Tensions between Doja Cat and her fanbase have been building since Summer 2023 began and the two finally hit their boiling point in late July. What began as a squabble over what stans call themselves evolved into fanpages shutting down, calls for boycott, and a divide in Doja Cat Enjoyers.
What happened?
on July 23, Doja Cat got into an argument with some fans on Threads, Meta's Twitter alternative. Though Threads enjoyed an explosive debut, its engagement quickly dwindled and, as such, conversations on the app tend to be more intimate, even when between celebrities and their fans.
Hence why, when Doja has something to say about how her fans self-identify on Threads, they can reply to her and get a direct response.
“My fans don’t name themselves shit," Doja posted early on July 23. "If you call yourself a 'Kitten' or fucking 'Kittenz' that means you need to get off your phone and get a job and help your parents with the house.”
Doja Cat fans have long called themselves Kittens (or some variation) based on a lyric from "Give It Up," a song that Doja Cat originally self-published back in 2013. It's doubly pun-y as the name is both a reference to an old song and an homage to Doja Cat's stage name (Cat, Kitten, you get it).
Never has Doja made it clear that she had a problem with this specific moniker, though she's long had a confrontational, if amicable, relationship with her fanbase.
After her post about the Kittens, Doja got into it with an Iranian fan, who asked that Doja tell them that she loves them.
In response, Doja replied, "I don't though 'cuz I don't know y'all." She also described some of her fan pages as "creepy."
Don't forget that this combativeness comes after weeks of Doja ignoring wave after wave of commenters coming after J. Cyrus, her rumored new beau, who brought ample baggage to the public discourse.
For some Doja Cat stans, the rejection of the Kittens was the final straw; several Doja Cat fanpages have called it quits.
Doja Cat herself appears relatively unaffected, tweeting that "Opinions are inescapable" before posting about tour dates leading into her "new era" and subsequent album.
The controversy has got fans questioning their allegiances.
On one hand, several commenters have pointed out that Doja Cat doesn't "owe" her fans anything. Like other entertainers, Doja Cat's music is out there to be enjoyed only at the whim of the consumer. If you like it, listen and, if not, tune out.
This parasocial relationship recalls a few other recent celebrity-public backlashes, like the Jamie Foxx health scare, Selena Gomez/Hailey Bieber beef, and Taylor Swift's rumored relationship with Matty Healy.
In the former, Foxx and his family have remained mum about the actor's health despite his April 2023 hospitalization — sure, Foxx's career exists because people see his movies but does he owe the public insight into the minutiae of his private life?
Around the same time, waves of Selena Gomez stans flooded Hailey Bieber's social media comment sections in response to a perceived slight. Though the entire drama was interpreted by Selenators through signals and suspicions, rather than an overt beef, it got vicious enough that Gomez had to call off her overzealous defenders.
However, some commenters aren't even coming at Doja from the perspective of "needing" more love, they simply don't dislike what they perceive as a bad attitude.
"There was a time when she was quirky funny, now she’s just coming across like a massive dick," one Redditor said.
"Why does it seem like everything she posts the last few months is mean? She used to be a lot of fun," another offered in the official Doja Cat subreddit.
There's definitely precedence for fans getting invasive over supposed relationships with their idols. Certainly, Doja Cat isn't lying when she says that she doesn't know her fans personally.
There's also a justified argument to be made over whether or not she ought to be more considerate towards her fans. Though Doja doesn't owe them anything regarding her private life or feelings, is it too risky to publicly bite the hand that feeds?
Are the fans even the hand that feeds, anyways? Or is that her management and label?
Or maybe we should just blame Madonna.
