Fast-rising US rapper Doechii has paid tribute to Hayley Williams and Paramore for changing her life.
In a new interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, the Grammy-nominated Tampa, Florida rapper reveals that, as an art-school teenager, she took inspiration from the Mississippi-born singer's music.
“Paramore was my first introduction to rock music,” Doechii says. “I know that rock music is popular but where I grew up in the South, in my culture and my radius, it wasn’t so popular. But she kind of changed my life and my perspective, and I learned about different types of music through Paramore. It made a huge impression on me and my style.”
Back in 2020, Doechii sampled Paramore’s 2010 single The Only Exception on her track Yucky Blucky Fruitcake, and gave a lyrical shout-out to the Tennessee emo-punk band, rapping “Singing karaoke while my mom was at the store (you are) / Scared that she would walk in on me singing Paramore (the only exception)”.
The song would become a hit on TikTok, and brought the rapper attention from major labels. In 2022, Doechii became the first female rapper signed to Top Dawg Entertainment, formerly home to Kendrick Lamar.
In October, Lamar hailed Doechii as the “hardest out”: the singer has since received huge praise for her recent stunning NPR Tiny Desk concert performance, while her album Alligator Bites Never Heal has been nominated for Best Rap Album at the Grammy Awards, set to take place in February.
