Released: 2014
Doja Cat’s “So High” is an intoxicating blend of R&B and hip-hop, with lyrics that skate the razor’s edge between literal and metaphorical interpretations of getting high. At its core, the song’s a love letter to the euphoria one feels under the influence, not just of substances but of attraction and desire. Doja equates the heady, disorienting feeling of new love or lust with the experience of getting high on drugs, using the former to cleverly illustrate the latter.
The opening lines dive straight into a rapid-fire listing of substances, “Blow, weed, coke, pop X, Speedin’ up the heartbeat bangin’ in my chest.” She’s not holding back, setting the scene with a heart racing from the cocktail of drugs, but there’s a deeper layer too. It’s about how these substances, or rather the person she’s with, electrify her senses, speeding her heartbeat, a visceral, physical reaction to either being in love or high—or both. “When you put it on me you relieve my stress,” she admits, equating the relief she feels from drugs with the comfort she finds in her lover’s presence. The repetition of “You get me so high” serves as the hook and core message, emphasizing the intoxicating effect this person has on her, likened to, but distinctly not, a drug. It’s a declaration of how love, or lust, can be just as potent and consuming as any chemical high.
Into the second verse, Doja gets more explicit about the intertwining of substance and relationship, “Weed always on my mind / Now he always on my mind.” This lyrical transition from being fixated on drugs to being preoccupied with a person reinforces the song’s main theme. She offers up a cheeky, flirtatious invitation, “Know you want some of this purr.” Here, “purr” is double entendre, playing on both the sound a cat makes (nodding to her stage name, Doja ‘Cat’) and a euphemism for her own allure and sexuality. The lines following, describing rolling blunts and the effects of getting high together, serve not only as a visualization of drug use but also as a metaphor for the highs of their relationship, suggesting a mutual indulgence in both.
The song tapers with “Six hits, ten pounds, gone off Patrón,” a line that superficially references consuming a significant amount of drugs and alcohol, yet mirrors the excessive, indulgent nature of their relationship. It’s about getting lost in the sauce, whether that’s love, drugs, or the intoxicating cocktail of both. The repetition emphasizes the cycle of indulgence, suggesting it’s a continuous loop of highs that they’re caught in.
“So High” by Doja Cat walks a fine line, cloaking its love story in the haziness of a drug-fueled escapade. It’s both a celebration of the dizzying highs of love and an acknowledgment of the overpowering, sometimes overwhelming, intoxication of desire and substance. Doja’s lyrical craftsmanship shines, drawing parallels between the two worlds in a way that’s both poetic and potent, making “So High” a hypnotic ode to the highs we chase, in whatever form they come.
