Doechii: Hip-Hop’s New Top Dawg
By: Grace Malone
From the spark of fame on TikTok that ignited her career, to eventually being the first female rapper signed to Top Dawg Entertainment, Jaylah Ji'mya Hickmon – known professionally as Doechii – is upturning the scene of alternative hip-hop. As a queer woman on a mission to shatter stereotypes associated with black, female rappers, she holds her own clear vision of the future for the music industry.
Hailing from Tampa, Florida, and with an education based in the performing arts, she started a teenage rap career marked by distinctive creativity with the release of her debut song “Girls” on SoundCloud in 2016. Continuing her staple sound marked by experimentation, just three years later she released her first project: Coven Music Session, Vol. 1. Boasting nine relatively brief singles, this project gave a preview of the genre-bending Doechii that is at the forefront of female rap today; the songs entice listeners with their dark, punching production and instrumentation led by Doechii’s twisting, clever verses and vocals.
Her first self-funded EP, Oh the Places You’ll Go, was released in 2020 and tells a clever narrative focused on themes of childhood and education. A mix of dance, hip-hop, and pop music, and exhibiting inspiration from artists like Nicki Minaj and Ms. Lauryn Hill, the EP seems to be Doechii’s means of formally introducing herself to the alternative hip-hop scene.
This introduction saw its grandest success in 2021, with Doechii gaining mainstream exposure after a single from the EP, “Yucky Blucky Fruitcake,” went viral on TikTok. With this newfound exposure under her belt and rising attention from record labels, Doechii conquered 2021. All in the same year, she released her dynamic, yet short second EP appropriately titled Bra-Less for the pointed transparency among its four singles and featured on Isaiah Rashad’s song “Wat U Sed,” which she performed with him at the 2021 BET Hip Hop Awards.
In March of 2022, after she had turned down offers from other major labels, Doechii found her place by signing with Top Dawg Entertainment. An ever-growing force in the female hip-hop space, Doechii felt that TDE would allow her to continue to carve out her corner of the music industry influenced by potent femininity and queerness.
Now with the backing of TDE, Doechii’s first major label releases “Persuasive” and “Crazy'' demonstrate her refusal to stick to any set formula. With a focus on unapologetically loud and aggressive vocals, lyrics, and visuals, it’s clear that Doechii refuses to adhere to the box commonly placed around women in the rap scene.
Her most recent endeavor, an EP titled she / her / black bitch, includes features from SZA and Rico Nasty. A clear view of Doechii’s future as an artist can be heard in the crisp production and hard-hitting vocals: her career can only go up from here.
