Florida-born rapper and genre-shifter Doechii made her explosive Outside Lands debut Friday night, delivering one of the festival’s most buzzed-about sets — and upstaging the night’s headliner in the process.
Performing on the Lands End stage at 7 p.m., Doechii pulled a massive crowd to Golden Gate Park’s Polo Field, rivaling last year’s scene-stealing midday performance from queer pop phenom Chappell Roan. Her 45-minute set wasn’t just a concert — it was theater, movement, protest, and celebration all wrapped in one.
The performance, broken into six distinct acts, drew heavily from her 2024 EP Alligator Bites Never Heal alongside breakout singles like “Nissan Altima,” “Spookie Coochie,” “Catfish,” and the viral smash “Anxiety” — a Gotye- and Kimbra-sampling anthem that’s fast become a Gen Z panic-pop staple.
Backed by a crew of dancers, Doechii brought a high-concept, school-themed production to life that honored the lineage of hip-hop, R&B, and queer dance music. Fans were quick to notice references to her now-infamous Met Gala umbrella moment — a tongue-in-cheek addition that only amplified her signature mix of humor, style, and edge.
Throughout the set, Doechii remained a commanding force, her presence as magnetic as her lyrics. The energy was electric, contagious, and impossible to ignore.
But she didn’t stop at spectacle. Near the end of her set, the Grammy-winner turned the moment into a political one, responding directly to Palestinian flags waved in the crowd.
“Free Palestine! What the f— is y’all talking about?” she shouted, moments after performing “Boom Bap.” She followed up with a call for peace, saying, “More peace, y’all. No more.”
It was a sharp, unapologetic statement — and it landed with force.
This wasn’t the first time Doechii voiced her support for Palestine. Just last week, she made a similar declaration at the Osheaga Festival in Montreal, further solidifying her stance as one of the few mainstream artists refusing to stay silent.
Queer fans especially have gravitated toward Doechii’s blend of fierce individuality, theatricality, and vulnerability — all of which were on full display Friday. Her Outside Lands debut felt not only like a musical milestone, but a cultural one.
Before the festival, she played two sold-out Bay Area shows last November at The Independent in San Francisco and The New Parish in Oakland. But she won’t be gone for long — presale tickets for her next headlining show, set for Nov. 7 at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, dropped Friday morning.
Doechii may have been billed below the headliners, but by night’s end, she was the name on everyone’s lips.
