Too Fly: Doechii's Fearless Style, Analysed

Doechii may have first arrived on our feeds as a self-recognised ‘TikTok rapper’, but anyone who still recognises her as such today deserves a reality check. Since the Floridian, 26, became the first female rapper signed to Top Dawg Entertainment in 2021, before Capitol Records swiftly came into the picture, Doechii has leapt to global stardom. As with most artists of her calibre, she has curated a visual ‘alter-ego’ with a wardrobe as daring and multifaceted as her music, a fusion of varsity prep and corporate sophistication.

The vision of her Australian stylist, Sam Woolf (whose clientele includes Missy Elliott, Bebe Rexha, and French Montana, to name a few), Doechii’s fashion merges designer labels and streetwear elements with conceptual swagger. With merely two years in the industry spotlight, brands such as Thom Browne, Miu Miu and Louis Vuitton are providing the building blocks of her attention-stealing and experimental aesthetic, combining high-brow and nonchalant casualness, fearlessly. 

And that is exactly the core of her ‘alter-ego’: fearlessness. The artist and Woolf dress with deliberate contradiction and meaningful expression that many cannot get enough of. If you aren’t familiar with the genre-breaking star or want to hear this writer’s say, I have chosen five of my favourite defining looks that speak to the artistry and spectrum of Doechii’s style. 

Image: David Jaelin

Willy Chavarria - Tiny Desk Concert - 2024

This was my introduction to Doechii, and I instantly recognised her not just as a musical phenomenon, but as an artist with a unique image. The Tiny Desk Concert has become a rite of passage for new rising artists, and performing shortly after her latest album release, she took the opportunity to declare her aesthetic intent. In Willy Chavarria, she wore a tucked white bomber jacket, contrasted over a khaki shirt and tie combination. This was paired with a pair of faded wide-leg trousers finished with patent-finished square-toe boots. The look reimagined a traditionally masculine ‘uniform’ silhouette, that of workwear and corporate apparel, and reclaimed it. As for the not-so-hidden face tape? Woolf explained, “She likes exposing something that’s meant to be hidden. She just thinks outside the box, and she likes being vulnerable, and she likes showing things that you’re not meant to show.” Also unhidden was the accents which honoured Black beauty rituals, such as her beaded braids, a trope of heritage that she carries across all of her appearances. 

Instagram: @sam_woolf

Miu Miu - Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival - 2024

Performing at Tyler, The Creator’s annual carnival, the ‘Anxiety’ singer strutted onstage in a risqué athletic Miu Miu ensemble of a fitted striped polo, apple green micro shorts, accompanied with deep patent oxblood heels and sheer knee-high hosiery. This visual and the power it commanded have been echoed through this era as the album artwork for her latest and most well-received album to date, Alligator Bites Never Heal. The outfit was a camp and contemporary refocus on retro sportswear, style over function, that leaned into the post-ironic brand design Miu Miu has adopted, where traditional women’s uniforms are remixed to reject passive femininity. Thinking back to fearlessness, the outfit becomes a performative contradiction: preppy yet rebellious and vintage yet modern, among other parallels. Through this, empowerment can be achieved, with any gazes received being called to attention on the rapper’s terms.

Instagram: sam_woolf

Schiaparelli - Paris Fashion Week FW25 - 2025

Now, this is where choosing starts to get tricky. During her first Paris Fashion Week in March, Doechii truly cemented herself as a style icon aside from her performative wardrobe, attending events in a plethora of incredible and drastically different looks. That said, this Schiaparelli ready-to-wear appearance stopped time. The dress was a plunging white halter gown, flowing from a snipping deep navy denim corset that provided a shaped structure. Accompanied was a pair of white pumps, the toe accented with gold hardware in the shape of a keyhole, and several sculptural gold Schiaparelli jewellery pieces. The silhouette reproduced the image of a statuesque Grecian muse, yet Doechii was far from a muse; instead, a mirror that reflected modern Black glamour. The dress itself plays as a visual thesis on contrast as much as Doechii and Woolf play with it themselves, more often than not with an unforgettable outcome.

Image: Nasser Berzane

Tom Ford - Paris Fashion Week FW25 - 2025

The second pick of her eventful Paris Fashion Week (and I stress the week was in fact her’s), Doechii attended Haider Ackerman’s debut at Tom Ford in a vastly different style. She wore a black satin or silk bodysuit wrapped in a black belt with gold hardware, matching black and gold stilettos, sheer black tights and a shimmering, voluminous jet-black fur jacket. With a cigarette in hand, accented in gold, thong-cut shapewear and exuding the overall tone of a Bond-esque femme fatale, the star offered a thrilling nostalgia trip to Tom Ford at Gucci and puffed the air of seduction that has become a staple at his eponymous label. I thoroughly believe it is respectful to pay tribute to a designer or house and their codes when attending an event, and it's safe to say Doechii knocked it out of the park. On a particularly definitive night for both Ford and Ackermann, the former having parted ways with his label in 2023, the homage exemplified that his legacy, especially worn by an icon in the making, will forever make a lasting impression. 

Image: Kevin Winter

Thom Browne - 67th Annual Grammy Awards - 2025

If there was a night that could have established Doechii as a certified phenomenon, it was the 67th Annual Grammy Awards. She accepted her three wins that night in custom Thom Browne, consisting of a grey short-sleeve bolero jacket, tucked cardigan with a shirt and tie. The bottom half at first appeared to be a grand hoop skirt akin to that of a Victorian gown, yet upon closer look, it was a pair of trousers that had been given a similar, structured treatment. In what was perhaps her most conceptually rich look, it epitomised the academic theme that she has integrated in many of her wardrobe choices of tailored suits paired with shorts, ties, shirts and long socks. Resonating the idea of studious charm and traditional power, she described to Vogue: “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.” 

During one of her acceptance speeches, she affirmed, “I know that there is some Black girl out there watching me right now, and I want to tell you, you can do it. Anything is possible and I am a testimony.” It’s difficult to overstate the significance of this moment and outfit, not just through the lens of fashion, but culture. Doechii’s music and style speak to a variety of groups, both coded with Black originated genres such as hip-hop and motifs like her fascinator, constructed from her braids and her expression of Black dandyism. Another group that is encapsulated in her vestimentary choices are those who are LGBTQ+. Doechii’s predominantly androgynous use of menswear (or womenswear that is inspired by) amplifies the volume of her empowering message by dismantling gender norms and claiming her, and by extension her fans, right to fluidly reflect their bisexuality and pride in that identity. 

We’re only witnessing the prologue of Doechii’s musical fame and stylistic evolution. “It just depends on where I am in my life. I’ll never pinpoint myself,” she told Dazed. “I’ll never lock myself down to one particular style. It’s not me. It never will be me.” Well, thank heavens for that. 

There are countless other examples that I could go through, such as her vehement runway takeover at Dsquared2 FW25 or her jaw-dropping attendance at Le Grand Diner du Louvre in March, but if there’s anything I’ve learned from the new artist, it’s that her fashion is an instrument. An instrument to project her fearlessness. After all, her namesake was forged as an ode to self-belief and confidence after enduring years of childhood bullying. So whether her visual aesthetic extols Black history, queer futures, artistic authenticity or her own unapologetic selfhood, in my humble opinion, there could never be a limit to being ‘too fly’.