Feel-good Doja-Nicki dance collaboration guaranteed to chase lockdown blues away

Doja Cat teams up with Nicki Minaj in “Say So”

The career-boosting ascent of “Say So,” Doja Cat’s catchy collaboration with Nicki Minaj, to the top of the Billboard 100 chart this week comes as no surprise to music lovers, who could use a little bit of musical sunshine from all the pandemic-driven doom and gloom around them.

While it wasn’t chosen to be the album’s lead track, pop music aficionados have easily singled it out from among the lineup’s 12 featured tracks following the recent release of Doja’s sophomore collection, “Hot Pink.”

The theme of the single isn’t one to be taken seriously, that’s for sure. It’s about a woman urging a shy prospective lover to stop beating around the bush about what his intentions are and, well, just tell her so: I’d let you had I known it/ Didn’t even notice, no punches to roll with/ You got to keep me focused/ You want it?/ Say so.

As with the album itself, the toe-tapping dance track reflects the 24-year-old singer’s growing confidence in her musicality and style, explaining to music, culture and style magazine Fader how the recording process benefited from a trial-and-error approach for both the album and its singles.

Doja Cat —AP

“It’s like, you know the first time you do anything, you have to figure out who you are?” she said. “With this second project, I feel like I know who I am, and I know what I want it to sound like.”

That sure-footed vibe is projected seamlessly and consistently by its fearless songstresses, as it shuttles from Doja’s luscious, vibrant beginning to Nicki’s edgier follow-up. Not a bad way to shake the lockdown blues away.

And if you give in to its unshakable hooks, they’ll have you grooving and soaring on the dance floor in no time.