Doechii: The Only Choice for Best New Artist

The Swamp Princess has earned her rightful place as the Swamp Queen. Let the Grammys be her coronation ceremony.

Credit: Astrida Valigorsky/Getty Images

It’s that time again. Grammy season is upon us. The official ceremony is scheduled to take place on February 2nd, and nominations were revealed back in November. Now is the time for artists vying for any last-minute votes to kick their campaigns into high gear, and nobody has been running a better campaign than this year’s sole female emcee nominated for Best New Artist, Doechii. Considered one of the prestigious “Big Four” Grammy categories (the other three being Album, Song, and Record of the Year) Best New Artist is a highly competitive award, and the race has never been tighter. In previous years this category has been a runaway, with a clear frontrunner who dominated the industry in their respective year of eligibility- think Megan Thee Stallion in 2020 or Olivia Rodrigo in 2021. This year is one of the most dynamic in recent memory, with pop phenoms Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan among the nominees, as well as budding country star Shaboozey, soulful crooner Teddy Swims, and pop/rock juggernaut Benson Boone. You’d be reasonable to wonder how a notably less popular artist like Doechii could hold a candle to any of these more established acts. Like the Florida Alligator representative of Doechii’s swamp princess brand, she’s been stealthily crawling her way into the mainstream, and she’s ready to shut her jaws on the prize.

Grammy etiquette is something that many pretend to understand, but few truly do, myself included. The point of this piece is not to explore the eligibility requirements either, so don’t expect me to explain why artists who are several albums deep are still eligible for Best New Artist. I know that voting is arbitrary, and accusations of voter bias arise every time an artist’s fandom is unhappy with the results. While I can’t say for sure that there is any systematic bias built into the Grammy voting system, I can say, with certainty, that courting voters is nothing new. Most artists do so in a more lowkey fashion- flower bouquets, fruit baskets, etc. By removing the shadowy elements of the practice and placing herself and her work center stage, Doechii is playing the game her own way. Not only does she intend to prove to voters why her undeniable talent is worthy of their vote, she’s making her case before the general public in a way new artists haven’t done in close to a decade. When they call her up to the stage to collect her trophy, she wants you to know her name.

Doechii has been steadily releasing EPs and mixtapes since the late-2010s, with her first self-released mixtape, Coven Music Session, Vol. 1, arriving in 2019. She has since released two EPs, a string of standalone singles, and two additional mixtapes- her most recent, Alligator Bites Never Heal, earned her three Grammy nominations this year. Her breakout moment arrived in 2022 with a SZA-assisted remix of her track “Persuasive,” a slick hip-house track exalting the heady ecstasy of marijuana. This was followed by “What It Is (Block Boy)” in 2023, a bouncy R&B track featuring fellow Floridian rapper Kodak Black. This version of the track was initially presented as the primary, but has gone on to be eclipsed in streams by the solo version. “What It Is” became Doechii’s first entry on the Billboard Hot 100, jutting her off in a commercial direction that clashed with her artistic inclinations, and was eventually course-corrected with the release of Alligator Bites Never Heal. Despite the success of “What It Is,” Doechii felt confined by the TikTok-ified sound her label was pushing. She hinted at the impending release of her major label debut, but standalone singles kept arriving and a stint opening for Doja Cat commenced, and there was still no project in sight. It became clear to fans that something was askew, and when Doechii began her Swamp Sessions series on Instagram in July of 2024, the noise surrounding her debut was impossible to drown out. Fans didn’t have to wait much longer, as Alligator Bites soon followed in August, preceded by Swamp Session-turned-lead single, “Nissan Altima.”

The release of Alligator Bites Never Heal was a watershed moment for Doechii, one that I think neither she nor her label expected. The project was released to waves of critical fanfare, but failed to generate much more than a ripple outside of the hardcore hip-hop community, who respected the project for its lyrical depth and authenticity. This changed when Grammy nominations were revealed in November, where Doechii’s impressive showing shocked those on the periphery and came as a welcome surprise to those already in the know about her immense talent. Doechii and her team hit the ground running, embarking on a press tour previously unheard of for Best New Artist hopefuls. She’s choreographed intricate performances for late night shows, coupled with renowned musical programs like NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert Series. She even went as far as to launch her own sitcom-style YouTube series that led up to the release of the music video for her latest single, “Denial is a River.” There have been interviews aplenty- with radio stations, streaming platforms, and social media hosts- all of which have given Doechii the opportunity to present herself to the world and express her infectious self-deprecating humor to new audiences. Doechii has faced backlash for her viral omnipotence, mainly from a few miserable social media posters who think that she’s “trying too hard” to win a Grammy. I would argue that her contemporaries aren’t trying hard enough.

The current generation of new artists has been lucky enough to benefit from the advent of social media platforms like TikTok that have allowed them to skip over the traditional “artist development” phase. Previous generations of musicians had to earn their stripes the hard way, performing for next-to-nothing in seedy bars and hawking demo tapes to every executive they could find. Nowadays, a singer can be plucked from obscurity and thrust into the spotlight after a a catchy soundbite from one of their songs gains traction online. As you might expect, this creates just as many one-hit wonders as it does cultural mainstays- when was the last time you heard the names 24kGoldn or Lil Mosey? The one-time myth of an artist being an “overnight sensation” is now a tangible possibility. While many of these artists have been working behind the scenes for years before their social media takeoff (Doechii’s fellow Best New Artist nominee, Chappell Roan, is a prime example) their ascent to the top still differs from that of artists who came up in the early 2000s and earlier. Artists like Lady Gaga have told stories of lugging their piano to clubs and bars across New York City before catching their big break. In the days of yore, a big break for an artist meant a record deal. Today, it means a TikTok dance.

Doechii is defying expectations by campaigning herself in a more traditional way, especially considering she was shown the glimmer virality with “What It Is” and still chose to go another route. For Doechii, the road less traveled has been fruitful- “Denial is a River” just became her first solo Hot 100 hit, and is predicted to climb several spots in its second charting week. In proving herself to the world at large, she’s also proven why she’s the perfect choice for this year’s Best New Artist. From a numbers standpoint, she ranks among the bottom half of the nominees when it comes to commercial success. Three of her competitors have already scored #1 singles, and another two have top tens under their belt. Based on talent alone, Doechii is clearly a worthy candidate, but Grammy voting is a numbers game. What separates Doechii from previous nominees of similar stature is that she’s willing to play along. More culturally ubiquitous artists (Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan, Teddy Swims) tend to rely on name alone to carry them to victory. Sometimes this works, but there have been surprises in the past. The Grammys have been known to occasionally award quality over quantity in this category, with Samara Joy pulling off an upset win as recently as 2022. Doechii’s fellow nominees seem to be making this potentially fatal mistake- you might passively hear a Sabrina Carpenter song on the radio, but it’s Doechii who your friends are telling you to check out.

The fact that Doechii has gone from background actor to frontrunner, even potential upset winner, is admirable in and of itself. She has all the ingredients that Grammy voters look for in a Best New Artist winner- raw talent, critical acclaim, and the respect of music listeners both casual and professional. The one missing element was widespread cultural relevance, not always required, but necessary considering this year’s competitive field. Although her position within the music mainstream is still trumped by that of several other nominees, Doechii’s campaign just might be enough to tip the scales in her favor. She’s put in the work. It’s time for the industry to recognize the Swamp Queen, long may she reign.