Atlanta (2016) s04e03 Episode Script

1
Hey-hey, l'chaim!
Shit.
Exc-Excuse me.
What you did up there
was very impressive.
Oh, thanks, man.
How do you do it?
- Do what?
- Well, you-you know, the
You know? All of it.
Oh, you mean rap?
No, all of it.
The way you look, talk, your demeanor,
your facial expressions
where, you know, people think it's real.
Man, I don't know what the
hell you're talking about, man.
Could
- could you teach my son?
- Man, teach your son what, man?
You know, just to how to be like you.
Teach him how to rap.
I want to hire you.
He makes more videos than
songs, I don't understand it.
Man, it ain't that easy,
big dawg, all right?
Well, I just want to
Maybe he could shadow you,
absorb for a week.
Maybe you could take a couple
of selfies, give him some tips.
Hey, look, man, I'm
kind of busy, all right?
So, like, why don't you
reach out to my manager?
But I'm telling you, I don't
think I got the time, man.
I'll pay you a million dollars.
Fuck.
All right, all right.
We just signed a new recruit.
So I'm gonna need all
hands on deck for this one.
Cathy, can you pull the video
up on the big screen, please?
Back off. Stop right there.
Do you have anything on you?
Okay, no, no, no, get down
Lauren Loughty. She's one of ours.
This is her.
Her book is climbing exponentially
on The New York Times Best Sellers list.
Oh, wow. I just finished that book.
It gave me a real paradigm shift
on how things may not
always be as they seem.
Well, so now the kid in
the video is suing her,
which is causing a dip in sales.
We have a few companies interested
in securing the rights,
so we need this to go away.
And fast.
Let's talk ideas, new image, rebranding.
Hit me.
Maybe we show the kid
has a checkered past.
Or we can put out crime
data from that neighborhood
to show she was in the right
trying to defend herself.
Oh, what if we had her donate
to the kid's football team?
I mean, it's tax deductible.
Can we just work on our other signees?
What did he just say?
Uh, I was asking, can
we work on other signees?
Everybody is already assigned.
Lauren Loughty is the
priority right now.
Can we sign new people?
Our hands are full right now,
unless you can wrangle a prestige act
Your D'Angelos, Banksys.
I could probably get D'Angelo.
Have at it.
Great.
Moving on
Cathy, what's next on the agenda?
Hey, what's up?
What's up? Can I help you?
Yeah, man. I'm I'm Paper Boi.
The rapper.
Song's dead. What's next?
Uh, yo, can you put on
that "Do the Ricky Rock"?
Uh sure.
- Cool.
- What's the Ricky Rock?
Fuck if I know, bro.
That's for the Internet to decide.
Yo, I'm supposed to be working
with somebody named Benny.
One of y'all Benny?
- Who?
- Yeah, that's me.
Great. Hey, man.
I'm Paper Boi.
The rapper.
Paper Boi, you know?
Oh, you the dude my dad bought.
Yeah, tight, tight, tight. All right.
Uh, this Yodel Kid. We just vibin', bro.
Yo.
I know you.
I used to listen to
you when I was a kid.
That's what's up.
That's great, wonderful.
Uh, what you need help
with, man? Can you?
Oh, no, we cool.
My dad's just extra.
He want to help out and shit,
but you can just chill
and collect that check.
I'm about to get in the booth.
- It's time, you know?
- Yep.
Yeah, this shit's gonna be fire.
Hell yeah, it is.
We gonna change the game
with this shit, bro. Look at this shit.
Hey! Lil Rick Moranis. What's kosh'?
You ready to kill this shit, bro?
- I was born to kill.
- That's what I'm talking about.
- What's up, man?
- What's up, baby?
Hey, you know Yodel Kid?
- Oh, what's up, man?
- Lil Rick Moranis.
You know, Honey I Shrunk
the Kids looking ass.
- What's going on, man?
- Paper Boi, dawg.
Shit, I know who you are, sir.
- Oh.
- Bunk.
I'm with Lil Rick.
Yeah, man, I know who you are.
I like your music, dawg.
- Ah, that's what's up.
- Mm.
- I'm Rickin' ♪
- Hey.
I'm rockin' ♪
I'm tickin' ♪
So, you want to hang out
with these little kids
I'm tockin' ♪
or you want to converse in Studio Three?
- I'm Rickin' ♪
- Yo.
- Say less, man.
- I'm rockin' ♪
Studio Three it is.
This shit slaps, bro, I told you.
Oh, yeah, man.
What's up?
Man, all right, hmm, fuck that
Rickin' and rockin',
tickin' and tockin'.
"I'm Rick" Man,
get the fuck on, right?
It's almost like it's
not even rap, you know?
I know what you gonna say.
I know what you gonna say.
You gonna say that the game
is fucked and yada yada yada,
whoopty-whoop, but, like
I don't know, man.
Mm.
Just go collect my million,
dip the fuck out.
You making a million off this?
Crazy, right?
You should be making ten.
Yeah, but
I'm just banking this
money, though, man.
Saving it up, investing and shit.
Hey, I stay on that Robinhood app.
That ain't making money.
I mean, stocks and
bonds, I mean, that's cool
if you want to be a dentist
living in Castlewood, driving
a Tesla with your wife.
But you and I both know
this lifestyle ain't cheap.
Saving money ain't making money.
And you're letting
the real money pass by.
Yeah, but other than
touring, that's the only way
to make money in this
music business, man.
- Mm-mm.
- Oh.
You know, me and a couple of
my guys, we be getting together,
we be talking about this
every once in a while.
We're actually getting
together tomorrow night.
You should come through.
Rally's?
In Georgia?
Hey, um
I'm here to see D'Angelo?
Thank you.
Come on in.
We're just getting started.
- Glad to see you.
- Yeah, what's up?
What's going on?
Sit here?
Hey, what's up, man?
Psst. Psst.
Thanks.
All right, y'all, listen up, man.
I'm only gonna say this one time.
If you in here,
it means you care about your future.
But this is not about rap.
If you in here dealing in rap,
then you can leave right now.
Everybody in here can
rap they asses off.
But if rapping meant you made money,
then Cassidy would be
a fucking billionaire.
Take a look at this slide.
Now, can you guess
which one of these people
is a Billboard charting rap artist
with billions of streams globally?
It's simple.
We all know that optics is everything.
With my system
I'm tossing your Black ass a life raft.
I can help my brother better
- when I'm at the top.
- Mm-hmm.
Now
Look at this.
Memorize this.
Go to sleep dreaming about this.
What's a YWA, man?
Wait.
Young
white
avatar.
One of them kids that
you was hanging out
in the studio with yesterday.
See, you-you-you got to get one
and-and-and train him
and nurture him and
try to catch 'em all.
Nigga, Pokémon?
Exactly.
Man, look,
I can make an album
better than them kids,
win a Grammy, and then use
the clout to go on tour again.
- Mm.
- And your album will be better,
but nobody wants to hear you.
'Cause you old.
You can never get bigger
than your last album.
Y'all niggas trippin'.
- We trippin'?
- Yeah.
Bunk, show him the slide.
See, there's three stages to this thing.
The first one is Young Street.
That was all of us when
we first started out.
All swagger.
Then, it's OG.
See, the young kids, they look up to us,
they respect the influence.
Finally, it's Family Films.
Now, see, right here,
you're right on the cusp of OG.
But you?
You think you got all
the time in the world,
but in actuality you gonna
be Ice Cube's best friend
in Are We There Yet?
5 in less than a year.
That's bullshit, man.
That's bullshit.
I'm still hot out here, man.
I just did an arena tour.
And what's bigger than an arena?
You think you're selling out
soccer stadiums, my nigga?
All that goes up must go down.
Let me ask you a question.
When you was in the studio
yesterday with those kids,
they even know who you were?
Man, fuck them kids.
Man, look.
Niggas still checking for me
'cause I speak for the streets.
You heard me?
Man, the streets can't feed you.
What, you want to end up like Blueblood?
I loved that nigga,
and I didn't even know
he had an album out
till he was in the
ground for five months.
You could downsize your whole lifestyle
and be fine.
Live out in the country
in the middle of nowhere.
But if you want this lifestyle,
you better get a YWA in
the next five months
while they still remember you.
Ladies, hands up, ladies.
Okay, fellas, hands up.
Yo, I used to go to this school, yep.
Yo, check it, uh
I'm old-school like 2005 ♪
If you're older than that ♪
Then you're
probably 'bout to die ♪
My teacher used to
tell me I won't be shit ♪
But I just made a million
livestreaming on Twitch. ♪
Yo, yo, yo!
Go "Livestreaming."
Livestreaming.
Right now, phones out,
phones out, check it.
Y'all want some money?
Who wants that cash money?
Oh, shit.
We got some fine-ass honeys over here.
You want some money? Here you go, hey.
I'll be goddamned.
Okay, that's for you.
I swear, what's your Instagram?
I swear I've seen you somewhere
You need to get off the premises.
It's okay, man. You want some percs?
No congregating, no congregating
- Anyway
- Hey.
Hey, you remember me?
I'm Paper Boi.
- Oh, what's up, man?
- Hey, what's going?
How you doing, my man?
It's been so long.
- Can you get Benny for me?
- Mm-hmm.
- You remember who Benny is?
- Mm-mm.
All right, man. Let me
back you up a little bit.
Okay.
- Oh!
- Oh, shit. You good?
- You good? Can you?
- I'm fine. I'm-I'm
I'm fucking amazing, man.
I'm good, buddy.
- Hey, Benny. Excuse me, I'm sorry.
- Who want a pic, huh?
- Hey.
- Who want a pic? You want a pic?
- Hey, Benny.
- Yeah, DM me. DM me.
- Oh, shit. What's up, Paper Boi?
- Come on, man.
- Let me talk to you real quick.
- How you doing, bro?
- Yeah, what's up?
- Hey, look.
Whatever you think you
got going on here, man,
I think that me and
you should, you know,
solidify our relationship a little bit.
'Cause, I mean, you
got real potential, man,
and I I just think
we need to streamline it
- a little bit more.
- Yeah, I feel you, yeah.
All right, great.
Yeah, great, great, man.
Look, with me as your manager,
I can make sure you get
all the things you need
to be the star you want to be, man.
- Oh, shit, management?
- Yeah.
Damn, bro.
I'm sorry, but I just signed with Bunk.
- What?
- Yeah, bro.
- Bunk?
- Yeah, Bunk.
He talked to me that day
we were all at the studio.
Bro, like, pulled me to the
side, he laid it all out.
- He's a good guy.
- Yep.
- Yeah.
- Yep.
You should talk to him
sometime, bro, he's good.
That's Yeah, man, yep.
- Yeah.
- Yep.
Anyway, we got to
Yeah, we got to roll
'cause I got, like, two
more high schools to hit up.
- Okay. Huh.
- I can't believe
we're getting away with this shit, bro.
- Right.
- This shit is crazy. I'm rich.
- I'm number one, bro.
- Okay.
I'm number one!
Send me a pic!
Hey, hey, Benny, hold up.
- Fuck, man
- Wait.
Shit, that girl was hot. Holy shit.
Hey, hang on, Benny,
I'm coming. Hold up.
Yo, thanks for giving me a ride, man.
Yeah, don't worry about it.
Mm.
Hold up, man, before you get in my car,
you gonna be all right?
Shit, man.
I'm a fucking legend.
I'm gonna live forever, baby.
You're gonna get a
legendary ass-beating,
you vomit on my paint, boy.
Vomit away from the car, man.
Hey, man.
Y'all got any water?
Mm-mm.
No.
No. Unacceptable.
Unacceptable.
All right?
I want to see D'Angelo, okay?
I've been here all fucking week.
All right?
Where's D'Angelo?
Can I please see D'Angelo?
What is D'Angelo?
We are D'Angelo.
Let me experience
D'Angelo.
When living for my life ♪
Was everything ♪
A man could want ♪
I could never see ♪
See tomorrow ♪
I was never told ♪
About the ♪
About that sorrow ♪
And ♪
How can you mend ♪
A broken heart? ♪
How can you stop the rain ♪
From falling down? ♪
Tell me, how can you stop ♪
Yeah, oh ♪
The sun from shining? ♪
What makes the world go 'round? ♪
And ♪
How can you mend ♪
Speak.
You're not D'Angelo.
You asked to experience D'Angelo.
In this moment, for
you, we are D'Angelo.
I haven't bathed in four days.
Hmm.
I thought this was some
"D'Angelo needs a manager
with patience" type shit.
I need to sign D'Angelo.
These people are not true believers
and unworthy of D'Angelo's presence.
Would you like to know
what a D'Angelo is?
That rustles through the trees ♪
Sure. Sure.
And misty memories
of days gone by ♪
A D'Angelo is a complex network
of men, women and D'Angelos
spread across countries,
Earth and light.
You have proven yourself
worthy of our visage.
So now you are a protector.
La, la, la, la, la. ♪
How can you mend ♪
A broken heart ♪
If I don't go back
with the real D'Angelo,
I'm
I'm in a little bit of trouble.
Hmm.
Hmm.
Yes. Yes, yes.
Since you were eight,
you always had a dream
where you were swimming,
and below are hands
grasping to reach you.
You struggle to keep them
from pulling you under.
You fight to stay free.
Why are you so certain
the hands intend to harm you?
- Help me ♪
- Help me ♪
Help me mend my heart ♪
Thank you.
My broken heart ♪
I just wanna ♪
Protector
this
Whole operation
is rather expensive.
Did you did you
really want to sign me?
Yeah, but no, I can't.
Sorry.
Somebody tell me ♪
You sound good though.
Thank you.
I sound
I sound good.
That's all right.
Help me mend my ♪
Here we go, here we go.
Pose.
- Mm. Grammys, bro.
- Pose.
Beat time, baby.
Boogie Bunk.
What's happening, baby?
- Just living the dream?
- Yes, sir.
Yo, I'm gonna check
out the bar real quick.
All right. Make it a single.
What's up, man?
Man, I told you.
These kids can take us
places we haven't been before.
- Yes, sir. Yes, sir.
- Hey, yo, yo.
- What's going on?
- Paper Boi.
Haven't seen you in a minute.
- Yeah.
- What's going on?
Oh, man, you know.
Coolin' it. Coolin' it
- like I do.
- Mm-hmm.
That's what's up.
Listen, I want to apologize about Benny.
Part of the game. I hope
you weren't offended.
Hey, man, no. No offense taken.
No. No, I learned a lot from y'all, man.
- Good.
- Yeah.
You see what I've been telling you?
You see where these kids got us?
I mean, we're at the Grammy's, baby.
- Yeah.
- What's up?
So, Paper Boi, what you nominated for?
Oh, man, I'm I'm not nominated.
Yeah, I'm just here
supporting my new artist.
- New artist?
- Mm-hmm.
Al, you found one?
- Hmm.
- Good for you.
Yeah, man, yeah, yeah. You
might've heard of Yodel Kid?
- I'm sorry, that was you?
- Yeah, man.
Platinum in three weeks.
I mean, it's crazy
how fast things travel
on streaming nowadays, no?
That record been out what?
11 fucking days, man?
11 fucking days, man.
You had to pay somebody.
Don't we all?
Ah, you don't, though. I mean
We gonna catch you inside.
Yeah, you will. Yes, you will.
Yes, they get paid.
What's going on, bruh? Hey, Benny.
Hey, what's up, Paper Boi?
- What's going on?
- Yeah, what's going on?
Hey, hey. You heard from Yodel Kid, man?
'Cause I've been
callin' his ass all day.
- You know where he at?
- Oh, yeah.
Uh He's dead.
He dead What?
Yeah, the driver went to pick him up
a couple of hours ago,
and they found him.
Probably, like, OD'd like crazy, bro.
It's all over my feed
right now, it's goin'
Man, let me see this
shit. Talkin' about
- "Lost a legend." "RIP."
- Yeah.
What the
He died, man?
Yeah.
You're probably gonna win that Grammy.
Bet.
And the winner is
And this was a no-brainer
Yodel Kid, "Born to Die."
I just want to say thank you to everyone
who was playing his music
on the streets today.
You know, he always
said all he wanted to be
was a legend and, wow, he really did it.
Huh, that was weird.
I'm telling you, Grammys
ain't for a Black man.
Mm.
Congrats.
Hmm.
Man, I don't know, I
don't know if I'm cut out
for the managing part,
you know what I'm saying?
It just made me feel
sick?
Yeah.
How you do it, man?
Um
I just remember it's not
about what feels good.
It's about
what survives.
Yeah. Um
Yeah, I got a meeting on the westside
in the morning, so
This is on me. I'll see y'all.
- Easy.
- I'll see y'all later, hmm?
- Always working.
- Yeah.
All right, man.
Actually, uh
a guy, Mickey Boston,
he's got this after-party.
You comin'?
All good, man. I'm good.
- All right. Wham.
- Bam.
- Thank you, ma'am.
- You know it.