophone solos and Doja shows off her romantic side with sunny, sensual lyrics that prove her pen has never been sharper. In many ways, it’s technically perfect.
Courtesy of Live Nation
It also stands in stark contrast to Scarlet, her 2023 release marked by vengeful lyrics, dark visuals and controversy in her personal life. And that kind of seems like the point.
We’ve been upfront before in our belief in Doja Cat as a generational pop savant.
“She’s a mesmerizing performer, and her live shows are always a true spectacle. She has a distinct sense of humor that’s at the core of all of her work,” we wrote in our review of The Scarlet Tour in 2023. “Most important, in the eyes of modern music listeners, she’s never come across as being anything but her authentic self.”
As much as that authenticity endears her to fans, it also has a tendency to alienate the public and overshadow her work. And it’s honestly understandable. Her past usage of racist and homophobic slurs, collaborations with alleged abuser Dr. Luke, fraternization with alt-right influencers and bizarre beef with one of the Stranger Things kids (among other scandals of album cycles past) are a disturbing cocktail of chaos that can be hard to look past.
Though we can only speculate her motives, there’s an undeniable air of focus, control and competency driving Vie. The choice to collaborate with producer Jack Antonoff (who is credited on nine tracks), a comically ubiquitous pop hitmaker, feels especially pointed. Much has been said about Antonoff’s chokehold on pop music, but he’s an ideal collaborator for Doja. Antonoff’s strengths lie in nurturing and elevating an artist’s fully-realized sonic vision (his work with Lana Del Rey and Kendrick Lamar exemplifies this) and that’s exactly what Doja brings to the table.
The album is packed with radio-ready would-be hits. In theory, that is. Lead single “Jealous Type,” with its wall-to-wall hooks and sexy, cinematic music video that feels straight out of the ’80s, only peaked at No. 28 on the Billboard Hot 100 and doesn’t seem poised to climb any higher. The album debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200, as the KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack returned to No. 1.
For all of Vie’s gloss and glamour, that’s a bit of a muted release.
Don’t get us wrong. It’s not a lost cause by any means. “Gorgeous,” a glittering ode to the joys of being hot, being in love and making your haters mad, is the highlight of the album and a strong follow-up single. “Take Me Dancing,” a collaboration with SZA, has all the potential in the world to recapture the magic of 2021’s “Kiss Me More.”
Her debut as a musical guest for Saturday Night Live’s season 51 premiere featured her performing “Aaahh Men!” and the aforementioned “Gorgeous,” which showed her love for theatrical style and ’80s glamour. Both performances grabbed the public’s attention with their excess and detail, forcing them to look at her. What the televised performances reinforce is that Vie only stuns momentarily, decidedly not accomplishing the all-eyes-on-her moment she seeks.
Why is that? Bear with us for a second: It’s possible that the album is just too perfect.
We get that it’s a weird indictment, but it seems fitting because Doja Cat is a weird artist. For all of her artistic gifts, what sets her apart is that side of her sense of humor and the joy she takes in being a bit of a troll. This is the woman whose breakout hit was about being a cow, for God’s sake. It kind of makes sense that this markedly safe decision to scrape off the little meat that’s left on the bone of ‘80s nostalgia didn’t raise as many eyebrows as she may have liked.
That’s probably not entirely fair, especially given how much creative and technical growth Vie displays, but her ambition and commitment to her chosen retro vibe undeniably cramp her style as often as they dazzle. Doja Cat is equal parts singer and rapper, but her rap verses feel out of place and forced on several tracks. In the comments section of the “Jealous Type,” several fans noted that it sounds like she’s her own featured artist. Some of them meant that as a compliment. We don’t really see it that way.
All in all, Vie feels like a transitional album. There’s a lot to love (and dance to) on this record, but there’s even more to build on. We’d love to see Doja Cat take some of these newfound technical proficiencies and channel them into getting a little weird again.
Doja Cat will be performing on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2026, at American Airlines Center, 2500 Victory Ave. Additional presales will run throughout this week ahead of the general on-sale starting on Friday, Oct.10, at 10 a.m. at Dojacat.com.
