In a blaze of glossy neon and devilish dare, Melbourne's Rod Laver Arena hosted an altar to the queen of chaotic pop, Doja Cat.
A night filled with sensational, surreal and sultry seduction, what a treat it was to descend into her fiery fever dream (25 November).
With her signature mix of camp, ferocity and demon-kissed charisma, the entire arena exhaled into her orbit as we willingly surrendered to the shimmering, unhinged energy she conjured so effortlessly.
Supported by rising R&B artist SAILORR, setting the tone with her smoky, velvet vocals; a hypnotic blend that dove further into the crimson-tinged dreamworld that would soon crack open under Doja's command.
As the crowd filtered into the cavernous bowl of Rod Laver, anticipation throbbed like a beating heart beneath the chatter and excitement.
The stadium lights glowed a feverish red (a prelude to the Tour Ma Vie world we were about to step into) and smeared eyeliner, red-coloured 'fits, sleek hairstyles, fishnets and glittered claws filled the crowd, each person a character in Doja's avant-pop playground.
SAILORR glided onto the stage with an effortless cool that immediately shifted the room's pulse. Bathed in iridescent blue light, it was as though she was drifting through the neon-lit outskirts of a kaleidoscopic dream.
Mellow beats, crystal-cut vocals and a cool groove that pulled the crowd closer with each song; from the moody ache of 'Pookie's Requiem' to the slick, attitude-soaked groove of 'Cut Up', SAILORR showcased the full spectrum of her emerging force magnetism.
Her sound carried that late-night-drive energy: a little brooding, a little sensual, perfectly tuned to the world Doja was about to unleash.
For an artist still on the rise, SAILORR held the arena with striking confidence, offering the ideal gateway to the chaos, glamour and feral theatrics of the Tour Ma Vie Melbourne show.
Then the lights cut. A scream rippled. The darkness thickened. Then in a velvet void, the space bloomed with electricity. A burst of brass shattered the darkness as the band strutted into view, leopard-print silhouettes prowling through the haze with powerful panache.
Doja emerged with her pink wig glowing, gold and leopard bodysuit shimmering; a feral, hyper-glam Weird Barbie stepping straight out of a neon-drenched delirium. She strutted forward with the energy of a deity who knows exactly how much power she's holding.
From the first bass throb, you could feel the air shift; we had stepped into her chaotic dream vortex. She launched into 'Cards', the sound hitting the crowd like a voltage surge.
Every gesture was choreographed seduction, every line a quiet snarl. The crowd moved as one enormous organism as we shook, screamed and worshiped.
As the familiar lyrics of 'Kiss Me More' echoed through the venue, the stage pulsed with hot pink light, charging the air with a flirtatious heat, as the room dripped in her signature blend of camp horror and glossy-pop glamour.
With her zebra-stripped mic in hand, Doja catapulted the arena into overdrive with 'Get Into It (Yuh)', the track hitting like a slap of cheeky attitude, bodies bouncing in a unified bop as she strutted across the stage like she owned every atom of the air.
Sliding effortlessly into 'Gorgeous', the energy shifted into something silkier; her vocals dripped with confidence as we were serenaded by a sax solo. Then came 'Take Me Dancing', a shimmering, flirtatious release that loosened every shoulder in the room.
Under soft, swirling smoke, the venue unfurled as a neon fantasy oozing with playful energy and drenched in romantic escapism. The night slipped into its most sensual hue when Doja glided into 'Woman', her presence dripping with divine feminine power as we swayed like one hypnotic tide.
Doja announced "if I give you something, you give it right back," as the room echoed back her chants as she dove into 'Acts Of Service' and deepened the mood. Its slow, burning pulse wrapped around her fans like warm breath on skin. The electricity in the air was intimate and indulgent.
Without breaking the spell, she slid into 'Agora Hills', a dreamy, honeyed fantasy that felt like dreaming about a crush; the crowd melted into every flirtatious line.
With a blast of fireworks onstage to kick it off, 'Make It Up' brought a sharper, sassier edge, her vocals playful and wicked as she toyed with the audience, all winks and twerking cheek.
'All Mine' unfurled like velvet at midnight with lush and undeniably seductive vibes. A slow exhale of desire that lit every corner of the arena in a soft, electric glow.
Then Doja hit the accelerator. 'Ain't Sh.t' cracked through the crowd like a collective scream, the crowd shouting every word with gleeful abandon as she prowled the stage.
Without giving anyone time to breathe, she detonated 'Paint The Town Red', its horns blaring through the arena like a victory march. Red lights flooded the room as thousands of bodies erupted into groove.
The chaos only amplified with 'Silly! Fun!', a wild, unhinged burst of attitude that felt like being at a crazed carnival. As we jiggled into 'Juicy' with its iconic bassline, Doja unleashed a cheeky, sweat-drenched ode to body confidence, complete with hypnotic twerking that sent the arena vibrating.
'Need To Know' dropped like a meteor, the beat hitting so hard it rattled the floor, the chorus erupting in breathless roar. It was Doja at her most explosively playful and impossibly commanding; a full-throttle reminder of why she owns every stage she steps on.
The night unfolded as a ritual of reinvention. We were on a journey through the feline queen's eras: alien, demon, villainess, seductress all stitched together with razor-sharp choreography and theatrical flair. With the stage lit in red hues, the cosmic kitty pounced in full force.
Her backup singers snapped in perfect sync, every gesture landing like a sharpened exclamation point. Fireworks flared across the stage as she tore into 'Streets' and 'Wet Vagina' with feral delight, the performance bordering on unhinged in the best possible way as echoes of "get nasty" rippled across the crowd.
During 'WYM Freestyle' Doja slid in and out of hypnotic floor-work, all sultry curves and slick confidence, owning every inch of the stage like it was built for her.
Clawing her way into the next chapter of the show with 'Demons', the stage erupted into a hellfire spectacle as she stalked through smoke with devilish precision. As she tossed her microphone between her legs, the entire arena thumped with that snarling, possessed bassline.
Without missing a beat, she flipped the energy into pure brat mode with 'Tia Tamera', every fan screamed every word back to the sultry show-kitten as she wrapped the mic cord around herself with deliberate, teasing precision, only to glide it free again in one smooth, serpentine motion.
Screaming "AAAHH MEN!" with a feral, electrically charged release that hit like a spell being cast in real time, the track's unhinged energy sent shockwaves through the room, with Doja leading the chant like a cult leader at the height of her power.
Doja flipped the script with 'I'm A Man', her gritty cover of The Spencer Davis Group classic landing like a challenge tossed straight at the universe. Stripped of its original bravado and rebuilt with her own fierce femininity, a moment where she toyed with gender, attitude and authority in a way only she can.
She launched from that smirk of defiance into 'Boss Bitch', a full-throttle explosion of confidence that sent the crowd into an adrenaline spiral; the arena pumped like a fist in the air. Ending the song with a mischievous grin, she intentionally broke off an acrylic nail and flung it into the audience: an utterly iconic Doja Cat move.
Just as the energy reached a fiery explosion, she softened the edges with 'One More Time', her voice dipping into something tender and glowing. The shift felt intimate, a breathy reminder that beneath all the claws, there's a heartbeat that still aches, longs and loves.
Followed by 'Say So', the disco-kissed hit that sent a glittery wave of nostalgia and pure joy rippling through the fans.
For the final chapter of the night, we heard 'Stranger', letting the lights dim into a dreamy, lavender haze as her vocals softened into something tender and aching: a rare glimpse into the quieter, more vulnerable corners of her universe.
Thousands of voices rose with hers as phone lights shimmered across the arena, the whole moment glowing like a shared memory suspended in time.
Closing with 'Jealous Type', she wrapped the room in a warm, honeyed glow, the track's pulse landing like the final exhale after a spectacular, breath-stealing show.
As she thanked her fans, the crowd responded in kind, lifting their phone lights in a shimmering wave back toward her, the arena glowing like a field of stars.
As the last notes lingered, confetti cannons burst overhead, turning the arena into a glittering storm of colour while Doja took a moment to shine her light outward; shouting out her band and her powerhouse backup singers.
Before slipping offstage, she leaned into the tenderness of the moment: tossing roses into the crowd, each one snatched with the kind of joy you only see at the end of a night. Then, with a sly smirk and a trail of smoke and sultry cheek behind her, she disappeared into the wings.
Doja Cat closed the night as only she can; with chaos, tenderness, humour and an artistry sharp enough to cut the air. From demonic theatrics to sultry floor-work, to glittering, rose-tossed affection, she proved herself not just a pop star, but a full-spectrum performer who thrives in the extremes.
After the final confetti fell, my friend Steph and I floated out into the night buzzing, decompressing and reliving every wild, beautiful moment in breathless detail.
Sharing such a bewitching show with her made the whole experience twice as magical. We spilled out of Rod Laver completely dazzled, still riding the afterglow of a night that didn’t quite feel real.
