Doja Cat is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter based in Los Angeles, California.
She began her musical career as a teenager, releasing tracks on SoundCloud.
Early life and Education
Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamini, born on October 21, 1995, in Tarzana, Los Angeles, California, is better known by her stage name, Doja Cat. Her mother, Deborah Sawyer, is an American graphic designer of Jewish descent, while her father, Dumisani Dlamini, is a South African performer of Zulu heritage. Dumisani is renowned for his role as Crocodile in both the original Broadway production and the 1992 film adaptation of the musical “Sarafina!” After meeting in New York City during Dumisani’s Broadway tenure, Deborah and Dumisani had a brief relationship. However, Dumisani’s touring commitments prevented him from spending much time with Amala and her brother. He eventually returned to South Africa, hoping his family would join him, but Amala has repeatedly stated that she has never met him. Dumisani disputes this, claiming to have a healthy relationship with his daughter and accusing her management of blocking his attempts to contact her.
Shortly after Amala’s birth, her family relocated from Tarzana to Rye, New York, where she lived with her maternal grandmother, an architect and painter, for five years. When Amala was eight, she, her mother, and her brother moved back to California to live at the Sai Anantam Ashram in Agoura Hills, where they practiced Hinduism for four years. During this time, Amala wore head-covering scarves and sang bhajans at the temple, though she felt she missed out on a normal childhood.
The family later moved to Oak Park, California. There, Amala began taking dance lessons and enjoyed a childhood filled with activities like skateboarding and attending surf camps in Malibu. She and her brother faced racial prejudice as some of the few mixed-race children in the area.
As a teenager, Amala took breakdancing classes and joined a professional poplocking troupe, competing in dance battles across Los Angeles while still in high school. Her aunt, a vocal coach, gave her singing lessons to prepare for an audition at Central Los Angeles Area New High School #9, a performing arts school. However, Amala often skipped school to participate in online chatrooms. By the eleventh grade, disillusioned with her education and certain that music and performing were her true passions, she dropped out of high school at age 16. She attributed this decision to her struggles with ADHD, feeling stagnant while others progressed around her.
Career
After dropping out of school, Doja Cat described her life as chaotic, mentioning that she slept on the floor and spent extensive hours online searching for beats and instrumentals on YouTube to create her music. Immersed in internet culture and platforms like eBaum’s World and Myspace, she taught herself to sing, rap, and use GarageBand, frequently uploading her music to SoundCloud. Her first permanent SoundCloud upload, “So High,” came in late 2012.
Doja Cat started her career in Los Angeles’ underground hip-hop scene, performing at parties and cyphers and connecting with rappers like Busdriver, Ill Camille, and VerBS, the latter helping her find her first gig. She met producer Jerry “Tizhimself” Powell, who introduced her to record producer Yeti Beats. Recording at Yeti’s Echo Park studio provided her a haven from home turmoil. Yeti Beats linked her with Kemosabe Records, an RCA imprint, where she signed under Dr. Luke’s management at 17, also partnering temporarily with Roc Nation.
In August 2014, she released her debut EP, “Purrr!,” described as “spacey, eastern-influenced R&B” by The Fader. “So High” was her first commercial single, featured on the Fox series Empire. In mid-2015, Doja Cat briefly signed with OG Maco’s label, OGG, and collaborated with him on “Monster” from his 2017 mixtape. Experiencing writer’s block, she declined Billie Eilish’s offer to feature on “Bellyache” and stopped releasing music, citing creative struggles and lack of label support.
Doja Cat resumed releasing music in 2018 with “Roll with Us,” followed by “Go to Town” and “Candy” from her debut album “Amala.” “Candy” became a sleeper hit after a viral TikTok dance challenge, charting in several countries and peaking at 86 on the Billboard Hot 100. “Amala,” released in March 2018, was largely ignored by critics and failed to chart. Doja Cat later criticized the album, saying it didn’t represent her and was rushed to meet label deadlines.
In August 2018, she self-published the music video for “Mooo!,” which went viral and led to its single release. The success of “Mooo!” prompted her labels to pay more attention to her. A remix of her song “Juicy” featuring Tyga became her first chart entry, peaking at 41 on the Billboard Hot 100. Following this, her debut album “Amala” debuted on the Billboard 200.
Her second album, “Hot Pink,” released in November 2019, included singles like “Bottom Bitch” and “Rules.” The album peaked at number 9 on the Billboard 200. “Say So,” a single from “Hot Pink,” gained massive popularity on TikTok, leading to a performance on “The Tonight Show” and a music video. The solo version peaked at number five on the Hot 100, and a remix featuring Nicki Minaj topped the chart, marking both artists’ first number-one single.
Doja Cat’s 2020 tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She released several collaborations and performed at various award shows, winning multiple awards, including the MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist and the American Music Awards for New Artist of the Year and Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist.
Her third studio album, “Planet Her,” was announced in March 2021. The lead single, “Kiss Me More” featuring SZA, received critical acclaim and commercial success. “Planet Her,” released in June 2021, debuted at number two on the Billboard 200. Doja Cat also hosted the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards and won several awards, further solidifying her status in the music industry.
In early 2023, Doja Cat teased her fourth studio album, initially titled “Hellmouth,” later revealed as “Scarlet.” Adopting a darker, more experimental aesthetic, she released promotional singles like “Attention” and the successful “Paint the Town Red.” “Scarlet” was released in September 2023 to positive reviews and strong chart performances. She embarked on her first arena tour, “The Scarlet Tour,” featuring rappers Doechii and Ice Spice.
The deluxe edition of “Scarlet,” titled “Scarlet 2 Claude,” was released in April 2024, featuring collaborations with ASAP Rocky and Teezo Touchdown, with the latter featured on the single “Masc.”
Personal life
Doja Cat is known for being private about her personal life. She lived in a Beverly Hills home, purchased in 2021 for $2.2 million, and sold it in September 2022 for $2.5 million. From August 2019 to February 2020, she was in a brief open relationship with American musician Jawny. While she has not explicitly discussed her sexual orientation, she has hinted at a fluid approach to relationships.
In June 2020, Doja Cat donated $100,000 to the Justice for Breonna Taylor Fund, supporting Taylor’s family. In January 2024, her mother filed for a temporary restraining order against Doja Cat’s older brother, Raman Dalithando Dlamini, due to allegations of abuse against both Doja Cat and their mother.
In terms of health, Doja Cat revealed her struggle with nicotine addiction in May 2022. She disclosed that she required treatment for an infected tonsil caused by vaping and planned to undergo a tonsillectomy. This health issue led her to cancel her summer festival appearances and her slot as the opening act for The Weeknd’s After Hours til Dawn Tour.
Controveries
In 2018, Doja Cat sparked controversy when her Twitter history revealed frequent use of the slur “faggot,” including a tweet from 2015 targeting hip hop artists Tyler, the Creator, and Earl Sweatshirt. Initially defending her remarks, she later issued apologies and deleted the tweets. This controversy led NME to label her the “Milkshake Duck” of 2018. In March 2020, she received backlash for downplaying COVID-19 on Instagram Live, and later in October, for attending Kendall Jenner’s parties during the pandemic.
In May 2020, another controversy arose when her 2015 song “Dindu Nuffin” resurfaced. The term is an alt-right slur mocking African-American detainees. Doja Cat apologized, explaining the song was meant to subvert the term’s meaning but acknowledged it was a “bad decision.” She denied the song was related to Sandra Bland’s death. Around the same time, footage of her using a racial slur in a Tinychat room circulated online. She apologized for her participation in such chat rooms but maintained she was never involved in racist conversations. Frequent chat room users supported her claim, stating she never said anything discriminatory.
In 2022, her performance of “Say So” at the MTV Europe Music Awards drew criticism for using a guitar solo identical to one in Plini’s song “Handmade Cities.” Doja Cat apologized to Plini via social media.
In March 2022, following backlash from fans in Paraguay after the cancellation of the Asunciónico festival, Doja Cat threatened to quit music. Fans accused her of being rude for not acknowledging them outside her hotel, contrasting her behavior with that toward Brazilian fans. She temporarily changed her Twitter handle to “I Quit” but later resumed tweeting, expressing appreciation for her fans.
In July 2023, she faced backlash for comments on Threads perceived as unappreciative of her fans, resulting in a loss of over 250,000 Instagram followers. In October 2023, she posted a selfie wearing a t-shirt featuring alt-right comedian Sam Hyde, which drew widespread criticism. She later deleted the photo and reposted it with Hyde’s image edited out.
Net Worth
Estimated to be over 12 million dollars