Doja Cat‘s last album, Planet Her, arrived in 2021, and in the time since, she’s made multiple remarks about the direction in which her new material could go. Most recently, the singer and rapper indicated making a punk record could be on the cards. “I want to explore punk. But not pop-punk. I feel like we have enough pop-punk artists right now,” Doja said during a recent interview with Variety.
“And if there needs to be more, then let there be more, but I don’t think I’m the one to do it,” she continued. “I want to explore more of a raw, unfiltered, hardcore punk sort of thing. It’s just something that I’m doing for my own personal fun — getting some drummers and guitarists together. And I don’t even know if that’s gonna make it out there.”
Doja Cat – ‘Need to Know’
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Elsewhere in the interview, it’s revealed that British post-punk act IDLES are her favourite band of the last year, and that she’s also a huge fan of the Beastie Boys – who themselves began as a punk outfit before opting for a more conventional hip-hop sound. “Rap is punk and punk can be rap,” Doja said during the interview. “It’s really a beautiful set of genres that you can twist, and I think people get it.”
Doja wouldn’t be the first rap artist to embrace hardcore and punk influences in recent years. Rico Nasty‘s affinity for the genre can be heard both throughout her more abrasive early mixtapes and debut studio album, 2020’s Nightmare Vacation. And – as Doja alludes to in her interview – there’s been a swathe of pop and rap artists leaning into pop-punk, Machine Gun Kelly being the most notable.
Further Reading
Doja Cat Teams Up With Taco Bell For A Cover Of Hole’s ‘Celebrity Skin’
Doja Cat Releases ‘Vegas’ From Soundtrack To Baz Luhrmann’s ‘Elvis’
Watch Doja Cat and SZA Perform ‘Kiss Me More’ at the 2021 BBMAs
