Swamp Princess Wins Grammy: Doechii's Historic Win, How She Celebrated

Doechii at 2025 Grammys

If you haven't been keeping up with Doechii, the self-professed don, dean and swamp ruler of rap — it's time you tune in. If you caught wind of her before the Grammy Awards, you probably knew that nabbing a win and lighting the stage on fire would be light work for her. Doechii's win cements her status as one of the most exciting talents in rap, considering that she's only the third woman to take home "Best Rap Album," and she didn't let the crowd forget it.

Pitted against legends like Common, Pete Rock and Eminem, the competition was tough, but Doechii's 19-track mixtape "Alligator Bites Never Heal" was more than enough to have Cardi B giggling with excitement as she presented the nominees for "Best Rap Album." Decorated in a sharp Thom Browne suit with parachute-style pants reminiscent of David Byrne's "Stop Making Sense" look, Doechii wanted "a certain taste level and an eye to immediately understand it."

As her idol, Tyler, The Creator, did when winning the same Grammy in 2020, Doechii brought her mom on stage to accept the award. Her speech delivered the same punch as her lyrics, leaving future generations of women with the message, "Don't allow anybody to project any stereotypes on you that tell you that you can't be here, that you're too dark, or that you're not smart enough or that you're too dramatic or you're too loud. You are exactly who you need to be, to be right where you are, and I am a testimony."

"Best Rap Album" wasn't the only category Doechii established herself in. Picking up a "Best Rap Performance" nomination was no surprise, but getting a nomination for "Best New Artist" got her fanbase, cheekily referred to as "The Swamp," riled up. Being nominated against ex-Top Dawg Entertainment member Kendrick Lamar may have been an impossibly uphill battle, but her incredible performance on "NISSAN ALTIMA" proves Doechii's game.

Facing heavyweights Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter made winning "Best New Artist" also unlikely, but the recognition was enough to brag about. Like many of her fellow nominees, calling Doechii a "new artist" is unfair, since she's been making music for years. However, she used her opportunity as one of the nominees to deliver one of the best Grammy performances in recent history.

Following a miserable Benson Boone showing, a group of whistling Doechii-dressed dancers entered the crowd. Doechii appeared on stage surrounded by mirrors of herself. From the first beat, the choreography was on point as she headed into "CATFISH." It's one of the more explosive songs on "Alligator Bites Never Heal" and a perfect statement to start her set. As "CATFISH" died down, Doechii's emcee, DJ Miss Milan, grabbed the mic, introducing the scene for the raunchy "DENIAL IS A RIVER."

Surprising to Doechii, this song's quickly become her biggest hit, and for good reason. She brought the conversation in "DENIAL IS A RIVER" to life using an airport-like walking escalator, with DJ Miss Milan matching her every move. The dancers suddenly fled, and Doechii took centerstage for a one-woman show.

With jazzy production and a youthful tap sequence, Doechii concluded her show with fire. Her performance brought Jay-Z and SZA to their feet — and no one wanted to follow Doechii's all-time showing.

To celebrate her win, Doechii dropped an all-new track, "Nosebleeds," a two-minute victory lap. Memorializing her win in style, she paid homage to Kanye West in her track — "Everybody wanted to know what Doechii would do if she didn't win, I guess we'll never— ." Without taking many breaths, Doechii left fans with one last reminder of why she's all that.

The historic run Doechii has been on since dropping "Alligator Bites Never Heal" is clearly not stopping anytime soon. With rumors that she'll join Kendrick Lamar and SZA's "Grand National Tour," Doechii's star-power is only growing by the day. So, don't be surprised if her debut album lights up the charts next year.

(Originally published for The Daily Targum, February 2025)