Dominique Clark
Since the finale of Insecure, we’ve been impatiently awaiting another television takeover for the culture, and the wait is finally over! Issa Rae takes us from the beautiful palm trees of L.A. to the hot streets of Miami in a new HBO MAX comedy, RapSh!T.
Showrun by Insecure writer Syreeta Singleton, this series follows two estranged high school friends from Miami, Shawna (Aida Osman) and Mia (KaMillion) as they chase their dreams of becoming the music industry’s hottest rap duo. Leveraging their talents and social media, Shawna and Mia give it their all to get to the bag and fame.
“This is a different story than Insecure,” Rae told the audience during an exclusive screening of episode one at ESSENCE Fest 2022. “Thinking about the music world, getting excited about the abundance of female rappers that coexist today, and thinking about even the City Girls, I’m like oh, they’re like the first hip hop duo that I’ve seen successful since Salt and Pepper, and that’s really cool to me”.
Rea went on to say “…thinking about what that would look like for two estranged friends to start a group together and to collaborate, thinking about myself as a creator and the challenges that I’d face if I were coming up in the industry with someone that I had to reconnect with…that felt like such a rich story to tell and a fun story to tell”.
Co-executive produced by the City Girls, Rap Sh!t is authentic to the Miami hustle and lifestyle. Shawna is an inspiring rapper working as a hotel concierge and Mia, now a single mom, is making money as an OnlyFans cam girl and makeup artist. The two find themselves in the car one evening talking about their friendship and undesirable careers. They decide to freestyle on Instagram Live and go viral.
This series shows the power of Black sisterhood, the challenges in navigating the music industry and the highs and lessons in chasing the dream. We love to see it!
The first two episodes of “Rap Sh!t” premieres tonight at 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. ET on HBO Max. Season One will have eight episodes that will release weekly every Thursday at 9 p.m. ET, with each episode a half-hour.
Tune in!
