Doja Cat has walked back her criticism of actor Timothée Chalamet following his recent comments about opera and ballet, which sparked discussion online.
In a recent TikTok video, the rapper reflected on her earlier remarks about Chalamet, admitting that her criticism was not entirely sincere.
“What I was doing yesterday was virtue signaling, because I wanted to connect, and I knew that Timothée’s goof-up was something I could leverage in order for people to connect with me,” Doja Cat said. “I’ve never been to a ballet. I’ve never seen an opera. And I took it upon myself yesterday to kind of give it to the man, because there is a culture based around outrage and things like that, and people want to feel like they’re part of something. It’s a need to connect, whether good or bad.”
She continued, “It’s a modern way to garner clicks, likes, approval and all kinds of things like that from people. And so I did that yesterday, and I didn’t really think about why I was doing it. Am I proud of it? No.”
When a commenter suggested her previous criticism of Chalamet was not incorrect, Doja Cat responded, “I’m not saying it was. I’m saying I wasn’t coming from a genuine place.”
The clarification follows Doja Cat’s initial reaction to Chalamet’s comments during a Variety and CNN town hall several weeks ago, in which the “Marty Supreme” actor said, “I don’t want to be working in ballet or opera or things where it’s, like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive, even though, like, no one cares about this anymore.’”
After video of Chalamet’s remarks circulated online, some defended the value of opera and ballet. In her original video, Doja Cat said, “Hey, by the way, opera is 400 years old, ballet is 500 years old. Somebody named Timothée Chalamet had the nerve — big guy, by the way — had the nerve to say, on camera, that nobody cares about it.”
She continued, “It doesn’t matter if the industry is having a tough time at any time, which a lot of industries have a tough time. Your industry has a tough time, my industry has a tough time. Doesn’t mean people don’t care about it. There’s still an audience. People care. You show up in a nice outfit. You sit down and pay attention. That’s the usual etiquette around those things. Maybe learn something from that.”
After reflecting, Doja Cat told followers she was “just wanting to be a part of the bandwagon,” and acknowledged that Chalamet’s point may not have been entirely wrong, though she said he could have expressed himself better.
“It just kind of furthers the fact that sometimes I think something and then I’m like, ‘Never mind,’” Doja Cat said. “So never mind.”
While Doja Cat has retracted her comments, others defended the significance of opera and ballet. Retired American Ballet Theatre dancer Misty Copeland addressed Chalamet’s remarks during a panel March 8 at the AVeeno/TOGETHERXR launch of The Strength Issue. Copeland noted Chalamet had previously invited her to help promote “Marty Supreme” in connection with her art, referencing a November social media post featuring the film’s tagline and images of Copeland.
“I think that it’s important that we acknowledge that, yes, this is an art form that’s not ‘popular’ and a part of pop culture as movies are,” said Copeland, who became the first Black principal ballerina in ABT’s history in 2015. “But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have enduring relevance in culture. There’s a reason that opera and ballet have been around for over 400 years.”
New York Philharmonic music director Gustavo Dudamel also responded Tuesday, saying, “Sadly, sometimes it’s a little bit of ignorance but, look, that is why we have to open more spaces for people to connect with classical music,” according to the Associated Press. “Everybody has the right to say, but you have to do things with knowledge, with facts. I think we have to say to the young generation, the opposite. It’s very funny. Cinema is a result of opera, of music, of all of these kind of things.”
