Doja Cat has quickly blown up in the rap scene, becoming one of the most viral music stars in recent years. But before she was sticking fries up her nose and saying “moo,” Doja Cat was living with her Jewish mother.
Doja Cat, real name Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamini, was born in Los Angeles, California. More specifically, she grew up in the neighborhood of Tarzana — part of the San Fernando Valley area. Her father is Dumisani Dlamini, a South African actor and composer, and her mother is Deborah Elizabeth Sawyer, a Jewish painter.
Her father wasn’t present during a lot of her childhood, so Doja Cat was raised by her mother. Her mom was a big influence on her career. According to Doja, her mother was into hip hop herself.
“My mom was kind of a hip hop head,” she said. “It’s really ironic because, like, I’m Jewish, my grandma’s Jewish… She’s white and she was never exposed to music like that.”
Despite identifying as Jewish, it’s not clear if Doja Cat had a Bat Mitzvah. At eight years old, she moved with her mom and brother to a commune in the mountains of Santa Monica. Here, she practiced Hinduism until she was 12.
After that, the small family moved to Oak Park. It was then that Doja Cat started really finding herself. She started taking dance lessons and playing sports. She was also really into skateboarding and surfing. Unfortunately, she experienced a lot of racism for being one of the only mix-raced children in the area.
In her Los Angeles high school, Doja started taking hip hop lessons and voice lessons. She even competed with a professional pop-locking group. Meanwhile, however, Doja was skipping school. She dropped out at 16 to pursue music, feeling discouraged by her ADHD.
From MooO to Planet Her
Doja Cat spent a lot of time in the underground hip hop scene in Los Angeles, releasing songs like “So High” on her SoundCloud. She released her debut EP, Purrr!, in 2014 and was later signed to the label OGG. She stopped releasing music soon after due to being in a “creative limbo” and needing to find herself.
By 2018, Doja Cat was releasing singles with music videos. But she didn’t go viral until that summer when she self-published a homemade video for a song called “Mooo!” It became an internet meme and currently has 11.3 million views thanks to the suggestive anime background and Doja’s dance moves while wearing a cow outfit.
In 2019, Doja Cat released a remix of “Juicy” with a verse from Tyga. This became a more mainstream hit and made the Billboard Hot 100. Her following album, Hot Pink, included the hit song “Say So.” She then appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and later went on a tour for the album. At this point, Doja Cat was doing features on popular songs, having famous rappers on her songs, and doing performances all over the place. She released Planet Her in 2021, featuring hits like “Need to Know” and “Kiss Me More.”
Doja Cat currently has a double album in the works. But she admitted that she’s burnt out and not enjoying her career, something she’s said on Instagram and Twitter quite often.
How Old is Doja Cat?
Doja Cat was born in 1995 and is currently 27 years old. Her young age may be partially the reason behind her recently sporadic behavior on social media. A lot of fans have been worried about Doja ever since she started posting strange one-word tweets and shaved off her hair. She has fought back against the criticism, however.
Is Doja Cat Religious?
Doja Cat identifies as Jewish, but she has never openly discussed if she follows Jewish religious traditions or celebrates the high holidays. Many Jewish people who identify as Jewish are Jewish spiritually, ethnically, and culturally as well.
is Doja Cat Done Making Music?
While at The Grammys, Doja Cat reassured fans that she would still be performing with The Weekend for the After Hours tour. However, she has since claimed that she plans to retire from the music industry after fulfilling this duty.
“North America, I’m coming,” Doja Cat said.
But she hesitated to tell fans she would continue performing after the tour.
Despite possibly quitting music, Doja Cat was nominated for 11 awards.
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