Doja Cat’s ‘Paint the Town Red’ Off to Fiery Start on Streaming

By kpoppo on August 9, 2023

Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up column

Discovering the songs, artists, curiosities, and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention.

Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.

Doja Cat “Paints the Town Red” With Ample Streams

After launching her new musical era with the boom-bap-influenced “Attention” — which debuted and peaked at No. 31 on the Billboard Hot 100 — Doja Cat has returned with her newest single, “Paint the Town Red.”

The Grammy-winner’s latest radio single features a prominent sample of Dionne Warwick’s classic 1964 Hot 100 top ten hit “Walk On By,” accented by subtle brass and finger snaps.

According to Luminate, “Paint the Town Red” earned just over 8.12 million official on-demand U.S. streams between August 4-7, with its biggest daily total (2.47 million) coinciding with its official release date (Aug. 4). Since its debut, “Paint the Town Red” has remained in the top ten of Spotify’s Daily Top Songs USA chart, maintaining stronger daily numbers than “Attention” did across its debut week.

Unlike some of her past hits such as the Hot 100-topping “Say So” (with Nicki Minaj), Doja’s latest hit is not riding on a wave of TikTok virality: While the official “Paint the Town Red” TikTok sound currently boasts over 11,500 posts, more of the song’s traction appears to be coming from its horror-themed music video. In the official clip for “Paint the Town Red,” Doja dances with both the devil and a Grim Reaper-esque Death figure. The music video has amassed just under 6 million global views on YouTube in under a week.

Doja’s streaming success comes on the heels of her five nominations at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards, including a video of the year nod for “Attention.”

‘Wasted Summers’ Goes Viral Thanks to Little Sister Sing-Along

A new viral hit has injected streaming with a particularly youthful energy. “Wasted Summers” has taken off thanks to a trend of little sisters singing along to the catchy tune.

Source: Billboard