It only makes sense that Doechii would have a sense of style to match her high-caliber music. The rapper and singer, a disciple of Kendrick Lamar and Top Dawg Entertainment, picked up three Grammy nominations—including Best New Artist—in the midst of touring her album Alligator Bites Never Heal. When it came to her tour style, the 26-year-old artist wanted to create a juxtaposition between her music and her fashion, which led to a scholarly motif in her onstage wardrobe. “This tour reflects an immense amount of personal growth for me this year. I did a lot of studying; studying myself and a student of hip-hop which you can see reflected in some of the academia looks I wore on this tour,” she says.
“My tour style is more dialed in. We intentionally chose pieces that create a throughline or a ‘preppy narrative,’ but still gave us enough freedom to make them funk and ‘Doechii.’ The timeless collared shirt is an example of a throughline piece we used to ground every look on tour,” she says. Doechii was especially inspired by Jay-Z’s early career penchant for suits and cigars as central pieces in his aesthetic identity. “It’s so gangster and timeless,” she adds.
While many artists prioritize comfort onstage, Doechii puts aesthetics above all. “Mobility is last for me. My stylist loves this about me because it means we can do anything,” she says. “I like to adjust myself to the outfit. I like to think of performance-wear just like theater: we’re making a character come to life each night.”
Doechii and her stylist, Sam Woolf, turned to the likes of Thom Browne, Miu Miu, Vivienne Westwood, AKNVAS, La Fam, and KNWLS for help fulfilling her academia goals. While she embraced suiting—like a navy pinstripe set from AKNVAS, which she wore in Atlanta—and schoolgirl style—including a preppy Miu Miu set in Philadelphia—she made sure not to shy away from the sexuality she brings to her music. “It’s forever changing so I would have to say it’s eclectic but always cunt,” she says of her personal style. “If you know you know.”
Below, take a look back at Doechii’s grade-A fashion from the Alligator Bites Never Heal tour.
