HOME ME KE AHI
DOECHII
words by Michael Cuby
images by Kanya Iwana
Doechii has always set intentions for herself.
"I don't know how to explain this, but I just feel very intuitive and I know when I'm ready for certain things," the rapper tells me matter of factly one July afternoon, sitting at home in Los Angeles as she gets her glam done before a busy day of content creation and music making. "I have a very deep spiritual connection with God, so a lot of my intentions are just set from visions that I get."
Take her name, for example. Born Jaylah Hickmon, the recording artist started going by "ʻO Doechii" in middle school in a bold move to separate herself from her more conformist peers. "I was like, you know what? I'm going to be who I am. I'm going to be a superstar and brand myself." Though she "didn't even know what 'branding' was at the time," she knew she was meant to stand out. "I started wearing these tutus and coming up with silhouettes, just implementing my creativity. I started to mold this woman that God kept showing me I would be. And now, I'm her."
Whatever God's vision was, it must have included great success. Over the last seven years, Doechii has risen from the depths of Soundcloud to the upper reaches of the Billboard charts. Though she's yet to release an official debut album, she's already scored collaborations with artists like Janelle Monáe, Ravyn Lenae, and SZA. Doja Cat is a huge fan, as is UGK's Bun B. She's such a hot commodity right now that, when asked to reflect on 2023 alone, she has to pause to refresh her memory. "Coachella. ʻO kaʻu mele chart mua. A ʻo Billboard Women In Music i kēia makahiki pū kekahi, akau?" (Ua ___ ia. Ua lanakila ʻo ia i ka Rising Star Award.) Ua hana maopopo ka hoʻonohonoho ʻana i nā manaʻo no Doechii a hiki i kēia manawa. No laila ke ʻōlelo ʻo ia, "ʻO ka hope loa, He mea maikaʻi inā i ka wā e noʻonoʻo ai ka poʻe e pili ana i ka 'pop culture,' manaʻo lākou iaʻu," paʻakikī ke kunou ʻole i ka ʻike ʻana i ka ʻaelike.
I ka la o ko makou kahea ana, ʻO ka mele hou loa a Doechii, "He aha ia (Boy Block)," hiki i kahi piko hou ma nā pakuhi, e hoʻokokoke loa ana i luna o ka Billboard 50. ʻO kāna mele mua ia e hana ai pēlā. ʻO ke mele, a "nostalgic" R&B anthem that foregrounds her buttery soft vocals, He pivot mai nā mele paʻakikī āna i hōʻike ai ma ka hana hana rap e like me ka makahiki i hala "Lōlō" aka, o ka mea pena, nāna i helu iā Lauryn Hill lāua ʻo Erykah Badu i mea hoʻoikaika nui, he mea mau ia o ka chameleon mele. ʻO ka Tampa, ʻO ka maʻalahi o ka kamaʻāina Florida kekahi ʻāpana o kāna hoʻopiʻi. ʻO ia ka mea i ʻike ʻia e Top Dawg Entertainment, ʻO ia ka mea i hoʻopaʻa inoa iā ia i ka makahiki i hala ma ke ʻano he rapper wahine mua ma kā lākou papa inoa.
ʻAʻole i hoʻomaka ʻo Doechii me nā manaʻo manaʻo nui. Ua hoʻomaka ka mea pena i ka hana ʻana i kāna mele ponoʻī i kona hele ʻana i ke kula kiʻekiʻe ʻoihana, nā papahana hoʻopukapuka kālā me ke kālā āna i hana ai mai kāna kahawai YouTube kaulana a "Noho Ala, Noho ʻeleʻele" ʻoihana hoodie. Akā, ma hope o ka holomua o kona homegrown 2020 ʻO nā wahi āu e hele ai EP (a me kāna TikTok viral single "ʻO Yucky Blucky Fruitcake"), Ua ʻike ʻo Doechii ʻo ke kau inoa ʻana ka hana maʻamau aʻe. "ʻAʻole wau i makemake e lilo i mea pena kūʻokoʻa, " ʻae ʻo ia. "Makemake wau e lilo i superstar honua." ʻOiai ke kau nei i ka hoihoi mai nā lepili he nui, Doechii landed with TDE because of its legacy and the creative freedom she felt they provided. "Plus, it's Black owned," she adds. "And that was very important to me."
Shoes by Alexander McQueen
Being on a label made famous for breaking stars like Kendrick Lamar and SZA has, naturally, come with a fair amount of "good pressure." But as a former gymnast, Doechii thrives through regimented discipline. Since signing, she's only expanded her following, gaining new fans with the cheekily titled, five-song EP she / her / black bitch. (The title originated as a joke it's a reference to both Kendrick Lamar's "The Little Homies" production company and Diahann Carroll's infamous line about being "the first Black bitch on television.") She's also become a must see live act. After annihilating the Coachella stage this past April (and the BET Awards last summer), she's now gearing up to open for Doja Cat's highly anticipated Scarlet Tour this fall.
And that's not to mention her work on screen. Earlier this year, Doechii appeared in Earth Mama, Savanah Leaf's critically acclaimed A24 debut about a pregnant mother's struggles with the legal system. Playing the protagonist's super religious (and at times judgmental) best friend, Doechii exhibited a natural radiance on screen though that came as no surprise for anyone who has seen her inventive music videos. "The same way I tap into real emotions on stage is the same way that I tap into them on camera," the artist says of her first acting experience. "I'm just very in tune with my emotions, and I like to implement them whenever I'm performing."
It's incredible what she's achieved while staying completely true to herself. As a self admitted textbook Leo, Doechii cops to being "very ambitious and loyal and braggadocious, but also down to earth." One can sense her Leo like confidence in the way she has publicly navigated her queer identity. Even while still living in "redneck, racist, homophobic" Tampa, she recalls telling herself, "Okay, girl, you like girls. Who gives a fuck?" (The only other queer person she knew from her hometown, Matthew, still does her hair to this day.) And now, as Doechii pushes ever closer into the mainstream, she has maintained that attitude, proudly discussing her bisexuality through her music in her lyrics, beats, and visuals, as she does with the ballroom influenced "Persuasive." "It's just not a big deal. I just love who I love and that's it."
Ua ʻike nui ʻo ia i kona wā ʻōpio 24 (ua kokoke 25, ʻoiai makemake ʻo ia i ka ʻakaʻaka ua kokoke ʻo ia e huli 21), akā, aia kekahi mau mea ʻē aʻe a Doechii e makemake ai e hoʻokō i kāna ʻoihana. "Makemake au e hana i nā mea a pau ma ka ʻoihana hoʻokipa," ʻōlelo ʻo ia no ka pololei. "I kekahi lā, Makemake au e kuhikuhi. Malia paha e hele au i ke ʻano. ʻAʻole wau pili i kekahi mea." Ke paʻiʻia ma kahi o ka papahanaʻelima makahiki, ʻōlelo ʻo ia e makemake ana "e hāmama i kahi album i kēlā me kēia makahiki no nā makahiki ʻekolu e hiki mai ana." A ma hope o kēlā? "E hoʻomaha i hoʻokahi makahiki a e hoʻi mai me kahi puke mele mele e hoʻonāukiuki i ka poʻe a lilo ia i album inaina loa o nā manawa a pau."
Manaʻo wau he ʻakaʻaka ʻo ia, aka me Doechii, e manaʻo mau kekahi i ka mea i manaʻo ʻole ʻia. Ua haʻi nui ʻo ia iaʻu i ka wā e hoʻohenehene ana i kāna album mua inoa inoa nui e hiki mai ana, ka mea āna e hoʻomau nei ma ke ala no a 2023 hoʻokuʻu. ("ʻOiaʻiʻo ma mua o koʻu hele ʻana i ka huakaʻi me Doja," hoʻohiki ʻo ia.) "E hula ana ʻoukou. E leʻaleʻa maoli," hoʻokuʻu ʻo ia. Paʻa ʻo ia i ka lehelehe e pili ana i ke koena, e hōʻoia wale ana e ʻoi aku ka manaʻo o ka papahana hou ma mua o nā mea ʻē aʻe o kāna discography. He pivo hou ia no Doechii, ina ua mau kekahi mea. "ʻAʻole au makemake e hāʻawi i kekahi mea," ia nei. "Aka, ua hana au me ka manao maopopo loa."
