Despite getting her start in music at Los Angeles-area underground rap events, Doja Cat recently said she doesn’t feel like she receives the credit she deserves as a rapper. She explained why in a new interview with Variety, saying “a lot of people discredit me” as a rapper and posits that this is due to her success with disco-inspired records like “Kiss Me More” and “Say So.”
“I just got an award [from iHeartRadio] for a billion spins on the radio, so with that alone, I’m constantly being shoved down people’s throats,” she said. “I would be upset if I saw somebody who has kind of been fed to me as this pop-star girl with a fat ass making it to this level of rap icon after I’ve only been watching them do disco shit and pop shit all the time.”
Her complaints might well be valid; during an interview with Drink Champs last year, Remy Ma said, “I don’t think she’s a rapper. But she makes dope records, and I think she’s dope.” Likewise, when Doja expressed her dream to release a hip-hop double album produced by 9th Wonder and Jay Versace, many rap fans raised their eyebrows — including one of the producers in question.
Of course, none of this skepticism has stopped Doja from accumulating accolades from both fans and peers. She’s nominated for a Best Rap Performance Grammy Award for her Elvis contribution “Vegas” (and should win it, to be honest), and she has the second-most Platinum singles for female rapper ever.
