Doechii, Anxiety | Song Review

Grammy-winning rapper Doechii continues to show her range and immense talent on the finished version of her song, “Anxiety.”

“Anxiety, keep on tryin’ me / I feel it quietly / Tryin’ to silence me, yeah.” Wait, Doechii… “Anxiety” sounds familiar for a couple of reasons.  Notably, it samples a prominent, Grammy-winning one-hit-wonder,  “Somebody That I Used To Know” by Gotye featuring Kimbra.  Back in 2011, “Somebody That I Used To Know” was kind of a big deal… But also, “Anxiety” sounds familiar because wasn’t this a Sleepy Hallow song named, “A N X I E T Y”? Notably, Doechii was sampled in the Sleepy Hallow song. Her song dates back to 2019.  This is the official, finished version.  It was written by Doechii, Luiz Bonfá, and, unsurprisingly, Gotye.  Gotye is also credited as the producer. 

Doechii delivers a compelling performance over that familiar, indie-pop backdrop that charmed the world ‘back when.’  She sings the chorus, which is one of the best parts of the song (excerpted above).  Still, Doechii’s bread is buttered with her rapping. When she begins rapping, her cadence and flow is electrifying. She kicks off the first verse with fun wordplay: “Solo, no mojo / I bounce back, no pogo / Unhappy, no homo / New brands, no logos.” Word! The end of the verse is equally intriguing: “Okay, next thing, my life is a wet dream / I call it a sex scene, the back is a nice tease.” The second verse is alluring as well, referencing Florida, water, and memorably spitting, “No limits, no borders / What’s in that new world order? Marco (Marco), Polo (Polo)…”. In the bridge, she mentions her anxiety, bringing out the anxiousness to a tee in the chorus. While the likes of “Nissan Altima” and “Denial Is A River” are more exciting, Doechii continues to show her range and talent on “Anxiety”.  

Doechii // “Anxiety” // Top Dawg Entertainment, LLC / UMG Recordings, Inc. // 3.5.25

[: Top Dawg Entertainment, LLC / UMG Recordings, Inc.]