The Grammys Were Worth It for Doechii’s “Nosebleeds” Alone
Imagine the confidence it takes to record a song about winning a Grammy before the awards have even happened.
Doechii’s 2025 Grammy win for Best Rap Album was, as she noted in last night’s acceptance speech, just the third time a woman had taken home the award, after Lauryn Hill with the Fugees in 1997 and Cardi B in 2019. That says more about industry obstacles for women rappers—prejudices ranging from misogynoir to colorism—than about the quality of their work: How is it possible, for instance, that Missy Elliott never won that trophy? As Doechii said to young Black girls watching at home: “Don’t allow anybody to project any stereotypes on you… tell you that you can’t be here, that you’re too dark, or that you’re not smart enough, or that you’re too dramatic, or you’re too loud. You are exactly who you need to be to be right where you are.”
