SATVIKA NITYA / CONTRIBUTOR

Hold on to your horses — or your alligators — because there is a new rapper that  everyone  is talking  about. Doechii,  a Tampa-born songwriter, rapper and artist, has recently risen to stardom in  both  the  hip-hop  world and the overall music industry. However, this apparent “overnight trip” to success, where Doechii’s title is becoming a household name, is anything but that. In fact, it is a long winding journey that spans many years. 

Doechii’s story started  off with her growing up as Jaylah Ji’mya Hickmon in the state of Florida. Surrounded in her childhood by her dad and uncle who  were  both  rappers,  Hickmon was consistently in touch with music throughout her life. However,  it  wasn’t  until a few months after Hickmon’s senior year  of  high school that she started  dipping her own toes in the  water. After  being   prompted by one of her closest friends to produce and release her own music online, Hickmon released  her first ever song in 2016 called “Girls” on  Soundcloud under the name “Iamdoechii.” 

For Doechii, her artist name was an alternate reality — an identity  she built up  with 10    times   the   confidence  and  attitude  than  her  shy  high  school  self — that she  used to  make and release music on platforms across the internet for years. She elaborated  on  this   in  an  interview   with  Vulture   Magazine. 

“I am Doechii,” Doechii said. “It just came to me. Jaylah might’ve been getting bullied, but I decided Doechii wouldn’t stand for that shit. My whole attitude was different. It stuck,” 

As Doechii, her music made a breakthrough into the music world in 2020 with the release of her viral single “Yucky Blucky Fruitcake.”

The beginning of 2021 was marked with TikTok trends that surrounded Doechii’s song. By the  end of March  2022, she  was the first  female rapper to  be  signed to Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) — one of the biggest labels in the game with artists like Kendrick Lamar and SZA under its belt. 

Despite signing with TDE    being  a significant  achievement, it wasn’t Doechii’s first rodeo in creating larger pieces of music.  By the time she was signed, Doechii  had already  independently produced, written, recorded and released two full albums —  “Coven Music Session, Vol. 1” and “Oh The Places You’ll Go.” Signing with TDE supported her already growing musical discography.

Since 2022, Doechii’s career has been painted with numerous unforgettable moments. From hit singles, a third album and award nominations to bagging song features with artists like Kodak Black, SZA and KAYTRANADA, Doechii’s career was on a steady uprise.

But her biggest and most remarkable come-up happened in 2024 with the  release  of  her  project “Alligator Bites Never Heal.” This album quickly gained popularity among Doechii’s usual fanbase, but also expanded way beyond. The album’s musical versatility and lack of genre conformity paired with Doechii’s emotional and lyrical vulnerability provided something refreshing and new, making the project appealing to a large audience. The album moves away from everything that is expected from an album. In fact, it’s not even called an album. In Doechii’s words, it is a mixtape. 

With “Alligator Bites Never Heal,” Doechii took on a risk that most artists releasing their fourth album would never do —  she changed the creative formula that has historically worked in the music industry. She made the decision to  experiment with sounds that are new to her, eliminating the idea of having a consistent genre, sequence and sound  for  a  project.  In  an  interview with Rolling Stone, Doechii talked about the freedom of creating without the need for perfection.

The album cover for Doechii’s most recent album, ‘Alligator Bites Never Heal.’ Photo courtesy of @doechii/Instagram

“When you use words like ‘album,’ there are certain politics that come  with that,” Doechii said. “With this mixtape, I wanted to be able to cry and scream and color and scribble all over it and not have to worry about perfection and be able to detach myself from this idea of the perfect project.”

USD senior Evan Jefferson who is an avid rap listener spoke on the distinctiveness of Doechii’s work and why he found it alluring.

“She’s a very experimental rapper, and that is such an unconventional side of rap that you usually don’t get to see,” Jefferson said. “When you think of rap you don’t think of instrumentals and musicality.  I prefer alternative rap rather than a straight rap song. I like to hear the melody, the lyricism, the production. Doechii incorporates a lot of that into her music and that’s what gravitated me toward her.”

Another risk that Doechii took on this mixtape was a more personal one than a business strategy. Unlike her other projects, Doechii openly explained her history with substance abuse, relationship trauma and struggles with mental  health throughout  this project. She posed a sharp contrast between her captivatingly jovial  flow and  jarringly  vulnerable lyrics, a combination that has hit the jackpot for the masses.

USD     sophomore   Nyla    Brown,  who    discovered   Doechii   in   her   early    days   and   rediscovered her after the recent mixtape release, shared her experience listening to Doechii’s music.

“A lot of rappers out there make the same seven songs about drugs, alcohol and sex, following this specific formula that gets  tiring after a while,” Brown said. “But Doechii’s music is so incredibly clever and impeccable. Her vulnerability and her talking about deeper issues through her lyrics shows how authentic she is. Her storytelling is so unique. Earlier people knew Doechii’s songs, but now they know Doechii because she’s creating that autonomy and being very raw, authentic and unapologetically herself.”

The fourth song from Doechii’s mixtape, “DENIAL IS A RIVER,” quickly became one of her biggest hits because of this exploration of personal stories. The song is a direct inspiration from one of Doechii’s diary entries from when she discovered that one of her partners was cheating on her with another man, referencing Wendy Williams’ iconic quote — “Denial is a river in Egypt, your husband is gay!” The song later delves into Doechii’s personal denial when dealing with her issues with substances as we see her negotiate and converse with her own alter-ego.

This cleverness and wit in  her lyricism is  what  captured  the ears of listeners outside the world of hip-hop and rap. USD sophomore Priya  Hecox  explained why despite not being an avid rap listener, Doechii’s music  has  caught  her musical  ear.

“I am not a big rap fan normally, but I like Doechii’s music because I like how fun and unserious it is while bringing something so powerful to the rap and music industry,” Hecox said. “She does a really good job of making her music super fun to listen to while still making the audience do a double take and think about her lyrics. She’s such a fun vibe,  especially  when  I’m  in  the gym or I need to hype myself up.”

The allure of Doechii’s mixtape is also shared  by critics in the music  industry.  2024’s  success followed Doechii into the new year as she won her first Grammy  for her mixtape  under the Best Rap  Album category. This made her the third woman to ever win in this category after Lauryn Hill and Cardi B. Shortly after her win, Doechii gave a memorable performance at the Grammys, rapping her songs “CATFISH” and “DENIAL IS A RIVER”  with  an   operatic  twist and breathtaking choreography. This  act   following   her  historic   win  further  established  her  stature not only as an artist in the music industry but also as a performer.

“Generally, it’s been a lot harder for women rappers to break into the industry, especially at the level of fame [Doechii] has,” Jefferson said. “A lot of  people don’t like female rap music because it can  come  off  as  very  promiscuous, it’s really sad. I think she strays away from that stereotype, and that’s part of the reason why she has gotten so much fame. It’s a really impressive feat to have won that award. Especially when the contenders were all male rappers like Common and Eminem.”

Doechii  professed that  making music is like therapy  for her —  she gets  to  process  emotions, life events and trauma when writing and producing her work. Within a day of winning her first Grammy, Doechii put out a new single called “Nosebleeds,” which commented  on her  receiving the  award and the world’s reaction to it. Seeing the force with which she has entered 2025, it is safe to say that the music industry is awaiting a Doechii takeover.

Doechii won her first ever Grammy this year for Best Rap Album. Photo courtesy of @thefashionherotv/Instagram