Scarlet (Deluxe Edition)

## Singles

1. "Paint The Town Red"
Released: August 4th, 2023
2. "Agora Hills"
Released: October 3rd, 2023
3. "Gun"
Released: March 1st, 2024
4. "Balut (feat. Ariana Grande)"
Released: June 14th, 2024

***Scarlet*** is the fourth studio album by American rapper and singer Doja Cat. It was released on September 22, 2023, via Kemosabe and RCA Records. Disillusioned with pop music and dissatisfied with music critics questioning her status as a rapper, Doja Cat felt inspired to create a "masculine" follow-up to her third studio album, *Planet Her* (2021). Her first project since her debut EP with no features, the record marks a departure from the pop-driven sounds of its predecessor, being predominantly centered around the genres of hip hop and R&B.

*Scarlet* yielded two singles. Its lead single, "Paint the Town Red", became a massive commercial success, and marked Doja Cat's first solo number-one on the US *Billboard* Hot 100, the UK Singles Chart, the *Billboard* Global 200, and several other national charts worldwide. It was followed by the top-fifteen single "Agora Hills". Promotional singles for the album include "Attention", "Demons" and "Balut".

*Scarlet* initially debuted at number four on the US *Billboard* 200, becoming Doja Cat's third top-ten entry on the chart. Following the release of the deluxe edition, the album rebounded to number three, which would become it's peak. To support the album, she is embarking on the Scarlet Tour, her first arena tour as a headliner. The album received mostly positive reviews from critics, many of whom praised its production, lyrics, and versatility in comparison to her previous albums. Multiple singles were released following the album including top ten hits, "Agora Hills", and "Balut" featuring Ariana Grande, with "Gun" going top fourty.

**Background**

Doja Cat began her career as a rapper heavily involved with the underground scene in her hometown of Los Angeles. She rose to prominence in August 2018 as an internet meme, following the viral success of her novelty song "Mooo!". She continued to gain mainstream attention with her pop and R&B-infused second studio album, *Hot Pink* (2019). The remix to its standout single "Say So", which featured Nicki Minaj, became the first song by a female rap duo to reach number one on the US *Billboard* Hot 100 chart. Doja Cat's third studio album, *Planet Her* (2021), continued the pop-R&B blend and was met with critical and commercial success. It became the most-streamed album by a female rapper on Spotify, and its lead single, "Kiss Me More" featuring SZA, won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.

After being nominated for the BET Award for Best Female Hip Hop Artist in May 2021, Doja Cat was criticized by social media users who felt she was "too pop" to be considered as a rapper. She responded to the criticism on Twitter, by writing, "Don't ever fuckin [*sic*] disrespect me as a rapper. After the last song I dropped, you will respect my pen and that's fuckin [*sic*] that." She weighed in further on the debate during a cover story with *Rolling Stone* in December, saying, "Anyone who says that I'm not a rapper is in denial. They don't know what they're talking about." A few days after the profile piece was published, Doja Cat revealed on an Instagram livestream that she was interested in creating a double album; with one side focused on her pop rap sounds, and the other side containing 12 hip hop songs produced by 9th Wonder and Jay Versace.

In an interview with *Elle* in May 2022, Doja Cat addressed claims that she was not a rapper in the "traditional sense" by stating that she has "rapped since the beginning, and I really couldn't even sing that well to begin with—I got a lot better. I use my voice as a tool to create these worlds, and it's fine if people think that I can't rap." She also confirmed that her upcoming fourth studio album will be "predominantly rap". She doubled down on the album's main genre in April 2023 by stating "no more pop", and that she agrees with "everyone who said the majority of my rap verses are mid and corny. I know they are. I wasn't trying to prove anything, I just enjoy making music. But I'm getting tired of hearing y'all say that I can't, so I will." Doja Cat also denounced her previous two albums as "cash grabs" and "digestible pop hits". On April 26, radio personality Ebro Darden shared that he had the opportunity to listen to approximately eight songs from the album while it was in its "early stages", stating "I heard straight rap records". After being asked about potential producers, he responded "I don't even think it's producers that we know. I think she's got her own batch of producers." In April 2023, while drafting the tracklist, she revealed the titles of several tracks that would later make the final cut. On August 27, she revealed that the album was finished, and she announced the release of the album three days later.

**Release and promotion**

"Paint the Town Red", the lead single of *Scarlet*, was released on August 4, 2023, to commercial success. The song became her first solo single to top the *Billboard* Global 200, as well as the US *Billboard* Hot 100, the UK Singles Chart, the Canadian Hot 100, and national charts in several other countries such as Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand.

"Agora Hills" followed as the second single, released in tandem with *Scarlet* on September 22, 2023. Its music video was co-directed by Doja Cat and Hannah Lux Davis. It reached number 6 on the *Billboard* Hot 100, following a steady rise. It was serviced to US radio October 3rd, 2023.

"Gun" was released as the third single following a steady rise due to virality on multiple social media platforms as a result of the performance on her own "Scarlet Tour". A viral dance ensued and the song saw a spike in streams, debuting on the *Billboard* Hot 100 before being serviced as a single. It was later sent to radio on March 1st, 2024 and peaked at 17. The music video saw released on March 18th, 2024.

"Balut" was released as the fourth single in tandem with the deluxe edition of *Scarlet* on June 14th, 2024*,* in which the remix with Ariana Grande was serviced to radio. Later the single would receive a music with both artists co-directing with Hannah Lux Davis. The single would go on to peak at 4 on the *Billboard* Hot 100.

Three promotional singles preceded the album's release as well. The first, "Attention", was released on June 16, 2023, alongside an accompanying music video directed by Tanu Muino. It reached the top 40 in Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. It was followed by "Demons" on September 1, 2023 alongside a music video co-directed by Christian Breslauer and Doja Cat and co-starring American actress Christina Ricci; the trailer first premiered at Cinespia in Los Angeles on August 27. "Balut" was released as the third promotional single on September 15, 2023, the remix would later see single treatment.

**Commercial Performance**

*Scarlet* officially debuted at number four on the US *Billboard* 200 dated October 7, 2023. The album moved 72,000 album-equivalent units in its opening week, of which 6,000 were pure album sales. This marked Doja's third top ten album in the United States. *Scarlet* also opened at number two on both the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Top Rap Albums charts, making it her first entry on the latter.

Internationally, the album peaked within the top 30 in every territory it charted in with the exception of Nigeria, where it peaked at number 45. In the United Kingdom, *Scarlet* debuted at number five on the UK Albums Chart. The album also peaked within the top ten in New Zealand, Canada, Australia, Norway, Slovakia, Lithuania, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic, while reaching the top twenty in Poland, Switzerland, France, Ireland, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Croatia.

The deluxe reissue of the album saw a spike in sales almost nine months after the release of the standard edition. A further distribution of vinyl's and physical copies, along the spike in streaming would rebound the album to re-peak at number three on the US *Billboard* 200, moving 82,000 units. It would also be it's greatest week for physical copies, with 22,000 physical copies sold. It would push the album into the top ten of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the UK.

**Tracklisting**