DOECHII Vinyl & CDs

Review: On Alligator Bites Never Heal, Doechii blends her Tampa roots with her current Los Angeles life, embodying the past, present, and future of music in under an hour. A verbal banjaxer of countless genres, she delivers an eclectic mix of sounds, striking a pose on the cover as a stone-faced albino alligator queen. The mixtape follows the success of her Eurodance-ish hit 'Alter Ego', which was praised by SZA and remixed with a verse from JT. Doechii now finesses her streak, with such energetic tracks as 'MPH' and 'ROCKET' making for remarkable, cutting summer anthems.

Review: Doechii drops a vivid, genre-blurring mixtape, riffing on her Floridian roots and personal battles, relaying them over an arresting artistic statement. Raised in Tampa, she first gained attention with the viral hit 'Yucky Blucky Fruitcake' before signing with Top Dawg Entertainment in 2022. The mixtape's title and cover, with Doechii holding an albino alligator, nod to her "Swamp Princess" nickname and symbolize resilience" as she explained, "This mixtape is my riposte. I am no one's prey; I was born to be the predator." Doechii confronts industry pressures, sobriety, and self-worth with sharp lyricism and stylistic versatility, over standouts like 'Denial Is A River' and 'Boom Bap'.

Review: Following her weekly Swamp Sessions on YouTube - in which the rapper demonstrated her biting bars against eye-catching, patinated visuals - came the third mixtape from Doechii, now released on vinyl. The album's name suggested unwound hurt, marked by the caiman power of a perfidious love interest, whose bite has indeed left its mark. Philosophical, penumbral yet still lively in spirit, the American artist spans a variety of hip-hop styles here, with 'Denial Is A River' serving her ex a "gotcha" in thickly laid bars and booming beats, and 'Nissan Altima' bringing further skeeting rhythms and autofire bars, which order her male competitors to bow down, as the claim is laid to the crown of new hip-hop Madonna.

Review: Alligator Bites Never Heal sees Doechii at her most introspective and ambitious, a 19-track mixtape (and now LP) where vulnerability takes centre stage. Departing from her club-ready bangers she explores raw themes of loss, pressure and self-worth. Opener 'Stanka Pooh' dives deep into spiralling anxieties but Doechii's wit keeps things balanced as she snaps back with her signature humour. Tracks like 'Bullfrog' and 'Nissan Altima' are drenched in Tampa's humid, swampy vibes while moments like 'Bloom' and 'Beverly Hills' highlight her melodic strengths. Navigating between raunchy bravado and emotional honesty, Doechii proves she's an artist defying any box.