This year’s Icons portfolio features a quintet of stars who captivate us, connect us, entertain us, move us, stoke our obsession and inspire us. They not only speak to this moment, but are also helping to define it and give it meaning. Whatever their personal brand, all have made an indelible mark on our culture and society…
The following interviews and photo-shoots were conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike
Doja Cat is reimagining pop stardom in her own fearlessly provocative image
THERE IS A CASE TO BE MADE THAT IT WAS DURING THE PANDEMIC that the internet finally subsumed us – which is precisely when Amala Dlamini, better known as Doja Cat, became a global pop star. Dlamini, 27, was born in Los Angeles and spent time as a child with her mother living at an ashram led by the jazz musician Alice Coltrane. But she is also a member of the connected generation whose creative DNA is defined not by a record collection as much as by a swirling torrent of songs, sounds, clips and memes. She has been releasing music for more than a decade, but her mainstream breakthrough came in early 2020 with ‘Say So’, a masterful mash-up of disco, hip-hop and funk vibes that became a left-field sensation on the eve of lockdown, inspiring a TikTok dance challenge. Since then, there have been more hits, tours and a Grammy for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for ‘Kiss Me More’, a collaboration with SZA, from her 2021 album Planet Her. In June, she released ‘Attention’, the first single from her new album Scarlet, which will be accompanied by her debut arena tour this autumn. Dlamini sat down with the American radio personality Angie Martinez to discuss art, fame and finding your way – on Instagram and in the real world.
ANGIE MARTINEZ: An icon by definition is ‘a person or a thing regarded as a representative symbol or as worthy of veneration’. Do you see yourself as worthy of veneration?
DOJA CAT: I don’t. I think I deserve love and respect from the people I love and respect back – and I guess respect means different things to some people. I put myself out there on social media and TV. I shoot my image out onto these screens. But I don’t really put myself out there in real life. I don’t go to clubs. I stick to creating.
AM: Do you get inspiration from other people and their energy?
DC: I love positive feedback. I appreciate when people speak up for someone who is getting bullied or attacked by internet trolls.[…] Some of the most moving moments for me have been when my fans have stood up for me or for other people. That’s fighting for something real. I really appreciate that because people like to shit-talk.
