译Pitchfork评Doja Cat 2019年专辑《Hot Pink》

翻译：Nomanlandever

On her first full-length release since her viral breakout, the rapper-singer and songwriter proves that her real gift is her versatility.

在她爆红后发行的第一张全长专辑里，这位歌手/Rapper/词曲作者展现出她的全能才华。

Doja Cat can’t be boxed in. A little over a year after her kooky viral hit “Mooo!,” the 24-year-old rapper-singer and songwriter is still full of personality and endless wordplay. On Hot Pink, her second album and her first full-length since achieving viral fame, Doja cements her voice as the most crucial part of her sound. Depending on the track, her tone can be ultra-soft and chill or peppy, almost frantic as she fires off verses. But it’s her sarcasm and cheek that cut a more dynamic figure in pop music. “PLEASE DO NOT BUY MY ALBUM IF YOU BUY MY ALBUM I WILL PEE IN YOUR LAP,” she wrote alongside a video of her dancing to celebrate the release. She’s in her bag, giving us her kinky, soulful, pop queen, and not-to-be-fucked with sides all at once.

Doja Cat无法被条条框框束缚。在怪诞热单“Mooo！”发行一年多后，这位24岁的歌手，Rapper，也是词曲作者依旧个人魅力四射，不断把玩着文字游戏。在《Hot Pink》中，她的第二张专辑且是她在走红后发行的第一张全长专辑，Doja Cat强化了她的声音，使其成为她音乐中的最显著板块。根据歌曲的不同，她的音调时轻柔细腻，时冷酷无情，时朝气蓬勃，时在疯狂rap时歇斯底里得无法抑制。但正是她的讽刺和厚脸皮使她在流行乐坛中塑造出一个更生动的形象。“PLEASE DO NOT BUY MY ALBUM IF YOU BUY MY ALBUM I WILL PEE IN YOUR LAP,”（“请不要买我的专辑，如果你买了我的专辑，我会在你的大腿上撒尿，”）她在一段庆祝专辑发行的舞蹈视频（https://www.instagram.com/p/B4qw-CQjw4u/）的简介写道。Doja Cat势如破竹，向我们展现出她挑逗，真性情，流行女王，不好招惹的一面。

Hot Pink runs the gamut of a sound that’s still taking shape. Doja’s equally capable as a rapper and a singer, but it’s her understanding of melody that makes the project flow. On “Like That,” featuring Gucci Mane, Doja weaves easily from rap mode into a whispery chorus with an upbeat R&B groove reminiscent of early-2000s Janet Jackson. It’s the perfect soundtrack for a backyard party. “Rules” captures a more serious—though hardly humorless—mood, pairing eerie old-western bass with Doja’s memorable command: “Play with my pussy, but don’t play with my emotions.” (Both songs were co-written with Dr. Luke; Doja Cat is signed to his imprint Kemosabe.)

《Hot Pink》的音乐版图还在不断扩张，尽管Doja能唱也能rap，但真正让旋律出挑的是她对旋律的独特见解。在feat.Gucci Mane的歌曲“Like That”中，伴随着令人联想到00年代初期Janet Jackson风格的弱拍R&B的律动，Doja轻而易举地从说唱模式转换到轻语的副歌部分，一首完美的后院派对主题曲。歌曲“Rules”捕捉到一种更严肃——尽管少了很多幽默——的情绪，更使古怪的（美国）西部bass与Doja Cat令人难以忘怀的命令（歌词）紧密结合在一起： “Play with my pussy, but don’t play with my emotions.”（这两首歌都由Dr. Luke和Doja Cat共同谱写；Doja Cat签约了他的厂牌Kemosabe）

Other songs, like bubbly opener “Cyber Sex” and the Blink-182-sampling “Bottom Bitch,” explore Doja’s potential as a pop star. Their imaginative videos cast her as a playfully raunchy android or a rebellious, milkshake-throwing skate punk, attention-grabbing themes designed to illustrate distinct musical aesthetics. To some, tracks like these could seem ultra-commercial, but Doja’s earned the right to flex her duality. Her pop songs complement her more intimate music without diluting it.

其他的歌曲，如轻快开场曲“Cyber Sex”和采样blink -182的“Bottom Bitch”，探索了Doja作为流行歌手的潜力。两首歌极富想象力的MV都将她塑造成有趣邋遢的机器人或桀骜不羁地甩奶昔的滑板朋克 的形象，这些引人注目的主题旨在彰显鲜明的音乐个性。对一些听众来说，这样的歌曲似乎过度商业化，但Doja Cat拥有展现她双面人格的权利。她的流行歌曲为她营造出更亲密的音乐氛围，而不是削弱它。

Throughout the rest of the LP, Doja leans into her softness. The dreamy soprano she introduced on 2014’s Purrr! EP cradles the ear like a fluffy pink pillow. It’s when Doja slows down or lightens her bars with her silky rasp that she sounds the clearest. “Shine” dazzles with spurts of tasteful Auto-Tune as she brags about her jewels and her pearly whites in an enchanting blend of rap and breathy lullaby: “What’s that drippin’? No, baby, I’m not cryin’/Baby, that’s my diamonds, everything so vibrant.” It’s not hard to picture her recording a ballad like “Streets” from within an all-pink lair. She’s even more serene on the penultimate “Better Than Me”: Surrounded by slinky, psychedelic guitar, her voice is soothing and slightly coy as she sings to a man who needs a reminder that there’s no one above her. “The best pussy/Comes from wifey,” she coos, elongating every word so he’s sure to hang on. It’s a Doja love song: a tinge of heartache and vulnerability with more than enough confidence to drown out the sadness.

纵观专辑剩余部分，Doja展现出更多温柔的一面。她在2014年的EP专辑《Purrr!》中恍如梦境的歌声如同一个毛茸茸的粉色枕头在轻抚着你的双耳。那张专辑展现了Doja通过放慢语速或凭借丝滑刮擦声点亮自己的小世界。歌曲“Shine”在高级的Auto-Tune的迸发下熠熠生辉，她以rap和气音十足的摇篮曲歌唱方式炫耀着她的珠宝和珍珠般洁白的牙齿：（歌词）“What’s that drippin’? No, baby, I’m not cryin’/Baby, that’s my diamonds, everything so vibrant.”。不难想象Doja在布满粉色的洞穴里录制“Streets”这样的抒情曲。在专辑倒数第二首歌曲“Better Than Me”中，她显得更心平气和：在灵动迷幻的吉他奏响下，当她对“男人”警告她才是最重要的人，没人能替代她时，她的声音舒缓且略显羞涩：（歌词）“The best pussy/Comes from wifey,”她低语唱道，拖长每个字的发音，以确保他不会离开。这是Doja Cat式的浪漫情歌：带着一丝心痛和脆弱，却有足够的自信来掩盖悲伤。

Doja’s versatility is a gift, but as varied as the album is, Hot Pink doesn’t feel scattered or semi-rushed like her debut Amala. And though there are moments where a new tone or inflection runs the risk that Doja might be mistaken for someone else, the album’s anchor in her R&B and soul background creates a tender space for her to stack and reveal her layers. Hot Pink doesn’t demand that Doja figure out the totality of her sound right now. It’s a continuous process and her recipe for success is to honor it.

Doja Cat的多才多艺是她与生俱来的天赋，但尽管这张专辑看似面面俱到，《Hot Pink》也不像首专《Amala》琐碎半成品味十足。尽管有时候Doja Cat的唱腔和音调变化很大几率会使听众误认成其他歌手。但这张专辑在她对R&B和Soul音乐的涉猎为她营造出一个更舒适的空间，得以让她挖掘自身的多样和审视自我。《Hot Pink》并不要求Doja现阶段完全认识她的嗓音。这是一个持之以恒的过程，她的成功秘诀就是认可它。