Dominic Fike Talks ‘Rocket’ Mixtape, Fatherhood & ‘Babydoll’ Resurgence
Categoria: Musica
The singer-songwriter covers Billboard Philippines.
Por Billboard | 22/07/2026
For years, the word “Rocket” has floated around Dominic Fike ’s mind. Long before it became the title of his latest project or even the name of his son, it was a word he kept returning to — attaching it to unfinished ideas, shelved projects, and future plans. Since breaking through in 2018 with Don’t Forget About Me, Demos under Columbia Records, the six-track EP led by breakout songs “3 Nights” and “Babydoll,” Fike became known as a genre-blurring artist whose effortless mix of soft rock, pop, hip-hop and rap made him one to watch. Two years later came his debut album, What Could Possibly Go Wrong , an ambitious record that expanded his sound through tracks like “Vampire,” “Why,” and “Superstar Sh*t.” In 2023, Sunburn looked inward, with songs such as “Mama’s Boy” and “Mona Lisa” reflecting on home, family, and the Florida that shaped him. Throughout each era, “Rocket” surfaced repeatedly as a possible title, but never quite landed. The idea dates back to one of the earliest chapters of Fike’s career: famously recording what would become his breakout extended play while on house arrest. Born on Dec. 30, 1995, Fike grew up in Naples, Florida. He is of Filipino descent through his mother — a detail that has increasingly resonated with Filipino listeners as his career has grown internationally. Although Fike has previously shared that he wasn’t raised with a particularly strong connection to his Filipino heritage, his roots have nonetheless become a point of connection for many fans in the Philippines following his rise as both a musician and actor. Throughout his career, Fike has spoken candidly about the instability that marked his upbringing, including both of his parents’ struggles with addiction. Even as his big break arrived, unpredictability continued to shape both his music and public persona. In 2017, after being charged with battery of a police officer during an incident involving his brother and subsequently being placed on house arrest, “Rocket” began to take on meaning. Thinking about its resemblance to shipping containers, he imagined rockets as vehicles of escape from his confinement. When asked what made the word stay with him over the years, Fike describes it simply as, “I really like how it sounds and I like how it looks in my mind.” For him, “Rocket” existed first as a feeling rather than a definition, a concept that resonated before it carried any concrete meaning. Years later, he would find an unexpected connection in Alan Watts’ The Book: On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are, which describes the rocket as one of America’s defining symbols of conquest. “When I read that line, I felt like I made a good decision because I think I read that line after I named Rocket ,” Fike tells Billboard Philippines . While the passage didn’t give the word its meaning, it affirmed an idea that he had already believed in for years. For someone who had held onto the title through multiple projects, Rocket eventually came to symbolize Fike gain