Drama Sells: The Doja Cat Effect

The ever-present force of the Internet has made viral moments a staple within pop culture. Virality can transform someone’s life overnight, but this can start from both good and bad places. Backlash can become branding. Controversy can become clout. Beef sells. This is the core of the drama that fell between rapper Doja Cat and a fan named Pablo Tamayo.

On June 6, Tamayo, who’s also an influencer and fashion designer, posted a TikTok of his meeting with Doja. On the surface, the video depicted a sweet interaction. The two exchanged hugs and bubbly compliments. Tamayo even gifted her his tank top, a cute offering from his fashion line.

While many saw this as harmless, Doja didn’t feel the same way. A week later, she called out his behavior in a series of now-deleted tweets. She wrote, “I threw that musty a** shirt away btw,” and, “…don’t touch me and manhandle me when you don’t even f***in know me.” 

What began as a cute fan encounter exploded into an online war. Many saw the moment as an invasive breach of Doja’s personal space and a toxic example of parasocial dynamics at play. Others argued that she shouldn’t have addressed it on such a public scale and let it go.

Regardless of where the majority stood, only one thing was certain: Tamayo’s success skyrocketed. His clothing brands, collaboration opportunities, and luxuries flourished. A single viral moment created the market for an entirely new fanbase, one centered around Tamayo himself rather than anti-Doja hate.

The Power of Drama

Doja herself is a poignant example of controversy and drama as a marketing tool. In 2023, her frustrations with fame and online parasocial relationships finally came to a head. In a series of Threads posts, fans and stan accounts alike wished for her to say she loves her fans. Doja clapped back, saying she doesn’t because she doesn’t know any of them. When some reminded her that fandom built her success, she ended her responses by saying that, “no one forces anyone to support her.” In another series of tweets, she called her chart-topping albums Hot Pink and Planet Her, “cash-grabs,” and, “mediocre pop.” Brutal moments of transparency that were shoved into many fans’ eyes.

While those statements stung, Doja later addressed them. In an interview with Billboard, she notes, “You’ll never see… me saying I hate my fans… it’s a really big misquoted thing… I do like to play with that as a meme… it’s not my responsibility to have them understand.” In other words, Doja’s abrasive attitude may be a product of an artistic rebrand and personality change rather than true hostility. Singles like, “Attention,” “Paint the Town Red,” and, “Demons,” from her recent album, Scarlet, put that rebrand on full display. Doja was disillusioned by the hot-pink, feminine aesthetics of her previous work and opted for darker, more aggressive iconography.

Ultimately, it proved successful. Her new persona garnered massive publicity, negative or otherwise. In another report by Billboard, “Paint the Town Red,” became her second number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 at the time and gained widespread virality as a TikTok audio. Whether or not controversy was part of a larger marketing plan, the drama worked.

Attention as a Platform Strategy

The same paradox of fame now follows Tamayo. Despite defenders of Doja sending negative attention towards his platforms, the drama resulted in a spike in attention. In a digital economy, algorithms reward engagement, and Tamayo made business moves based on that principle.

He’s now reached over 500,000 followers on TikTok, still making the occasional video referencing the situation. Most notably, his clothing collab brand, “BOY VIRGO X MELIMAYYSTUDIOS,” has found considerable financial success. He released another tank top similar to the one he was wearing that night, this time reading, “Musty a** shirt.” It directly mocks Doja’s initial tweet toward him and remains sold out, in addition to the other clothing products under that collab.

It would’ve been easy to fade into obscurity, especially after what might’ve been a humiliating situation for the young influencer. However, Tamayo has maintained his relevance by using the moment as a launchpad. A digital age of monetization requires creators not only to be influential but also strategic. Attention is currency, and the controversy could be leveraged. By creating a new shirt mocking Doja, he was able to earn the respect of new fans who wanted to see him come out on top.

While the incident may not have been intentional, the marketing moves were. Both Doja and Tamayo’s situations are glimpses into how our media landscape operates. A single moment of virality transformed into long-term cultural and financial impacts for the two creators, an ironic sentiment that binds them both.