Earlier this month at the Grammys, one artist stood out and really made her mark. Doechii’s performance at the awards show blew away fans and critics and left people talking about it for days after. Billboard even called it “a moment that most observers considered the best of the night — and perhaps one of the best in Grammy history.” But where did Doechii start and how did she get here?
While her first song “Girls” was released in 2018, some first found Doechii in 2020 through a TikTok trend. Her song “Yucky Blucky Fruitcake,” released Sept. 23, 2020, made its rounds on TikTok where people would post their younger, often high school, selves and transition to their current selves, showing their “glow-ups.” This trend and song helped her gain recognition, as one of the first lines in the song is “Hi, my name’s Doechii with two i’s.” Â
Three years later, she released an even bigger song. In March of 2023, “What It Is (Block Boy)” dropped as a collaboration with Kodak Black. TikTok also helped give this song its fame, as the official sound on TikTok has around 2.7 million posts. “What It Is (Solo Version)” is still currently her most streamed song on Spotify, with over 365 million streams.Â
Doechii likely gained an even bigger fanbase and started moving into mainstream music after being featured on Tyler, The Creator’s latest album “CHROMAKOPIA”, released Oct. 28, 2024. She is featured on the last half of the song “Balloon,” which many fans have claimed to love and even be their favorite on the album. The song currently has over 94 million streams on Spotify and gave many fans a newfound appreciation for Doechii’s talent.
She once again had another song go viral, and made her name known with “DENIAL IS A RIVER” off her most recent album. The song has over 169 million Spotify streams making it the biggest song on the album. The music video, which has the style of a sitcom, has amassed 34 million views on YouTube and is filled with cameos of actors and rappers, including Zach Fox, Rickey Thompson, ScHoolboy Q and Teezo Touchdown. Her live performances of the song also went viral; she performed on Genius Open Mic with actress Issa Rae voicing her “therapist” in the song, and stood out on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert with her choreography and stage presence.
Doechii solidified her rise to fame this February with her Grammy win for Best Rap Album. She was also nominated for Best New Artist and Best Rap Performance for her song “NISSAN ALTIMA.” Her now award-winning album “Alligator Bites Never Heal,” released on August 30, 2024, has been praised for its uniqueness and versatility. Her skills and emotions are strongly on display on every song throughout the album.Â
Lily Goldberg, writer for “Pitchfork,” calls the album “her most ambitious and musically diverse release to date,” and comments that it “reprises her playful and melodic sides without skimping on hard-hitting hip-hop.”
Rappers getting their fame from TikTok can be a hit or miss. Some, like Megan Thee Stallion, use it as an outlet to get discovered and gain a wider audience, but others cater their songs only to TikTok, leading to either being a one-hit-wonder or only having their fifteen minutes of fame. While some wonder if Doechii will be a passing phase like some artists deemed “TikTok rappers”, her unique style and recognition assures that she is here to stay.