Live Review: Doja Cat @ RAC Arena, Perth

Picture this. Rows of illuminated geometric shapes stacked on top of each other. An orchestra’s worth of instruments aligned along the back of the stage. And a catwalk so long it could reach the moon—all signs of an incredible night ahead. 

A silver stiletto touches down at the top of the stairs, and a woman with enough charisma to send shivers down your spine steps out into the light. Phones go up. A crowd of 15,000 screams, cheers and roars as she lifts the mic to her lips. This is Doja Cat, and this is the Australian leg of her Ma Vie Tour. 

Opening very fittingly with track one on her fifth instalment of the heavy 80s-influenced, Jack Antonoff-produced album Vie, Cards is a tantalising and teasing percussion of glittering 80s sounds that features a very titillating sax. Keeping the party going, she immediately pounces into smash hit Kiss Me More, not having to savour it for later, knowing that there’s a lot more in store for the night.  

Acts of Service, a gratifying slurry of percussion and brass, sees the superstar pounce around the stage like a cat with nine lives, the way she’s defying gravity. The crowd screams as she seamlessly threads into Agora Hills, hitting notes and holding them in a way you wouldn’t believe. The crowd is hanging on to every bit as fireworks explode from the stage whilst she twerks around the mic stand to the delight of the entire arena.

Being named the most-streamed rapper of 2025 is no fluke. Woman and Paint The Town Red hit like a smack with a Louboutin. The cadence and flow are so sharp and witty that the words fire out like daggers as the rap goddess quips about having multiple future hits. If the playful expressions and ‘80s dance moves weren’t enough to command your attention, the jiggle of her booty says my eyes are down here. On Juicy, she even raps about how plump and peachy it is, whilst possibly setting the world record for the longest twerk on stage. 

Things heat up on Planet Her track Need To Know, where the rapper removes her jacket for more floor choreography as smoke erupts from the stage in a colourful array during an ostentatious guitar shredding solo. Wet Vagina includes a plethora of fireworks and flames to pair with its outrageous lyrics as Doja Cat flicks and kicks across the floor with incredible flexibility, continuing the festivities well into Demons, where she also demonstrates the many uses of a mic stand. If this doesn’t cement her as a legend, I don’t know what will.

Tracks AAAHH MEN! and Gorgeous prove that Vie is a full-scale, high-concept album worth every listen. Covering these extensive and lush soundscapes of nostalgic melodies with a labour of love. All Mine is a slow sultry ballad with Doja’s voice rising to a higher register before spitting beats at 90mph then back into an angelic wail. 

She then shows her rockstar chops on her rendition of The Spencer Davis Group song I’m A Man, whilst tying the lime-green chord of her microphone around her like a noose. Then proclaiming she’s actually not a man but in fact that bitch on Boss Bitch with a bass so booming you can’t help but bounce, and bounce the crowd does.

The hits keep coming with a smack of One More Time into the number 1 pop smash Say So into Strangers. A buttery velvety three-course serving of glitzy 80s dark glam paired with seductive sax and served on a bodacious twerking bodice. It’s a real time warp riddled with pulsing strobes. Showcasing the attention to detail with the way the lights flick to life as if they, too, are at her bidding.

“This is the last song,” she declares, saving the best till last with Vie’s lead single Jealous Type. It’s a shimmering kaleidoscope of light and sound with Doja strutting up and down the stage, flailing her microphone like a lasso to the gritty disco ditty. Things crescendo on the climax as a lush saxophone ripples through the room. Throwing a bouquet of roses into a crowd, giving a shoutout to TikTok dance sensation Joel and launching a storm of confetti into the crowd in thanks for garnering her full attention.

Very few artists are capable of commanding a stage all by themselves, and with a 90-minute set, Doja Cat was able to do that with a mere jiggle of her backside and hit songs. There’s an infectious way to how the star performs, her voice booming around the arena like a battle cry as she flows between singing and rapping, sometimes at the same time. With no dancers or wacky props, she shows with a defying force why she’s known for her iconic live performances, capable of holding your attention the entire time, legs akimbo and with enough humour to have you smitten as you eat out of the palm of her hand.