Doja Cat
Vie
Release Date: Sep 26, 2025
Genre(s): Rap, Pop/Rock
Record label: RCA
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Album Review: Vie by Doja Cat
Mediocre, Based on 5 Critics
Based on rating 7/10
She produces, then abandons her own work with every news cycle - Hot Pink and Planet Her were "cash grabs" that her audience "fell for," and Scarlet, her most recent, rap-focused album, was a "huge fart. " So what does that make Vie, perhaps her most sincere album? Is it even worth talking about if she'll dismiss it in a couple of months? As it reveals, she feels turbulently about the whole thing too (go figure). This cycle is irritating, for sure, but Doja Cat is the exemplary artist of the 2020s - primed for sticky virality whose lifetime lasts a few months, then dropped like an old newspaper.
Based on rating 1/10
Doja Cat is an all-or-nothing pop star. In 2023, the rapper tweeted to fans, “I don’t love y’all cos I don’t know y’all.” Extremes are her medium. When Doja Cat, whose real name is Amala Dlamini, attended Schiaparelli’s Spring/Summer 2023 fashion show, she wore a red body paint look covered in head-to-toe crystals.
Opinion: Excellent
In the past, Doja Cat has had a complicated relationship with what kind of artist she is and what type of music she should make. Almost a year to date after releasing her first No. 1 hit “Say So,” she tweeted that she was “tired” of it.
Opinion: Excellent
Already a highly decorated musician, Doja Cat impressively remains consistent in releasing music. As she delivers her fifth album, she is more thematic than ever. The lead up to the album was engaging and intentional. Styled in Grace Jones-esque outfits , with the sharp fro' to match and donning grandiose shoulder pads – Doja Cat aesthetically laid out the 'Vie' phase.
Opinion: Fairly Good
The very first sound you hear on Doja Cat's Vie is a saxophone, immediately establishing the milieu of a set that's steeped in '80s pop signifiers. The standout "Aaahh Men!" is built around the iconic, oft-sampled theme song from Knight Rider, while "All Mine" quotes Grace Jones--"Grab him! And take him!"--from the 1985 James Bond film A View to Kill. Doja's music is best when she strikes a balance between hip-hop and pop, between hard and soft.
'Vie'
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