Doja Cat’s Hot Pink album was released in 2019, but it’s unexpectedly managed to persevere in popularity ever since. “Say So” was a huge viral hit on the social media app TikTok, for example, and March 8 marked the release of the music video for “Streets.” This music video has almost amassed 40 million views, and the song’s already cemented itself in the top 10 for R&B/hip-hop.
What hasn’t changed for “Streets” since its music video release though is that it’s still an obvious B-side from Hot Pink. B-sides are the supporting actors of the album and not usually the stars, and for good reason. Doja Cat’s versatility is through the roof, and it’s admirable that she isn’t afraid to dabble in other genres than her traditional rap pop route, but “Streets” doesn’t quite land. It’s a slow, sultry track that features Doja Cat’s singing rather than her spitfire raps. The problem is that the melody she sings is almost monotone, and it doesn’t show off any range or exciting developments as it progresses. There are no surprises here or anything to elevate the track.
The music video, however, does a good job at recognizing aesthetics the song works well with. We get dark, smoky city streets and fluorescent lights highlighting a gritty-looking Doja Cat. It also treats us to a black widow spider Doja Cat who sensually crawls toward some cute human prey caught in her web. All of the scenes are unrelated to each other, which breaks up any chance of a narrative, but they do offer interesting visuals as stand-alones.
“Streets” from Hot Pink is doing well on the charts, but the release of the music video doesn’t offer anything substantial to this humble B-side. The music video has intriguing aesthetics, but it can’t make up for the lacklustre track it features.
Streets Video Still. (Doja Cat/YouTube)
Chandy is a biology major/chemistry minor who's been a staff writer, Arts editor, and Managing Editor at The Cascade. She began writing in elementary school when she produced Tamagotchi fanfiction to show her peers at school -- she now lives in fear that this may have been her creative peak.
