Atlanta, a prospering urban city and home to 5.7 million residents where half the town is trying to break into the modeling or acting industry, and the other half are passing out their mixtapes hoping to catch the attention of a popular music label.
Donald Glover, creator and actor of the new hit television show Atlanta, combines comedy, urbanism, and the reality of Atlanta’s hip hop scene to show viewers the process of becoming a hot new artist.
Glover’s character Earn is the quirky, nerdy cousin to Alfred Miles played by Brian Tyree Henry, better known by his persona Paper Boi. Miles is among those up-and-comers who is looking to make a name for himself in the music industry. He uses his street cred, which is built after he shots a man in cold blood, to promote his rap persona. Darious played by Keith Stanfield, the rapper’s right-hand man and visionary, is also in the trio entourage.
Earn sees potential in Miles and to help as his manager to take his career to the next level. While, caught up in the drama of managing his cousin’s career, he has his own personal mishaps. They begin with him not being able to make much money from his job in the airport to support his daughter or have rent on time to Vanessa played by Zazie Beetz. This serves as his motivation to take a different route in life, managing his cousin’s career.
Episode One:
One thing you will quickly notice is there is no theme song to Atlanta. Each episode opens features different artist such as ATLien OJ DA Juiceman, Florida native Kodak Black, Migos to name a few. The opening scene introduces Earn, Darius and Paper Boi and gives a glimpse into each of their personalities. The scene dramatically ends with a gun firing off, setting the tone for the episode. The next scene introduces Vanessa, the mother to his daughter and their relationship.
Earn proves himself to be manager-worthy by succeeding in getting Paper Boi’s single played on the fictional radio station 106.5 The Jam. Earn managed to persuade the radio DJ by presenting him $500 in payola. Of course, the racial politics of the music business rears its ugly head when Earn bumps into Dave, an old acquaintance who works at the station. The man is white and causally drops the n-bomb while simultaneously telling Earn he is just the average black guy, which represents the many white gatekeepers at hip-hop radio across the country.
Episode Two:
The second episode in the two-part premiere opens with Earn and Paper Boi thrown in jail for the shooting in episode one. The scene opens with a sample of Yo Gotti's "Law" which fits because they are sitting in jail.Paper Boi is the first of the two to be bailed out of jail, and is spotted by a fan, an officer who brags about jailing Gucci Mane.
Paper’s Bois single is gaining popularity and is giving him new found fame amongst his fellow ATLiens. His second encounter with a fan is in his ‘favorite’ mom and pop shabby diner. The fan warns Paper Boi of what he might do if it were found Paper Boi lacked authentic street cred.
