Doja Cat on responding to negative criticism on social media: “It’s a useless way to spend your time”

"It doesn’t do anything for you other than entertain a part of you that is stuck in the past”

Doja Cat has opened up on responding to negative feedback on social media, admitting it’s a “useless way to spend your time”.

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In a new interview with Vogue, the singer opened up on why she responds to negative comments on the internet. Most recently, she addressed “harsh criticism” from fans about her ‘Vie’ album art, and in the Vogue interview, discussed disappointment from some about the lack of costume changes on the tour.

“When I feel that I’m threatened, even though it may not be a threat at all, it rhymes with: ‘You are failing’”, she told the outlet. “Look, I never do costume changes, but I feel like I have to defend my creative choices, and then I give those people power even though they could be anybody—they could have Cheeto dust on their fingers and have no job.”

She added that although there was plenty of praise from fans too, reading a negative comment was a way of “validating” her insecurities. “Artists in general…we can be quite critical of ourselves… that’s a moment of, ‘See, I was right’,” she admitted.

Doja Cat went on to explain that “you feel you’re more in control in a sense. ‘I’ve got it all figured out. I can’t sing. I’ve got it all figured out. I am ugly. I got it all figured out. I got cankles.’ ”

However, she acknowledged the behaviour was “obviously not” healthy, adding: “It’s a useless way to spend your time. It doesn’t do anything for you other than entertain a part of you that was built during your childhood, a part of you that is stuck in the past.”

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The singer has previously chastised fans for comparing her hair to “pubes”, and then teased her return to music with the single ‘Masc’ – for which the cover art featured a close up of her blonde curls.

On an Instagram livestream, she noted a “consistent pattern” of fans likening her hair to “sheep and pubes and carpet and popcorn and shit like that”, adding: “Making those comparisons is wild. Let’s try not to do that.”

She has also called fans “creepy” for calling themselves ‘Kittenz’ in 2023. “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,” she wrote on social media.

Elsewhere, Doja Cat has praised Chappell Roan’s authenticity in a candid new video revealing borderline personality disorder diagnosis.