Doechii Gives Badass Performance on ‘Colbert’: ‘This Is Blackness. This Is History’
- Doechii performed songs from her mixtape "Alligator Bites Never Heal" on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, showcasing her self-choreographed routine and connection to black women through hip-hop.
Doechii took Alligator Bites Never Heal material to The Late Show With Stephen Colbert , performing " Denial Is a River " and "Boiled Peanuts."
During the performance, Doechii and her two dancers tear through the mixtape cuts in syncopated, precise movements, their long braids connected as they scratch a turntable while decked out in Gucci.
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"This one is for hip-hop," Doechii said of the groundbreaking performance on X (formerly Twitter). "I felt heavily inspired by the lineage of hip-hop and how it contributes to who I am today. This is my first self choreographed performance, and one of the most important things I wanted to highlight was my connection to black women through hip-hop. With the help of hair artist Malcom Marquez, we were able to make this symbolic art performance come to life in just a short week."
Doechii also praised her inspirations, Solange and the late rapper MF Doom . "This is my take on the future of hip-hop," she added. "This is blackness. This is luxury. This is history."
Doechii dropped Alligator Bites Never Heal , her third mixtape, in late August. It landed at No. 9 on Rolling Stone 's Best Albums of 2024 , while "Denial Is a River" ranked at No. 68 on the Best Songs list.
Last month, the mixtape earned her several Grammy nominations , including nods for Best New Artist and Rap Album of the Year. In September, she told us about Alligator Bites Never Heal and her aim for a Grammy. "There's a space that I feel like that we need to fill in hip-hop right now," she said. "This project, sonically, feels nostalgic, but it also feels forward and it feels fresh … I think we just need to take a beat for a second and get back to maintaining traditions in hip-hop, talking about our feelings, being vulnerable in hip-hop again, and making sure that the heart of hip-hop stays alive."
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