The music industry loves a formula: a perfect, marketable pop star whose impressive discography is compiled with the help of 40 different songwriters. Their songs, while catchy, are curated to fit social media algorithms, sacrificing authenticity for streams. Jaylah Ji’mya Hickmon—known by her stage name as Doechii—takes a risk by being herself and straying away from what is expected of her, standing out in an industry saturated with content constructed for virality.
Despite Doechii’s recent indifference towards “TikTok hits,” she strikes a balance between authenticity and virality. As a result, several of her songs have gone viral across social media platforms. I first saw Doechii in my TikTok feed in a clip of her singing “NISSAN ALTIMA” in her performance with Tiny Desk, performing her debut album, “Alligator Bites Never Heal.” In the span of about 30 seconds, the talent of Doechii and her entourage of Black female musicians immediately jumped off the screen. I even put an end to my doom-scrolling to watch the performance in its entirety. I fell in love with the jazz instrumentation, a refreshing change to the abundant trap-beat style used in a lot of modern rap. Their dreamy, jazzy, and dynamic instrumentals perfectly supported Doechii’s strong vocals.
Doechii’s ability to perform was instantly apparent. She commanded the stage with her intense flow and vocals, making for an unforgettable concert. Doechii has something many musicians in the industry lack: passion and authenticity.
“Rap is about having heart. It’s not about a formula,” Doechii said in an interview with Rolling Stone. “It’s about us expressing ourselves freely.”
Doechii’s music is a fusion of past and the present, pulling inspiration from hip hop and R&B artists while carving out a sound that is entirely her own. Evident in her animated rap delivery, versatility, and storytelling abilities, Doechii pays tribute to icons such as Nicki Minaj, Lauryn Hill, and Kendrick Lamar. Despite these clear inspirations, Doechii refuses to be confined by imitation—her production combines ethereal synths, bass-heavy beats, and creative sound-bites, creating her own innovative sound.
“Alligator Bites Never Heal” was never meant for the charts. It wasn’t even supposed to be an album—it was released as a mixtape. While albums are a high-quality collection of songs, intentionally structured and curated for an audience, mixtapes are merely a collection of songs, a creative project usually without the constraints an album might have.
“I want 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,’” Doechii said in the same interview.
With previous hits like “What it is,” “Persuasive,” and “Yucky Blucky Fruitcake,” Doechii has had her fair share of TikTok success. I never would’ve guessed these songs and “Alligator Bites Never Heal” were made by the same person. While Doechii’s viral success greatly elevated her music career, she felt as if her label, now with TikTok-oriented music in mind, was cramping her creative control.
“It felt like at that time, that particular formula was diluting my story, my ability to be vulnerable. It was diluting my creativity. Music is about creativity and therapy for me and at some point I lost sight of that,” Doechii said in an interview with Genius.
Once Doechii decided to stop being so dependent on her label’s opinion and began to believe in herself, she was able to tell her story with a certain rawness and vulnerability unseen in recent years.
The fourth track on the mixtape, “DENIAL IS A RIVER,” has become a viral phenomenon, predicted to peak at No. 21 on the Billboard Top 100. Despite its seemingly lighthearted, humorous nature, the song is fairly dark, detailing some of Doechii’s experiences over the years including substance abuse, depression, failed relationships, and more.
My personal favorite song of hers would have to be the third track on the mixtape, “BOILED PEANUTS.” A brilliantly used saxophone sample from “Jano’s Revenge” by Los Sospechos creates tension and adds to the song’s undeniable groove. As always, Doechii’s lyricism is top notch. With introspective lines such as “I’ve been resting with my peace, that’s the irony, I’m a dying sunflower leaving a trail of seeds.” Her delivery is almost conversational, as if she’s working through her thoughts in real time, making for a personal listening experience.
Through her unconventional structuring and contemplative narrative, Doechii tells her story her way, taking us on an electrifying, insightful journey. Sick of doubting herself, Doechii ignored her label’s restrictive ideas and poured her heart into this mixtape. Now, Doechii is a Grammy-award-winning artist for said mixtape. “Alligator Bites Never Heal” paints an unapologetic, raw self-portrait of Doechii that breaks all rules of convention.
Doechii’s rise from an underground artist to a rap icon has been fueled by her raw talent, creativity, vulnerability, and unapologetic authenticity, solidifying her status as a transformative figure in mainstream music.