Which Dionne Warwick track did Doja Cat sample for Paint The Town Red? Singer says some of rapper's "music is not for my ears"

Dionne Warwick was surprised when her grandchild informed her that one of her classics had been sampled for a Doja Cat track. The 83-year-old veteran opened up about her thoughts on this generation's music and how it has developed. She revealed some of her current favorite singers in an August 1, 2024 interview with US Weekly.

Dionne Warwick revealed she had gotten to know last year that Doja Cat had sampled her 1963 hit Walk On By in her 2023 track Paint The Town Red when her grandchild informed her. Dionne Warwick wasn't even aware of who Doja Cat was. She recalled,

“My grandchild calls me Grammy. Grammy, do you know who you’re on a recording with?’ I said, Doja, who? No, I don’t know Doja Cat. She’s not the only one that’s taken my music. But it was quite surprising."

The singer further commented on the importance of being an inspiration to today's generation of singers and musicians.

"First of all, that these kids know who I am. So being current and being someone that apparently has inspired some of these children musically is an important thing as well."

Talking about Doja Cat's works, the veteran singer thought that "some of her music is not for my ears" but was quite surprised that Doja Cat had sampled her work in one of her songs.

“Some of her music is not for my ears. But it was quite interesting because I had no idea of this yet, the idea to use ‘Walk On By’ in one of her songs.”

Paint The Town Red was a huge commercial success after its release on August 4, 2023. The song became the first solo musical number by a female rapper to hit the peak of the UK Singles Chart and also topped the Billboard Hot 100. It also broke many streaming records on Spotify by becoming the fastest solo female rap track to amass over a hundred million streams on the streaming giant.

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"Talent is not the precedence" — Dionne Warwick opens up about the modern music industry

Dionne Warwick - Source: Getty (Photo by Barbara Alper/Getty Images)

In the interview with US Weekly, Dionne Warwick shared her thoughts on today's music industry. According to the 83-year-old, the current industry is youth-oriented, which was the case in her prime as well. However, the veteran singer opined that the industry doesn't prioritize raw talent anymore and is often solely driven by appearance and image.

“It’s a youth-oriented industry today – which doesn’t surprise me because when I was coming through, it was a youth-oriented industry.”

She continued,

“I find it quite interesting that talent is not the precedence. It’s how little you can wear, how much you can shake your body, how different you have chosen to look. It’s another industry altogether.”

However, Warwick also had good things to say about certain juggernauts of this generation, whom she admired. The 83-year-old singled out Justin Bieber and Justin Timberlake as artists whose works are inspiring.

“There are a few artists that I find quite entertaining. Some of the things that Justin Bieber has done are very inspiring. Justin Timberlake, he’s a real artist. He sings his little behind off.”

Finally, she praised Beyonce and Alicia Keys and raved about Beyonce's growth in the industry. According to Dionne, Alicia Keys was also extremely "talented and very positive."