Drea's Take: Insecure

Written By Andrea Jackson

It's no secret that Insecure's fresh taste in music has become just as popular as its awkwardly hilarious yet relatable plot. With appearances from artists SZA, J.I.D., Kari Faux, Liekeli47, Lion Babe, and so many other unique emerging artists it is safe to say that Issa and crew, including series composer Raphael Saadiq and music supervisor Kier Lehman, are putting on for the culture. While watching the series I picked up on a number of insights and connotations so here’s my take on the strategy behind the music selections of the most pivotal moments of Season 2.

Episode 1: Hella Great

- Alike the Season 1 opening montage with K Dot’s "Alright", Season 2 opens with NxWorries' "Scared Money" ft. ANDERSAN Paak, setting the LA vibes and feels with a prominent artist native to LA

 - The title card sets the tone of the season with Lion Babe's "Hit The Ceiling" which happens to be about hustling to keep your shit together through pain

"I'ma hit the ceiling, you hear me?
I won't take my spirit, I'm living
Get ready for the healing, the healing
Tell me if you feel it, here we go, oh"

Given Issa's series of unfortunate events and a self inflicted heartbreak, she has quite a lot to power through

- Of course Lawrence's first appearance of the season is of him banging Tasha to Goldlink's "Crew"

Homie a free agent for the first time in years so its safe to say...

“He feel like he the man”

- Lawrence's confused ass pops up on Issa after her party and they have sex, then he just dips

Rightfully, SZA's "Love Galore" narrates his entrance

“Why you bother me when you know you don’t want me” faceass

- E2 Dives into the the independence of both Issa and Lawrence as she struggles to make sense of their random hookup and he continues selling Tasha dreams

- Issa is stuck af on him and irresistibly stalks the rebound Tasha on social media and even at her job

DaniLeigh's "Lurkin" couldn't be a better selection for the moment she finds Tasha's Instagram

"Why you always lurkin'? Why you always lurkin'?
Why you always lurkin' on my Instagram page? // All on her timeline-line, all on her timeline-line
All on her time, all on her time, all on her timeline-line"

- Poor Issa is going through it all episode and SZA’s "Supermodel" speaks directly to her situation

She's insecure, her ex has "moved on", etc 

"Heard you got some new homies
Got some new hobbies
Even a new hoe too
Maybe she can come help you
Maybe she can come lick you after we're done
What's done is done"

- E3 is all about Issa’s sexual frustration and her "hoetation"

- Issa insists that Molly teach her how to hoe and they go out to the club too find some new recruits

At the bar scene Jidenna’s "Trampoline" plays which is an obvious play on the word "tramp"

'The lady ain’t a tramp
Just cuz she bounce it up and down like a trampoline // Oh no the lady ain’t a tramp
She just be knowing what she wanting"

- Lawrence attends Tasha’s family BBQ

"Let’s Play House" by Tha Dogg Pound narrates the Lawrence's entire entrance as he begins to realize this wasn't what he signed up for. He got in too deep with a chick he wasn't trying to build a bond with. Playin' house, sellin' dreams. #Fuckboy

- Issa gets some new D for the first time since Lawrence's pop up

Jacquees' "BED" conveniently plays as it goes down

- E4 supporting characters also venture down new paths

 - Lawrence gets pulled over by the police in a racially motivated stop

He is initially bumpin' hip hop, particularly YRF's "A.T.M. (I'm Livin)" but then switches to classical upon interacting with the officer

Ironically enough this is the scene right before his infamous threesome and A.T.M. stands for:

"At the moment
I'm doin' me
But it could go down if it's you and me
You could bring your girls
We could do the threes"

- Molly and Dro disregarded all logical barriers and let the chemistry/vibe lead them to cross the line when they start grinding to Juvenile's "Slow Motion"

There's no doubt this song is known as the game/mood changer, scheme level on 100 after this drop

- After the party Issa and crew go to eat at a late night spot and she ends up sitting between one firend who is getting fingered to her right and Molly to the left who is preoccupied with texting Dro

Stuck in the middle of the two, she makes eye contact with Daniel who happens to be there and eventually gets up to join him at his table as Sean Leon's "Matthew in the Middle" plays and closes the scene

This song is reflective of being caught on both sides of the fence, a clear reference to the authentic bond between Daniel and Issa yet the conflict in her past relationship with Lawrence

"It's a long long
Long long
Journey to the middle
Welcome to the middle, yeah" 

- The tables turn a little bit as Issa practically totals her car, Molly ends up sleeping with Dro, and Lawrence stumbles upon a pic of Issa and Daniel on Facebook

- Jazmine Sullivan & Bryson Tiller's "Insecure" play as Lawrence finds himself stalking Issa on Facebook and eventually blocking her

After seeing that photo of her and Daniel, ol' boy was sure to feel some type of way

The song title says it all

- Molly is disappointed when she finds out her Dad cheated on her mom

Dro comforts her, takes her home, etc... they end up passionately smashing as Nick Hakim's "Needy Bees" plays

Whether it was the best idea or not, Molly got exactly what she was longing for

"Needy bee
Whispers softly
Tell me what you need
I'll come inside of you
I'll live inside of you to find what you're looking for"

 

Nothing too significant about this episode besides the fact that Daniel cums in Issa's eye and the side chick guilt starts to kick in for Molly

- The last scene closes with Extreme Music's "No Love" 

She felt hella disrespected after the eye mishap and now she is feeling defeated

Hoetation FAIL

"You've been wondering
If there's a hero near
He ain't comin
Cause there ain't no love around here"

Molly and Issa can't get NO LOVE :(

Derek's birthday dinner gets messy af when everyone is in the same room, tensions run high 

- Molly has sex with Dro in the bathroom (smMFh) and Kari Faux's "Lowkey" leads the scene

"Hold it down, baby
(Can you hold it down, can you hold it down?
Can you hold it down, keep it on the low?)
Ain't nobody gotta know"

- Issa has a breakdown after the argument with Lawrence where he calls her a hoe and Kelela's "Frontline" closes E7

This beautiful song happens to be about leaving behind someone who was holding you back, and not knowing how to apologize

 

2 out of the 3 main characters take deep Ls

- Childish Major's "Supply Luh" plays as Lawrence walks up to he and Issa's old apartment

To me this song is about a broken relationship where one party lost energy due to another's lack in love and support in them when they needed it most = Lawrence & Issa

"But I'm supposed to be yours
Good God why can't I supply
Luh" Issa

"And I, used to love youcyclee
Love you, love you, love you like you never been there before
Now it's just fuck you
Fuck you fuck me like I ain't fucked up enough" Lawrence

- Molly, Lawrence, and Issa's stories come full circle to close the season

Molly back on her Dro shit (L)

Issa ends up moving in with Daniel (L)

Lawrence gives Issa some closure and moves on with his life but he adds her back on Facebook (W)

- Frank Ocean's "Biking" was the perfect song to end this season given its "cycle" metaphor

"What goes around comes around"

Also, Jay Z, Frank, and Tyler each tell unique yet cohesive stories that all relate back to the biking analogy... similar to the trio structure of this episode  

 

Andrea Jackson
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