Photo Credit:Photo by Dana Jacobs/WireImage
Doja Cat has never been shy about pushing boundaries in music, but there’s one genre fans shouldn’t expect her to explore: country. In an interview with Michelle Miller on _CBS Sunday Morning_ aired September 21, the 29-year-old artist laughed when asked which genre doesn’t reflect her sound. “Country,” she replied, adding, “I think I’m a rapper who makes pop music.”
The Grammy winner, born Amala Dlamini, has long embraced experimentation, drawing from pop, rap, R&B, and jazz. She reflected on how music has evolved since the 1990s, saying, “It’s just gotten more and more ironic over the years, like rappers wearing skirts... like that was being in touch with their feminine side.” She explained that such cultural shifts “catapulted” her generation into “not following a path that is expected for them.”
Her comments come just days before the release of her fifth studio album, _Vie_, due September 26. Largely produced by Jack Antonoff, the project is described as “pop-driven” and signals a return to her earlier style after the more experimental _Scarlet_ in 2023. “It’s taken until the beginning of this next album, _Vie_, to appreciate my older stuff,” she said, admitting she once disliked her mainstream hit “Say So” but has grown to embrace it. “I think [this album] was a return to that.”
Comparing the two records, she added, “‘Cause _Scarlet_ was sort of this release of energy that was very different from all of that. I feel like I’m in a place where I want to do what I know.”
Beyond its sound, _Vie_ also carries symbolic meaning. Doja revealed the story behind the album’s cover art, which shows her tangled in a yellow parachute caught in a tree. “Falling in love is putting trust in the hands of yourself and others,” she wrote on Instagram. “The yellow parachute represents curiosity, happiness, and adventure... The tree represents life and wisdom. Giving you a sense of safety within its branches, but the pain from the fall teaches you that those scratches can be healed.”
Fans have already had a glimpse of the new era with the single “Jealous Type,” released in August, which peaked at No. 28 on the Billboard Hot 100. As anticipation builds, Doja is clear about one thing: while she may blend countless influences, her future won’t involve a country detour.
