Doja Cat explains why she aims to look ‘purposefully ugly’ for the paparazzi: ‘I turn it into a game’ | English Movie News
Doja Cat opens up about how she handles life in public when cameras follow her outside of work. In a new interview, the singer said she sometimes chooses to look “purposefully ugly” when paparazzi are around because she wants a more normal experience in public. She said the attention upsets her, but instead of confronting people directly, she tries to deal with it in a way that feels more creative and under her control.
Doja Cat’s paparazzi comments in interview
In its April cover story, Vogue reported that Doja Cat said she wants to be able to go shopping without turning the outing into a public event. “It makes me so upset,” she said while discussing unwanted attention from paparazzi. She added that she does not want to walk up to someone and say, “Stop f—ing filming me,” even when the filming bothers her.Instead, she said she handles the situation differently. “I don’t want to do that,” she said. “I think I would rather do it in a creative way.” When asked what that meant, Doja Cat explained, “Sometimes I try to look purposefully ugly.” She added, “I turn it into a game.”
Doja Cat opens up about privacy and dating
The interview also touched on her need for privacy away from work. Doja Cat told Vogue that she was “agoraphobic, fully” as a teenager and said, “I couldn’t leave my house.” She explained that some of those instincts still shape how she resets between projects.After releasing her album ‘Vie’ in September 2025, she spent time at home in the Los Angeles suburbs to recharge and rebuild her creative energy. She described that period as “restimulating my creative bone.” She also said that being a “hermit” is part of that process. “When I’m home, I’m just home with my cat,” she said. The report added that her friend SZA understood that need for solitude.Doja Cat also addressed her dating life in the cover story, following up on remarks she made to Harper’s BAZAAR in 2023 about being “possibly a serial dater.” In the new interview, she said she still sees herself that way and shared that she is dating someone now. She also said therapy has changed how she handles distance in relationships. “That’s what therapy has done for me,” she said. She explained that she no longer spirals when someone is away and now feels more at peace in those moments.
