When was the last time you felt genuinely shocked by the production of an album?
Alligator Bites Never Heal is undoubtedly one of the best-produced rap albums of the decade. It comprises numerous sounds rooted in black culture and lays bars on tracks that are extremely separated from rap in today’s industry.
Doechii organized a beautifully proud all-black album by infusing funk, soft jazz, slow soulful rhythms, dark trap beats, and strong smart stylish lyrics that match her quick-witted, fun-loving, and tough persona.
The album opens with “Stanka Pooh,” which starts the story backward, as this is her perspective on the life she has lived since the release of her previous EP, Oh the Places You’ll Go. She explains her successes on TikTok and YouTube by undermining them as stepping stones. She knows she’s got a stronger bite than that.
This album is her alligator bite.
At first glance, it’s scary and appalling, deterring listeners much like an alligator would. But as the album progresses, the listeners become a part of the alligator, like its game would in a swamp.
“Denial Is A River” is the first swallow the alligator takes after attacking and harming its prey. It welcomes listeners inside by storytelling 5 years' worth of trauma.
“Catfish” is her celebration of getting that game while “Skipp” and “Hide N Seek” are the food traveling down the esophagus of the beast. Then “Bloom” hits the acid of the stomach and disrupts the flow as Doechii contemplates her time management.
However, an alligator is strong. Though its stomach might churn, it always gets back on track.
“Boom Bap” is when the alligator's prey finally begins to nourish the beast. This is the type of song that would typically start an album because her description of her album is told. But, as we already know, Doechii is unlike other artists.
“Nissan Altima,” “GTFO,” “HUH!” and “Slide” are the full embrace of nourishment in the intestinal lining as these are the most self-promoting confidence boosting songs.
The last three songs represent the cycle of being eaten by a predator, becoming part of it, and coming out the other end as compost for the swamp around it to soak.
Doechii has not only created an album. But a world for listeners to discover and join her in.
Alligator Bites Never Heal breaks barriers across genres, especially Black-rooted ones, and is sure to inspire artists to do the same.