Obviously, she didn’t quit like she said she would in 2022. In fact, she immediately retracted her statement, tweeting “…I can give back to everyone because of you. I do owe people sh*t. I owe a lot.”

We’re generally used to Doja Cat’s eccentricities at this point, because, somehow, she just keeps bounces back. It’s enough to assume that, maybe, just like her feline moniker, her career also has nine lives. It’s just a question of which one she’s in and let’s hope she’s not running out. But, point is, she’s still prowling about and managed to follow up 2021’s Planet Her with two more albums: 2023’s Scarlet and, recently, 2025’s Vie – the subject of her current world tour.

Tour Ma Vie kicked off in Auckland, New Zealand last month, followed by four major Australian cities, namely, Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane, and a two shows in Sydney. After completing her run Down Under, it was time to cross to the neighboring continent.  

Manila was her first stop in her two-week Asian leg and, at the same time, her first in the Philippines, courtesy of Live Nation. And, to the surprise of many a casual follower, there was barely an empty seat in SM Mall of Asia Arena – guess we’ve forgiven her for misconstruing “Balut” as live poultry.

 As Vietnamese-American singer Sailorr served opening act duties, the crowd was already hyped, even more when DojiDoj ascended the illuminated platform. From there, the energy never dissipated.

As with prior stops, she opened with Vie’s first cut, “Cards”, which she mashed up with her SZA duet “Kiss Me More”. Hearing her first Grammy-winning song reduced to a minute-long sample wasa missed opportunity. But, with 25 more tracks lined up, the tweaks were understandable. Get Into It (Yuh) managed to make it slightly more whole, and as she segued to “Gorgeous”, she visibly felt the warm welcome. From there, she finally got to address the crowd before bouncing into “Take Me Dancing” and a shortened version of the megahit “Woman”. 

She descended the platform to deliver slow R&B, with cuts like “Acts of Service”, “Agora Hills”, “Make It Up”, “All Mine” and “Ain’t Shit”. And as the “Walk On By” interpolation began, the crowd launched into hysterics, signaling the start of “Paint the Town Red”, which she’s technically been doing over the past hour. And with bubble shooter in hand, she followed suit with “Silly! Fun!”, with the whole bit capturing the title’s spirit. After a costume change bluff, she proceeded with “Juicy” and “Need to Know”. 

A sample of Paul Anka’s Put Your Head on my Shoulder echoed as the arena grew pitch dark. And, as pyrotechnics suddenly spewed from the stage, the lights turned glaring red. Then came the most galvanizing act of the night, starting with “Streets”. Stripped off her polka-dot tanga, she touched base with her hiphop roots with “Wet V*g*na”, “WYM Freestyle”,“Demons”, and “Tia Tamera” – all that while the monitor flashed menacing images of her either sprawled on the stage floor or chewing on the microphone cord. It was electrifying, in the only way Doja can pull off. 

She finally toned it down with the Knight Rider-sampling “AAAHH MEN!”, the Spencer Davis Group cover “I’m a Man”, and the Birds of Prey anthem, “Boss Bitch”. 

Perched back up the platform, she serenaded the audience with the quirky ballad, “Stranger”, before taking her bow. But, of course, the show wasn’t quite over. She raised the tempo anew with “One More Time”, the only bit where she elicited crowd participation. She didn’t have to in the succeeding track, “Say So”, her biggest hit to date. Once again, everyone was on their feet.

Darkness fell once again, but this time, followed by intergalactic scoring and a sensual sax solo. By then, the show was really drawing to a close, with the single “Jealous Type” serving as the curtain call. 

As her first tour to include this side of the Pacific, it was a promising start for Tour Ma Vie, which is set to cover South America and Europe, before returning to home base next year. Given her recent controversies, the show more than indicated that she’s back on track. It was nothing less than a glute-shaking, knee-jerking, body-contorting spectacle.