Growing up, hip-hop was always one of my favorite genres — iconic rappers like The Notorious B.I.G. define many of my life’s most key moments — but I never had the means to attend a hip-hop concert. Since coming to college, I’ve been trying to utilize my financial independence to its fullest, going to every concert I can. When Doechii announced that her “Live from the Swamp” tour would be coming to Petco Park, my friends and I jumped at the opportunity to secure tickets the minute they went on sale back in August.
My excitement grew with each minute I spent watching her tour videos online. Nevertheless, the moment we arrived, I was still awestruck by Doechii’s iconic boombox set; I never anticipated how gigantic it would look in person. Surrounded by hundreds of fans who understood the assignment, I joined the ranks of my fellow Doechii’s teacher’s pets, dressed from head to toe in schoolgirl attire with dark green accents — a reference to her iconic Camp Flog Gnaw outfit.
Murmured conversations turned into roars of anticipation when a school bell rang and the jumbotron lit up. A video of Doechii ruling the classroom, soundtracked by a medley of her most famous beats, played on the screen as she entered the stage on a moving school desk.
Doechii structured her set as a history lesson on rap and hip-hop. To really reel in the school theme, she treated us just like her students, ushering us through numerous iterations of hip-hop culture that many of us would have never encountered otherwise.
As I watched in awe, I had the opportunity to reflect on Doechii’s commitment to honor the breadth of hip-hop artistry that preceded her. Her now-signature boombox set, a symbol of early hip-hop culture, paired with her homage to the old-school concert style of a sole rapper and her accompanying emcee — the iconic DJ Miss Milan — made Doechii’s “Live from the Swamp” tour feel like a throwback to the early days of hip-hop.
Honoring her roots doesn’t stop Doechii from taking risks and experimenting with the contemporary concert culture of drama and technology. From flashing lights across the venue to acting in prerecorded clips that ranged from inspirational quotes to comedic riffs on sex-ed classes, Doechii solidified her versatility as a skillful rapper and eccentric performer.
“STANKA POOH,” the brooding opening track of “Alligator Bites Never Heal” that reflects on her anxieties as a rapper, was Doechii’s well-chosen opening song. Disproving her fears of never making it, Doechii owned the stage, and for a solid two hours, proved that no one is at her level.
During solo performance tracks like “Spookie Coochie,” her wordplay shone in her effortless delivery. The crowd went ballistic, yelling and hyping her up while heads bounced to the rhythm in unison. Explosive and intense tracks like “NISSAN ALTIMA” and “Nosebleeds” made everyone collectively lock in, screaming every lyric so loud I could barely hear Doechii. It was so surreal that I forgot I was at a concert; it felt more like I was at a huge block party.
In “Crazy,” Doechii pulled audience members to act as extras in a full-blown production: As she crawled across a school desk and rapped directly into the jumbotron cameras, deafening screams erupted from an infatuated and stunned crowd. On stage, Doechii proceeded to give an audience member a lap dance, while around me, people in the crowd who started as strangers danced together like they had been friends for years.
At the tail end of the concert, Doechii told us to turn off our phones and hold hands with anyone in the audience, even if we didn’t know them. As she sang my favorite song, “WAIT,” the entire swamp serenaded each other, present and taking a moment to, well, wait.
I left the concert feeling elated in a way no other concert had made me feel before. From the lawn to the stage, I fully immersed myself in this unique concert culture. Doechii’s performance took me through each critical aspect of her career. From her raw talent that placed her on the map to her commitment to her production that has elevated the entire genre, I truly believe no other performer will take me through the same rollercoaster of emotions Doechii did.
