My Bad Parts
Empire hasn’t been that great lately, but last night’s episode seemed to pick things up a bit. Let’s get into the highlights of episode 8.
Freda vs Hakeem
This battle low-key reminded me of Meek Mill and Drake, just for the simple fact that Freda Gatz started the battle and lost just like Meek did. Freda released a diss track and we all know Hakeem’s ego was not letting that go without a fight. Hakeem challenged her to a battle for his last name. We’ll get back to how this battle ended later in the review.
Jamal Becomes Face of Pepsi
Jamal was one of the few artists to be considered to become the face of Pepsi. He had a week to get his new song in to hopefully win. In his showcase for Pepsi, he gives a surprise to both of his parents. He merges the song Lucious chose and the song Cookie chose and created a hit. Pepsi execs loved it and Jamal was chosen as the new face of Pepsi.
Mimi Is Being Sneaky
Ever since her sneaky phone call in the last episode, I really don’t trust her. Something is up with her and that whole merge with the streaming company. The way she looked at Lucious when she wanted him to sign the contract was a little strange to me. Lucious signed without even reading it. Hope it doesn’t come back to haunt him and his Empire later.
Jamal Has To Choose
Jamal is still running behind his father’s back and working on music with his Cookie. Cookie wants his music to be one way for Pepsi and Lucious wants his music to be another way. Jamal has to choose which parent he wants to work with without hurting them. In a perfect world, both parents would work together on his song for Pepsi, but we know that isn’t happening.
Who is Anika’s Baby Daddy?
A bomb was dropped on Empire viewers as it was revealed that Anika was pregnant. The first person she called was Hakeem, but she got the voicemail. If the baby is Hakeem’s, sad to say but this will be Anika’s ticket back in. After a conversation with Andre’s wife about how Lucious is enjoying being a future grandfather, Anika seems optimistic that she might get the same treatment once she reveals to the family that she’s pregnant.
Hakeem Drops His Last Name
In a heated battle between Freda Wack (as Cookie likes to call her) and Hakeem, Hakeem brought the bars. He used his way with the crowd to get his momentum going and ultimately won the rap battle. In the end of the battle he told his father that he is dropping his last name. Then, he smashes the lights spelling out ‘Lyon’ to leave only the name ‘Hakeem’. The crowd started yelling out “Hakeem no Lyon” as Lucious had a childhood flashback of himself homeless looking up at a lion. That’s where Lucious got his last name from? He is holding a lot of secrets from the rest of the family. With Hakeem winning the battle, Jamal’s next album has to be released under Lyon Dynasty.
Cookie Gets A Surprise
Vivica A. Fox makes her Empire debut as Cookie’s sister, Candace. She tells Cookie that their sister dropped her kids off to her house and left a not blaming it on Cookie. I’m not quite sure how Candace’s role is going to impact the rest of the season yet, but I’m sure we’ll find out next episode.
Anika Gets Thin Line Between Love and Hate Crazy
Anika dressed up as an Uber driver, complete with blonde wig, to pick up Hakeem’s girlfriend to take her home. Anika has gone off the deep end after finding out she was pregnant and having her possible baby daddy tell her that he’s in love with someone else. We don’t know where Anika is driving the girl, but I’m sure we will find out next episode.
As always, you can catch Empire every Wednesday on FOX at 9 pm.
