2021 Soul Train Awards: 5 Things to Know About ‘Best R&B /Soul Female Artist’ Nominee Doja Cat
It may appear as though Doja Cat burst onto the scene in 2018 with her viral song “Mooo!”, however, she was already creating a buzz on SoundCloud in 2012 with records like “So High.” The song did so well it caught the attention of Dr. Luke, thus landing the California native a deal with Kemosabe Records, RCA Records and publishing company Prescription Songs at just 17 years old.
Doja’s career has only gone up since then thanks to records like “Kiss Me More” ft SZA and “Say So'', the latter of which featured a viral TikTok dance challenge that further added to the track’s success.
This year Doja will be facing some of the brightest talents in R&B and soul after being nominated for “Best R&B/Soul Female Artist” at the 2021 Soul Train Awards. However, before we celebrate a night of R&B and soul music, here are five things you should know about this year’s Soul Train Awards nominee Doja Cat.
She comes from an artistic background
Doja’s father is actor, composer and film producer Dumisani Dlamini best known for 1992 South African film Sarafina!, which stars Whoopi Goldberg.
Meanwhile she told Daze her mom, Deborah Elizabeth Sawyer “was a painter and loves to sing behind closed doors.” She added, “My father is a South African actor who danced in Broadway musicals for Lion King. I took a little bit of everything from both of them.”
Her real name is Amala Zandile Dlamini
Doja told Dazed during an interview that her stage name came from her two most favorite things--cats and cannabis. "I was heavily addicted to weed and weed culture, so when I began rapping I thought of the word 'doja' and how it sounds like a girl's name."
Her heritage plays a huge influence on her music
She said likes to use her heritage to add to other genres of music to make something entirely new. "I can sample Blink-182 but put an African vocal sample in there. The whole song feels like you're in a tropical,” she added. This is also seen throughout her third studio album Planet Her.
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She tried dancing before singing
She once danced in a crew and competed around Los Angeles in organized underground cypher/battles before dropping out in the 11th grade to pursue a career in music.
Music and video for “Moo” was made in less than 24
Inspired by a cow print tour outfit, Doja made “Mooo!” and its music video in less than a day. It went viral in August 2018, and features simple lyrics like “B-tch, I’m a cow / I’m not a cat / I don’t say meow.” It currently sits on YouTube with over 97,000,000,000 views.
Watch the 2021 Soul Train Awards on Sunday, November 28 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on BET and BET Her.
