Original subtitles

And now for the last item on our agenda.

The Virginia humidity has been replaced by a chill in the November air.

It is that special time of the year where we all start looking for something

or someone to keep us warm.

And you know what that means, don't you?

It is cuffing season, y'all. And if you want to survive it with your heart and

your edges intact, I need you to listen up.

I have seen it.

too many times.

Look, family, I've seen it too many times.

It always starts with, nah, man, she aight, I don't care.

And it ends with checking your phone every five minutes trying to figure out

why she leaving you all red.

But look, cuffing season is about making connections, not babies.

Now say it with me, ladies.

Take no steps with Hoteps.

I got it.

Thank you. It is an emotional jungle out there.

And it's really easy to lose yourself in it.

Oh.

Dismissed.

I don't know about you lot, but I'm already cuffed.

You see, me and my Compton QE have been doing our thing. And soon we may

actually do our thing. Oh. You ain't telling me you... A gentleman never

tells. Good man.

You see, Rashida has a wifey.

And she got this fire.

She knows how to mellow me out and hype me up all at the same time.

Well, Kojo and I are basically on boot time.

Okay.

It's actually been kind of nice getting to know him. In the biblical sense.

Girl, we're having a good time. Okay?

Okay. And he even planned a date for us.

Koshida has a nice ring to it, yeah.

Koshida. Yeah.

My DMs runneth over, but all eggplants and no effort.

I think I need to get off of HBCU up. What we need to do is get you out in

these streets.

So you just want me to go out and approach somebody IRL?

That's suggestive of your lack of social boundaries.

I will be your wingman.

We will be your wingman. No, we will not. No, look, love y'all boys, but I'm

not about to be out here in these streets with y'all.

See, look, me and DeBoer, we just got on the right path, and I ain't trying to F

that up. What about you and Shaquille?

No, I don't even have the bandwidth for anything serious right now, especially

with me and Ellington trying to get my grades right and my new job at the pit

paying Dwayne and Whitley back.

I got to be focused on my focus.

Believe it or not, I'm more of a one-woman kind of man.

Well? Even though I've never been successful at it. Yeah. Yeah. We fall

down, but we get up. My God. My brother. Come on now. Yeah, yeah.

Oh, speak of the devil.

Shaquille wants to meet up tomorrow.

Oh, well, obviously you're gonna go. No, no, only because we're friends.

Right. Uh-huh. See, now your mouth is saying one thing. Mm-hmm. But all it

is... It's picking our baby name.

It's a different world than where you come from.

It's a different world than where you come from.

It's a different

I seriously cannot thank you enough for hiring me, Nelly.

Getting cut off by my parents felt like throwing me into the ocean without them

actually ever teaching me how to swim, so I'm excited.

Well, baby girl, you are family, okay? So now, what do you know how to do?

Well, I'm a people person, and I'm a whiz at making lattes. They actually

used to call me the diva-risa.

Okay, she just learned how to use a washing machine. Maybe we should start

her off with washing dishes.

Great idea. See?

This is why I put Rasheed in charge. Do everything she tells you to do, you'll

be just fine.

Okay.

Time to go. Go where? To work.

We coming at you from Hillman College's Marshawn Lynch Serenity Garden.

The QB Shaquille Johnson.

Now, I know my boy must have paid a grip for this little spot, because I know

Marshawn, and he ain't never been serene.

Let's chop it up, five-star.

You had offers from all across the country. Tell me why you brought your

talents here to Hillman. I believe in black athletes using their talents and

high profiles to uplift HBCUs.

Basically, I give to Hillman and Hillman give to me.

That's beautiful.

Almost poetic.

Like a light-skinned Shakespeare.

Shakespeare. But our viewers want to get to know the real you. Yeah. Because

being here, you're not going to get the coverage you would, let's say, Ohio

State or Alabama.

That make you feel some type of way?

I came here to make this program bigger, which would make Hillman bigger. So

you're saying Hillman's too small for you?

No, I like how small it is here. All right, you got this team on an eight

-game win streak. On the verge of its first-ever celebration bowl game,

transfer portal's going to be wide open for you as Hillman College's savior.

Savior?

Ah, I don't know about that, Cam.

I mean, of course, I definitely put Hillman on the map. I mean, before I got

here, college football fans didn't even know we had a team.

And as far as the transfer portal goes, that's always going to be open for me,

but I love it here, so...

All good. You heard it here first, fam.

Him and football would be nothing without his five-star Jesus. What? No,

no, no, wait. I did not mean it like that. And that's all the time we got

today. It's coming from the greatest Jordan ever.

This is Lights.

Cam, action.

Cam.

I appreciate you letting us dissect your interview today in class, Shaquille.

Yeah, I'm definitely regretting that now.

I bet you are.

Five-star Jesus got crucified.

Hey, all right, all right. Take it easy on my boy.

Look, when you have a platform, you have to own the message.

Hold on. He was interviewing me, though.

I just answered the questions that he asked. But you said stuff you didn't

really want to say.

You can use those answers to redirect the narrative.

Look, a trained public speaker has the power to take any platform and turn it

into a vessel for their own message.

Look, man, y'all was born with iPhones in your hands. You were on lockdown

during the most pivotal part of your development.

That wreaked havoc on your perception for social cues.

All right, Professor Baptiste, I'm going to need you to stop dragging us.

I'm not trying to drag y'all.

Which leads me to your next assignment.

I want y'all to go out into the world and talk to people.

Wonderful, right?

Ask questions.

Listen.

Be direct about your intentions and report back to me.

You got it? All right, sounds fair. Yeah, fair enough.

Major?

Early childhood education.

We're walking down the sidewalk.

Which side are you walking on?

Whichever side is closest to the street.

Biggest pet peeve?

Condoms.

Okay, did you clean out and empty out the fridge? I did, and I also organized

the pantry. Okay. Yes, I think it was actually kind of therapeutic.

At one point I kind of became...

One with the cans.

Keep it up, girl. I like the hustle. Oh, and once I'm done bussing, I'm going to

clock out. So, you know, I have time to go home, take a shower, maybe do some

homework, bedrock for a sec because you know how that be, girl. And then I think

I'm going to meet up with Shaquille after. Oh, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

We have a whole lot more work to do. See, you ain't the only person who has a

date tonight, okay?

Now go out there and take out that French trash and be careful because

there's a group of possums out there and that mama like to tussle.

Oh, I can't do this.

Nellie, can I have a $14,000 advance so I can pay my parents off faster?

Child, please.

All I got for you is some advice.

One, if what I'm paying you isn't enough, then go out there and find you a

second job. But I do. Take that trash out before you lose this job, okay?

I tried to told her.

Oh.

I'm going to go. I'm going to go. I'm going to go. I'm going to go.

You work here?

First day.

Wow. Okay.

You going to be able to balance this with your schoolwork?

I kind of have to, but thanks to you, I have a study schedule, and it is getting

booked, busy, getting at least a B.

That's a lot of Bs. I think that means something.

Yeah, about that.

I just finished grading exams.

I got some bad news for you.

All right, gang, two-a-days coming up.

Dismissed.

Shaquille, chop it up with me for a sec.

What's up, Coach?

What the hell were you thinking with that interview, son?

You got the whole team pissed at you, and it's clearly got you off your game.

Look, I didn't come here to be a distraction.

How can I fix this?

You're team leader.

Lead.

Let it be known that our success isn't about you.

Yes, sir.

And maybe start with your boy.

Close. Andre's cleared to play.

But I'm sticking with you in spite of that interview.

Gotta think, son.

Yo. Good throwing out there today, man.

Yeah, you was on point. Sure.

You ain't got to tell me that.

Man, look, look, bro. All that beef, we got to squash that.

Come on, man, for the team.

For the team?

Yes. What did you just tell Cam in the interview, huh?

You put him in on the map.

This was supposed to be my year.

It would be a shame if somebody told Coach what really happened that day.

was supposed to be just us yeah but i should have seen the state of this man's

face when i was leaving so i figured we could just be his wingman and wing woman

but i got something to make up for it tomorrow night it's gonna be very very

special special i love that for me um tonight is night

90s r&b karaoke night it's spoken word i can't catch a break excuse you oh

my god what's going on y'all

This one is called The Room.

They want me in the boardroom, but I'm bored room to room just chasing their

approval. But is there room in your sheets, in your piece?

See, I code switch by day, but tonight I'm just me.

Black boy joy meets black boy free.

You look like liberation.

What's up, girl?

No, you did this for me.

Why you say it like that?

Like, you deserve it, girl. Come on, what else you want?

I just wanted to show how much I appreciate you.

You know, after the interview and the whole team being pissed at me, it really

means a lot that you always got my back.

Hey, you all right?

I got a C-minus on my exam for Professor Brooks' class, and I'm thousands of

dollars in debt.

Yeah, and even with this bit job, I am going to be paying off this money for

the rest of my life.

I feel that.

But look, this too shall pass.

I hope so. It is entirely too much.

But look, let's put all the outside world stuff aside right now.

I want to talk to you.

You see your hands?

Yeah, please.

I want to give us a chance.

For real this time.

For real, for real? For real, for real.

I mean, Shakil, we've had so many chances already.

Why now? Because it's cuffing season?

I do not care about cuffing season.

I care about you and what we got.

I don't know.

I don't...

I don't know.

I have a lot going on right now.

It's slippery.

You know, one wrong move and it's over for me.

Hey, no, no, no.

I'm not saying no.

Just let me think about it.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, of course.

I would like to officially submit my application for Miss Gilbert Hall, the

beginning of an era.

Okay.

Oh, girl, you've got 100 signatures here.

You need 150.

Oh, shitballs.

Hey, Candace.

Oh, gosh, can I not have a moment of peace?

Do you ever feel like you're drowning?

Well, I'm on the Student Activities Committee e-board.

I'm the captain of both the golf and the volleyball team.

I'm an RA.

I have to put up with you guys.

And then on top of that, I look this good.

So yeah, sometimes I feel like I'm drowning.

Damn.

How do you get through it?

Discipline.

Systems.

An unapologetic commitment to being that bitch.

And watching my show.

This show.

Alone and in the quiet.

I hear you.

Do they always make the food look, this is our... Yes, they do. And this is

where I want to watch my important piece.

Oh, oh. Thank you. Sorry.

Sorry. I didn't know it was that deep.

It is.

Food is the universal language.

It breaks all barriers. It's the great unifier.

I mean, look at somebody like Keith Lee.

That's it.

That's it.

Time to tap into my Keith Lee era. Yes. Oh, my God. Thank you.

Thank you, Ken. You know, you're all right.

You know that. Okay.

Your water pressure is excellent.

You know, I feel like my own private waterfall in Tulum.

Not that I've been, but, you know, it did.

Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it.

And, um, maybe I'll take you to Tulum one day.

I'm just gonna say it.

I could get used to this.

I'm not the love-bombing type, but your energy is different.

Something I've been looking for, and we should definitely run it back.

I love that, but just so you know...

i have a boyfriend a boy what a boyfriend we're open in poly

but transparency is a big thing for me so i had to tell you before this goes

any further wow um this is what open and healthy communication

feels like can't say that i love it but thank you for being honest

of course

Can I ask you another question?

What are you looking for in a potential partner?

Me, myself, personally.

When it comes to females, I want a female who really knows how to play her

role as a female.

Did you just triple female me?

Oh, no, honey, you got to go.

But can you sign this before you go?

So today we have the Pitt's famous hush puppies and mash.

Nellie usually uses Tabasco for this, but I think today...

I'm going to use some yuzu kosho that I borrowed from my dad's crib for a little

Japanese flair.

Damn. So, come on down to the pit and come get your light. Devorah?

Devorah, where are you?

Okay, well, that's all we have for today. But remember, when you come to

the pit, be sure to use the hashtag Debo said you. You know what I'm saying?

Okay, period. Goodbye.

What are you doing?

Influencing.

Why is it that I'm the only one that's actually working again?

It's like every time I need you, you're doing something other than what you're

supposed to be doing.

You know what?

I never should have told Nelly to hire you.

Excuse you.

Nelly hired me because I'm family.

I'm the one that put in a good word for you, remember?

But I actually made you look good for recommending me.

It's like you'd be doing too much and not enough at the same time.

Actually, I'm doing exactly what Nelly told me to do.

Find another gig. I'm getting my side hustle on while I'm on the clock.

Genius, not genius.

You should be focusing on the job that's paying you instead of getting distracted

by one of your many, many problems.

Many... I am facing my problems head on.

And handling them like a bad bitch, which is way better than being a mad

bitch. Look at you. You want to see a mad bitch?

I'll show you. You're fired.

First a C-minus.

Then I get fired.

Why am I even trying?

Fired on your first day?

Second.

Too much pressure.

I know exactly what you need.

Hum with me.

Good.

I'm sorry, but the hell?

Um, okay, so when I was a kid, my grandmother would hum to me when I was

upset.

It's all about the soothing vibrations.

Stimulates your vagus nerve, takes you out of fight or flight.

Close your eyes.

Come on.

Do it with me.

Okay.

How do you feel?

Better.

So

is that

how you survived freshman year, stimulating your Las Vegas nerve?

You know, doing this every day could help quiet the noise in your mind.

I saw you were struggling to focus during our first session.

You might also consider getting tested for learning disabilities.

Super neurodivergent, and they were all over the place.

That's not me.

That's not me. I have my stuff way, way together.

I thought we were cool.

Oh, my God.

I like it.

I mean, if this is what making it up to me looks like, you should bring a beer

on all of our dates.

I've never been to a real-life jazz show before.

Me neither.

I thought my man on trumpet was gonna pass out.

Capped with a walk along the river.

Golden hour.

With my girl, it's different.

Oh, sorry. It's okay.

We can't do this. What? Sure, we can.

I'm on my period.

Okay.

And? Ew. What?

Well, my tummy hurts.

Tummy rub?

Actually, I have to study tonight, yeah?

So I'll see you tomorrow?

I pushed all beds together.

Uh-uh, no.

You're trying to be slick.

No, it's after hours. No, I need to see some I.D. No problem, officer.

It's been a long day.

I got a California king calling my name.

Sorry, I thought she was one of these horny kids.

You know, they've been on this nonsense with this cuffing season mess. I don't

know. But, um, you have a good night, Coach Coles. Coach Coles?

Boo-boo, please.

Call me Bryce.

Okay.

Chilly night.

How late they got you working?

Hey, how you doing? Let me get the Hushpuppies a mash.

Deebo sent me.

And I want to do the Yuzu Kosho. I got a real sense of the tummy thing.

Okay, Magellan.

Hashtag Deebo sent you in here so there's no more Yuzu anyways.

Did you say Magellan?

What do you know about One Piece, Lil' A?

I know that I watched all 1,155 episodes over one summer. Did you? Yeah. I don't

believe you. I did. Okay.

Well, then maybe we should start a club.

Where is Deborah?

I kind of fired her.

Girls, you got a little too much dip on that chip, don't you?

You don't have the power to fire anybody.

You don't understand.

Deebo, she be having my nerves in a chokehold.

Uh-huh, like you got mine right now.

Go apologize to that girl and get her to come back here to work.

And tell her hashtag Nelly sent you.

Yo.

Bro, I just want to eat. Man, look, just give me a minute.

All right.

Look, when we had gotten into it, you had said something about my parents.

I see a couple years back, my mom, she passed away.

I know you ain't know, but that shit triggered me.

Dang, bro.

Look, I had no idea.

For real.

I don't play by people's moms, okay?

Consider that all the way squashed.

You straight?

Yeah.

Don't squat down your food tonight. I'm waiting, man.

So, your cold streak is

over. I took our homework very seriously.

Yeah, that's one way to put it.

Last night?

I set up this mad sexy vibe for Rashida. Next thing, she dip with the quickness.

Bro, same with Deborah.

Bro, I laid it all on the line for her. Still ain't give me no answer.

Women, am I right?

I hope y'all got y'all's assignments from last week.

Some, more than others.

Well, I met someone, and instead of fantasizing about how amazing it could

be, I approached him, I stated my intentions, and he was on the same page,

you know? And so a time was had.

And I'm going to stop right there because I don't want all of y'all in my

business.

See, that's the thing about communication.

It's also about delivery.

And we'll finish this conversation later. I would like to introduce a very

special guest, Hillman's newest writer in residence, and my brother, the

renowned poet, Marquise.

What's up, baby?

What's up, man?

How you doing?

Talk it up. Talk it up. You better do that. You better do that.

I know you.

I saw your interview.

It was really... Well, you were moisturized.

Shady, but I'll take it. At least somebody appreciated something.

I'm Candace.

Look, I get it.

Us athletes have to be perfect at all times.

It's the cost of being number one.

Plus, if everybody had our discipline, excellence wouldn't be so rare.

I know.

Can you spot me on this one?

Yeah, yeah. I got it.

Can

you say that

last part again? Oh, God.

I'm sorry I let my non-existent power go to my head. Wow.

How could I not accept an apology so delicate and sincere?

You come back to work?

Definitely. Especially because I don't think this influencer life is for me.

It's so much work.

And I haven't seen a single penny.

Why is everything so hard?

Tell me about it.

Well, since you asked.

Ellington thinks I have a learning disability.

Wait, you don't?

What? Girl, no.

No, no, no. No, no, no, no. I know I can be a little scatterbrained sometimes,

but, I mean, Shaquille did ask me out, and I threw

myself into the culinary arts instead of answering him.

Well, you're not the only one that's flaky.

I mean, Kojo had this super cute date planned out, and...

It ended all romantical.

I feel like I let him on.

No, no, no, no, no, no. Hey, look at me, look at me. You do not have to rush into

anything. Just talk to him, okay?

Tell him you need some time.

Why haven't you talked to Shaquille yet? Um, well, I'm afraid of messing things

up with him like I do everything else.

We fall down, but we get up.

Great.

My bad.

Hazel, right?

I peeped you walking from Bible study the other day. I mean, like, I got mad

respect for women who keep wanting it with their big guy in the sky and stuff.

You trying to get cuffed?

Yeah.

Um, no.

As tempting as that might sound, I'm looking for something real.

You know, a husband.

You are so cute.

Well, I see you need help getting signatures.

I could hook you up with, like, Buku signatures for my boys at the Jesse

Jackson Tower if you want to get out of here.

Yeah.

I have something to tell you.

And I don't know how to say it because I'm just afraid about how you might

react and what that might mean for us.

I'm a virgin.

Hello, I said I'm a virgin!

Yeah, I'm just processing.

Okay.

So, that's why you bailed?

Yeah.

To be honest, I was embarrassed.

I like you.

And I know it's a lot, and I completely get it if you don't want to wait for me

to be ready, but I just, I just... I like you too.

You know what they say good things come to those who wait I'll try back in

tomorrow

I'm trained that if you start to shake, I can hold you down on this bed frame.

Hands mingle. She says she's single, but that ain't single for me.

You gonna do what I, I, I.

You gonna do what I say.

You gonna do what I.

And make sure you remember when I'm been and gone.

Better leave your mark, cause I'm high in demand.

Couple years old, I ain't scared at all.

You see now I handle it criminal.

Now I wanna do the unspeakable thing that you said, said with your chair.