Doja Cat “Paint the Town Red” hit #1

Paint the Town Red Doja Cat

Writer(s): Burt Bacharach, Hal David, Isaac Earl Bynum, Jean-Baptiste Kouame, Karl Rubin, Ryan Buendia (see lyrics here) Released: August 4, 2023 First Charted: August 19, 2023 Peak: 13 BB, 11 BA, 12 DG, 11 ST, 31 A40, 18 RB, 15 UK, 16 CN, 110 AU (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): -- US, 0.6 UK, 2.68 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 360.10 video, 1202.18 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamini, better known as Doja Cat, is a rapper and singer born in Los Angeles in 1995. Her 2018 debut, Amala, stalled at #138 on the album chart, but her next two albums were top-ten, double-platinum releases. She also landed a #1 hit in with “Say So” from her Hot Pink album and three more top tens from 2021’s Planet Her. Her fourth album, 2023’s Scarlet, gave Doja Cat her second #1 song with “Paint the Town Red.” In addition to topping the charts in the United States, the song soared to the top of the charts in 18 other charts. It became the fastest song by a solo female rapper to reach 100 million streams on Spotify. WK The song also received a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Solo Performance. The “pop-rap track with a jazz-influenced beat” WK samples Dionne Warwick’s 1964 top-ten hit “Walk on By.” The phrase “paint the town red” means “to go out and celebrate without inhibition by having a noisy and disorderly spree.” SF It was first used in the 1870s as a reference to red-light districts. SF The song has been interpreted as a message to haters – both critics and fans – that she will go out and enjoy herself, living her life the way she wants to. The song may be a specific response to reaction to Doja Cat shaving her head and eyebrows in August 2022. The move spurred negative comments from fans on social media who thought it made her look demonic. In the video, Doja Cat appears to be playing up the image, dressed in red and keeping company with the devil. There’s also a scene in which she peels out her eyeball and it falls into hell. The message is potentially that messing with Doja Cat could get bloody. SF Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Doja Cat SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia First posted 1/7/2024; last updated 10/17/2024.