Scarlet was a minor blip in what she's capable of delivering — like it was still successful, obvs not as much as previous efforts. And would have been more so without the bashing of her fans or completing slating previous eras / success.

Scarlet wasn't exactly a 100% rap / hip hop album but there was definitely more of a push in that direction. And the shift from Planet Her to Scarlet wasn't that much of a flop.....for example, random comparison but cba to think of another, so like Demi's shift to punk was so out of touch with her brand and aesthetic, it was not good overall. Where as Scarlet still had elements of authenticity. If Doja had shut her mouth and perhaps reworked some tracks so that they were more pop driven/improved hooks/better collabs throughout, it would have been stronger, but I don't mind it.

Doja just shouldn't have been so adament to prove she's a rapper. She can rap, yes. But her discography / most successful / critically acclaimed / well received songs are clearly pop-leaning crossovers.

Songs from Scarlet like Agora Hills, and Paint The Town Red, and Demons were still successful because they each had storytelling
/ strong hooks
/ range and momentum happening in each
/ clear visual identity across the whole era
/ viral moments
/ some songs stayed in hot 100 for decent amount
/ live performances and tour was successful
— also showed she's capable of performing without the need for smoke and mirrors....not that that's a bad thing, but without tons of dancers of choreography.... throughout etc. etc. she's clearly got stage presence.

I'm a fan (I would never call myself a kitten, whoever started that...not worth getting into) and could care less about her attacking fans.

Anyway. Glad she's back to leaning into what she's best at — the playful / quirky / creating work that is fun, with a mix of pop and rap, without trying to be toooooo serious.

Only mistake for THIS era — should have been released Vie like a month earlier. She took way to much time to figure thngs out. But I think I read somewhere that she did cancel recent festival commitments to ensure Vie is ready to release

... there's just waaaay too much competition / oversaturated albums being released like end of August and throughout September.