Doechii’s post-Alligator Bites Never Heal ascendance into rap stardom isn’t a new dynamic. But it’s been a while since we’ve seen a rap star ascendance that’s not paired with controversial allegations, a zest for riling the public into social engagement, or dog whistling to incels. Her appeal is mostly based on her music, savvy creative direction, and considerable charisma. Watching her rise feels like a return to a bygone era of the music industry that Gen Z fans have never seen in a hip-hop context. Maybe that’s why some are so skeptical about her.
If the disdain is strictly about not liking the music, that’s fine. No one has to enjoy everything. But the loudest online discourse feels more like projections of misogyny, queerphobia, colorism, and a fundamental misunderstanding of how the industry works. She’s often faced commenters calling her an industry plant, an attack that popped up again this weekend when a clip from a recent First We Feast appearance went viral.
In the video, Doechii tells her DJ, Miss Milan, that a dating red flag for her is “straight men,” which outraged the men that idolize rappers who routinely call women everything but a child of god. She was accused of being a part of an anti-male agenda. Some surmised that since they didn’t know why she was becoming such a star, anti-heterosexual male sentiment must have been her trade-off. She was derogatively called a “bell hooks baby” by pseudointellectuals seemingly harboring all the classified documents about popular media being an anti-straight male psyop. Somehow, few, if any of them acknowledged the rise of incel culture, and publicly available stats on gender violence that would justify an openly queer woman being cautious of a straight man. The outrage, insults, and lack of accountability her comments garnered proved her point. Only those blind to the reality of patriarchy as a violent agenda would consider critique and pushback to it as an agenda of its own.
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This was just the latest social media firestorm surrounding Doechii, who has faced a new demeaning talking point with every industry accomplishment. She was accused of making “slave and Harriet Tubman music” in a viral X quote post to her Stephen Colbert performance. Azealia Banks called her an “ugly version” of her. And those who don’t insult her are making their ire for the industry her fault. Major labels’ fixation on virality as the main arbiter of investment has created an environment where we view artists as viral trends instead of human beings. The luster of “Not Like Us” fades when we see Kamala Harris using it at a campaign rally. That’s why the same fans see a surging star trend one too many times and call foul. Save for the circle of old guard music superstars, the industry relies on a conveyor belt of viral acts who often don’t have the talent for the long haul. When the novelty fades, so does the artist. That’s why we get so unsettled when we see a new artist who doesn’t seem poised for the falloff.
That’s not Doechii’s problem, though. Her 11-year journey is still online to observe on her personal YouTube account, including a chronicling of the moment she was fired from an unsatisfying job and decided to pursue music full-time. She told Rolling Stone in 2023 that she got her start putting on all-women rap shows called the Coven Showcase in her native Tampa. She uploaded Coven Music Session, Vol. 1 in 2019 and Oh the Places You’ll Go in 2020, refining her sound over time. In 2023, she said her next project would be a “conceptual album” that’s ready for the summer; it seems like she went to the drawing board with Alligator Bites Never Heal. She also sought to better herself as a person, getting sober and reading books like The Artist’s Way. “The only moment that exists is literally right now…“I realized, ‘OK, in this moment, if now is all that exists, do I really want to be scared right now?’ No. Bitch, I want to make a great song, and I want to have fun.“ But instead of being inspired that her focus on self-improvement engendered the stardom she sought, her detractors pick for reasons that her success is invalid. Perhaps they should ask themselves if their needless skepticism is a fair reward for overcoming fear.
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Doechii’s buzz has made her the belle of Paris Fashion Week, where she made her runway debut for DSquared2 and had several other notable appearances. And seemingly straight off the plane, she recently took the stage with Lauryn Hill at Miami’s Jazz in the Garden festival. Those upset that she’s forging such powerful connections don’t seem to realize that it’s what’s historically happened in the music industry. Labels heavily invest in acts they believe in, and powerful brands partner with them while legendary acts take notice of them. In recent years, we’ve become so used to seeing labels deprioritize marketing that a successful campaign feels like a nefarious agenda instead of successfully performing its job function. It’s fine to be annoyed that the label is trying to make you like something. But marketing isn’t some covert strategy. And it doesn’t feel fair to transfer that annoyance to a talented act.
“Industry plant” is one of those buzzwords that’s never had a universally agreed-upon meaning. It may fit for an artist who popped up out of nowhere while neglecting to mention having a powerful family member in the industry. But it doesn’t fit the profile of Doechii, a 10-year veteran who delivered a polished, adventurous project and paired it with fun music videos and creative direction. She’s a true definition of the “overnight star” being a decade in the making, and she worked hard to warrant the marketing push she’s received.
At the same time that rap fans bemoan the death of rap stardom, there’s dismay that Doechii is becoming a rap star. It’s a befuddling dynamic. Some may legitimately feel like her playful, animated delivery isn’t for them. But the armchair A&Ring has reached a phase of outsmarting itself, where we’re mad at her because her label invested in her — and she met the moment. Most disappointingly though, some of the pushback feels rooted in her being a darkskin, queer Black woman. In this anti-Black country, that’s unfortunately three strikes against an artist.
