♪ Head above water I'm making a way ♪
♪ It's the first of the month And the bills ain't paid ♪
♪ I'm saying Man, this feeling's like Good Times ♪
♪ Yeah Man, this feeling's like Good Times ♪
♪ Keep my family close Pick me up when I'm low ♪
♪ Hold me down on this road And I'mma bring us back home again ♪
♪ Man, this feeling's like Good times Yeah ♪
♪ Man, this feeling's like Good Times ♪
♪ And today I'mma get out my way, Momma ♪
♪ They try to spray But the spirit kept me safe, Momma ♪
♪ Again Man, this feeling's like Good Times ♪
♪ Yeah Man, this feeling's like Good Times ♪
♪ Hustling to survive I'm just doing my job ♪
♪ Feds be blocking my shine But the sun always rises here ♪
♪ Man, this feeling's like Good Times Yeah ♪
♪ Man, this feeling's like Good Times ♪
♪ Oh, yeah ♪
[dramatic music playing]
[police siren beep]
[women grunting, groaning]
Uh-oh. We missed one.
[music continues]
Bitch, I know you lyin'.
-Uh. What? Hey! Uh-uh. Let me go. -[phone rings]
-Uh-uh. What y'all doin'? Let me go. -What should we do?
[scoffs] Let her go. But tell her to put some clothes on.
Let me go.
[grunting]
Better had.
Thanks for the tip, Grey.
I still hate you, pig. [sighing]
Let this be a lesson to you all. It's all about perseverance.
[Junior] Hey, shut your damn ass up, man.
Make me.
You always running your mouth like a TED Talk.
I don't wanna hear that while I'm working out, Joe.
At least something on you is gonna be big because it currently isn't your brain.
Keep playin'. You know I roll with the Burgundy Brigade now.
Oh, my goodness! Did you finally get your period?
Means I don't take nothing from nobody.
Mom, are you gettin' a look at this?
Oh, I can't take my eyes off it.
Wasn't it thoughtful of them to name it after me?
Ooh, you are perfect! Just like your name.
Uh-uh. No roaches at Bev Gardens.
Not sure what made you think
climbing up the sewage line into this apartment was a good idea.
Aw, shit, you saw that?
Reggie, how would I see it?
I'm just assuming that's how cockroaches get here.
-Right, cockroaches. -What else would climb up the sewer?
Oh, oh, you'd be surprised. Anyway, I gotta go.
A lot of shit going down in sanitation today.
See what I just did there? Just did a little J-O-B humor right there.
Yeah, you know, 'cause that's where Reggie work.
Have any of y'all seen my husband?
About yea high? Little thick around the thorax?
I sent his ass out for dinner a little bit ago, and he never came back.
[hip hop music playing]
Oh, I love the sound of progress, people!
Temporary housing, here we come!
What if we don't wanna leave?
What if we like livin' here? I don't know anyplace else.
She said it's temporary. Damn! Do y'all not have ears?
Not since Beverly melted them off.
Got me out here looking like Van Gogh.
We still on that? Baby, move on.
The future's so bright you should be wearing shades.
Somebody get Ricky some tape.
[dramatic music playing]
Ha, look at them on the stroll, startin' younger and younger.
What the hell is wrong with you, man? They're just selling cookies.
Ha, is that what they call it in this part of town?
[police siren beeps]
Hands up! Me and my partner here--
Hey, Eriq La Salle, a little help over here.
Hey, ladies, get back here.
Edgerrin James, where are you?
Oh-oh, oh, I was just tyin' my laces.
Laces? Those thugettes could have killed me.
Come on, man. Help me out here.
Four stacks.
Um, that's neighborhood rates.
This place is starting to look like the suburbs, so, sorry Dal,
but I'm paying suburbs prices.
Two stacks.
[hip hop music playing]
[gasps] Please don't cook my noodles, please don't cook my noodles, dawg.
I'm just a ba-- Junior?
Man, you need to stop playing, dude. You almost caught me lackin'.
Man, it's J.R. now. And you are lackin'.
Run them diapers! Mimi, lift them milk makers.
I know you got some change stashed between those cushions.
I mean, you sure you wanna do this, dawg? We are brothers. You know that, right?
That's why I ain't shoot you.
Now, hurry up and hand it over before somethin' bad happen.
He didn't check under my muffin top. Neither one of them.
Nobody robs Dalvin.
[Grey] The projects never looked so good.
This is so great for our people.
[grunting]
Wait a minute. These aren't our people.
Hacky sack?
[suspicious music playing]
A cyclist?
Recycling?
What have I done?
I could stay like this forever.
You was worth every broken rib.
Junior, it was so sexy the way you stared at me
until your eyes swole shut.
They can take my sight, but never my love.
Now, what'd I tell you about calling me Junior?
My bad, J.R.
Yeah, that's better. Bring that ass over here.
Hey! Grab your shit, you two. We gotta go.
Naw, Skoochie. You know it's misdemeanors first.
Junior ain't ready for no felony.
I told you to call me J.R. Aye, let's roll.
You heard him. Now!
[sighing]
Oh, good! You canceled all your other appointments.
Bev, don't play me. You know you didn't give me no choice.
What? Girl, I was just joking, most likely,
but we'll never have to find out now because you always do right by your girl.
I'm sure you made a grip on the Bev cut
since my ascent to the stratospheric heights
of Chicago's political elite, huh? [laughs]
Probably your number one request, huh?
I mean, you ain't no Michelle,
but you definitely more popular than Lori Lightfoot's Chia Pet taper.
Peaches? Girl, I ain't seen you in a minute.
[sighing] Six months to be exact.
I had to wait until the snow thawed before I could make that journey.
Still took the better part of a week.
Hell, I may have scurvy. Can you squeeze me in?
I got you after Bev.
Thanks, girl.
Sound like you still in the 'burbs.
It was only supposed to be temporary
until the establishment upgraded our units.
They upgraded our units, all right. But now we can't afford 'em.
-So, I'm stuck in Harvey. -Harvey? Illinois?
Yes! The place is so bad, they named it after Harvey Weinstein,
but at least we have drinking water,
unlike the city they named after Larry Flynt.
But the good news is I hear they're screwing y'all too,
which means we're gonna be neighbors again.
And I'm gonna get my slot back for my hair appointments.
-Bev! -Calm down.
Nobody's doing anything to us except everything that I asked for.
You get that in writing?
I sure did. Right here.
Aye! Aye. I called shotgun.
You in a gang now, okay? You gon' have to be more specific.
Is that specific enough?
My bad.
[hip hop music playing]
And don't sit too close to my girl either.
I don't care what your pronoun is. On everything I love, I'll beat your ass.
G-Money's good. Chill.
Where to, Skooch?
Who you talking to?
Talking to you.
Ah, you lettin' him call you Skooch, huh?
That's close to cooch. He calling you a pussy.
You calling me a pussy?
Nah, man.
[police siren wailing]
Aw, hell no. I can't go to jail in my good hair, y'all.
Aye, yo. Everybody be cool.
[officer] Put your hands up and get out of the car.
Slowly.
[gasping]
[chuckling] Hey, man. I'm ticklish.
Laugh now, cry later, bone thug.
You got anything on you I should know about?
-Hey, Medgar Evers, help me out here! -Oh shit!
[chuckling] You're all in trouble now.
Man, we ain't scared.
You wanna get big? Get big then, pig. [grunts]
Oh, you wanna get clever, huh?
Well, riddle me this.
What's the worst possible duo for Black gangbangers
when they get pulled over? Huh?
Officer Everlast, come on out here.
Hey, look, they look clean to me.
You gonna pat them down or what? And why are you whispering?
I'm not whispering.
[clearing throat] I have allergies. My throat's so dry.
Pollen count must be at least ten right now.
[exhaling deeply]
[grunting]
Yep, like I said, clean as a whistle.
[clearing throat] Uh, yes, they are clean.
Did I say you could look at me?
I feel a body camera glitch coming on. Ah.
Keep your eyes on the ground, get back in that car,
and roll over to the projects.
And while you're there,
show some respect to your parents who raised you to be better than this,
despite all the obstacles put in front of them.
Wait. How you know where--
Because I'm Santa Claus, motherfucker! Take this gift and go.
You ain't my daddy.
Man, you are doing the most, J.R. He's letting us go.
-Come on! -All right.
[tires screeching]
[dramatic music playing]
[sniffling]
[Grey] Mom, you have to believe me.
I just wanted to make our neighborhood livable.
Now, white people are biking.
If Whole Foods goes up,
we'll never be able to afford to live here anymore.
Have you seen how much the nut milk is?
Grey Evans, if they wanted to take our building from us,
why would they renovate it?
Because white people love renovations.
Haven't you seen the Home and Gardening Channel?
Now you sound crazy like Peaches,
trying to warn me that they moving us to Harvey
and we won't ever come back.
[grunting]
Look, all you need to worry about is not screwing this up for us.
There's no telling where I can go after being Projects' President!
The future's so bright I got-- Damn it, I lost my sunglasses.
[upbeat music playing]
Oh, there we go. See you later.
Tell me something.
Why you always so quick to shoot in this community?
You ever see a wounded animal?
Don't you just wanna put 'em out of their misery?
What I mean is sometimes a bullet in the shoulder or the kneecap
will put somebody on the straight and narrow.
See, I don't shoot to kill. I shoot to change lives.
Now, if they die, well,
that's God's way of telling me they weren't gonna change.
So, your ass is out here being the judge and the jury?
If we don't do it, who will?
Uh, maybe a judge and jury?
Yeah, you are so cute, Evelyn Champagne King.
Sometimes, I just wanna put you in my pocket and rub you for luck.
[soft music playing]
-Grey! Grey! -Monroe?
What are you doing here?
Fell off the wagon. Again. Ha.
They wouldn't let me go back. The neighborhood's all cleaned up.
Yeah. Sorry about that.
Sorry? They gave me a bus ticket to get here.
I sold it for some rocks and walked.
Now I'm living high on the hog. Well, high. On pigeon and squirrel.
All I can eat, free-range too. [chuckling]
This is where you prove yourself.
We're gon' see if you really about that life, J.R.
You need to kill Do-Rag.
Prove myself, huh? A'ight, bet.
You don't need to murk someone just to prove yourself.
Besides, you proved yourself last night. And why he have to kill Do-Rag?
'Cause I said so! Why do you care about Do-Rag so much all of a sudden?
She don't care about Do-Rag. She in her feelings over J.R.
Yo, she think he too soft to do it. Just like I do.
Yeah, right. Man, let's go get Do-Rag.
[dramatic music playing]
I can't watch this. Let me out.
Let me out.
I said, let me out.
Man, let her out.
You don't have to do this.
What?
We need to talk about you-know-who. It's getting out of control.
It's been out of control.
We have to do something.
No shit. I just don't wanna make Mama cry.
Me either, but in the end, it's her fault.
Yeah, you right. For giving birth to you and Junior's sorry ass.
Wait. What?
You ruined my profit margin by cleaning up the projects.
Even I know that's an oxymoron.
And Junior? Junior just got me.
And Dalvin don't get got. Nah, I do the gottin' round here.
And both of y'all got it coming.
No, you got it wrong.
The real problem is Mom.
The system got to her, and now she's helping them get rid of us.
We have to figure out how to show her she's a pawn.
Pawn or no pawn, she ain't taking no bread out of my Pampers.
I ain't helping you hurt Ma.
Fine, then leave. I don't like you watching me like that.
Man, you the one that wanted to meet here.
Yeah, I mean, I thought it'd be a power move.
Could've been without the courtesy flush.
Hi, everyone.
Even though I need no introduction, [chuckles] I'm Beverly Evans,
president of these projects
and Chicago's new Great Black Hope!
[sparkling tone]
[people cheering, applauding]
-[woman] Beverly! -[man] Beverly!
[people chanting] Beverly!
[woman] Beverly!
Great job, Beverly.
We can finally get these people out of here once and for all.
-[woman] Beverly! Beverly! -Oh, thank you. Thank you!
[woman] Go, Beverly!
-[snoring] -Donte.
I'm gonna need you to step aside.
Hey, you think you can just walk in here and tell me what to do?
[Donte] ooh.
[gulping]
Mmm.
You comfortable?
[Beverly] Bev Gardens will feature a state-of-the-art fitness center and spa,
business center, wine cellar, high-speed Internet service,
putting green, valet parking, and movie theater.
[loading tone]
[static tone]
[ominous music playing]
I--I-- I didn't approve that picture. Somebody's about to hear from my lawyer.
[Grey with voice distorter] Beverly Evans is a tool of the system.
She's promising us all a bright future, but this is what's really coming to you.
They said it was temporary.
They were just gonna relocate us out here to Harvey
while they fixed up our building.
But we're still here.
Those are gonna be some nice new garden apartments
in place of the projects.
[Grey] But they ain't for you and me.
They just using our mama-- I mean, Beverly Evans, as a puppet.
[people clamoring]
Word is Do-Rag is at some party your mama's throwing.
[rambling]
Say less. Once this thing is done, we need to talk about leadership, *****.
What kind of leadership, *****?
The leadership where I lead, and you follow.
[dramatic music playing]
Hmm. I don't like that.
After he do Do-Rag, you do him.
Done.
Don't get fooled like me.
Stay where you are, or this is where you'll end up.
[people shouting, moaning]
No, no, people That's fake news.
Fake news! It's lies.
[all booing]
Oh. Oh, I see. Y'all booing Bev, huh?
You booing Bev?
Well, I'm taking names on all of you bitches.
You think you can boo me? You think you can do this to me?
I run this! You just live here.
Go on. Go on and walk away.
[Beverly grunting, growling]
-Now, where's my daughter? -Let's get out of here.
I don't like to see how the sausage is made.
I'm calling all available units to the projects.
[Chief] Proceed with extreme prejudice. You know, like usual.
-You keep the change. That's for you. -You didn't pay me.
Oh, good. Good, then we're even.
Didn't you hear the chief? All available units.
We don't know he meant us too.
[Chief] When I say all units, I mean all units. I'm not fucking around.
What are you doing?
This is our chance to crack some skulls! Let's go, go, go!
We're maintaining the perimeter like we always do.
Besides, you see me eating?
Junior!
We don't have time for this. Let's go!
-[people shouting] -[glass shattering]
Aye, yo, that's Do-Rag right there.
Except when I'm done with him,
he gon' have to change his name to "Done-Rag."
*****, I'm still work shopping it.
What are you doing? Get out of my way.
If you doing this for me, you need to stop.
I'm only attracted to guys who are about to kill, not real killers.
Nah, I gotta finish him.
I wanna take over this gang and be the one in charge.
Come on, Junior.
I told you stop calling me that. It's J.R.
I'm talking to Junior.
You were meant for more than this.
[soft music playing]
Flan girl, please.
I'm finally getting the respect I deserve in these streets.
I'm good.
[music intensifies]
[people shouting]
Jazz! You made signs?
You said you was doing a protest. What's a protest without signs?
Nobody's ever done anything this nice for me before.
You act like you never had friends before.
Because I haven't.
Don't tell nobody else that.
We got secrets too? This is the best day of my life!
Grey LaVaughn Evans!
Get your ass over here right now.
You told these people to hate me.
All my life I had to fight.
Now I gotta fight my child too?
-Ma-- -Don't "Ma" me.
Square up.
Ma, no. I'm trying to stop the system from using you.
By killing my career?
[gasping]
Why is your brother hanging out with those boys?
People are gonna think he's in a gang.
Junior is in a gang.
I can't believe it.
I turn my back for a minute and just like that my son is in a gang,
and my daughter is a traitor.
And Dad's a pig.
Enough with the disrespect, Grey.
Not everyone is blessed with a high metabolism.
And you know your father likes his pastries.
No.
I mean, Dad is a cop.
Five-0. Twelve. Popo. A pig.
[grunting]
What is going on? Is it crack? Is it crack y'all smoking?
Us? You're the one selling your soul for a hit of fame.
Respectfully.
Donte. Time for Operation Cold Hard Truth.
Let's hope it works.
[static tone]
We need a change, y'all. That change is me.
I'll never let you down.
Vote Beverly Evans!
[gasping] Look how young I looked.
Don't you see, Ma? The system got to you.
Like it was designed to.
The old-- Well, younger-ish you,
would've never let All Whitemen convince her to turn her back
on her residence just to have a building in her name.
Mom, you were supposed to be the hope.
You're right. I gotta go fix this.
Everybody. Hey! Hey! Can I have your attention, please?
Hey. Everybody, quiet down.
Oh, look! Free Popeyes sandwiches!
-Free? -[woman] Yeah! All right!
[Beverly] I knew that would work.
Now, look. I know y'all hate me.
And seeing that speech and what I've done here today,
I understand why.
But I'm here to say, we ain't going nowhere, you hear me?
I was wrong.
And they may have the land, but we got the view.
And we're not giving it up!
So, goodbye to Bev Gardens!
[woman] Yeah! All right!
[people cheering, applauding]
[ominous music playing]
Hey, Do-Rag.
Hey, come on now. You ain't gotta do that, man.
It's enough for everybody. What's your size?
Oh, what size am I? What size am I? Nine. Tec-9!
Okay. Shit.
Damn! I should've peed before I got here.
[Smooche] This hurts me as much as it'll hurt you,
but you wouldn't listen.
So, I gotta stop you from hurting yourself.
Please, God, don't let me hit him in the dick.
Come on, man. Please. Please don't shoot me.
Can I put 'em on and post these joints, so folks know I had 'em?
Please! Okay, nah. I'm playing.
Please! Please don't shoot me, *****.
[Reggie panting]
There's a pig blocking my shot.
Wait. Man, I know that big ol' ass.
Junior! What in the hell are you doing?
Reggie, not right now.
Reggie? Boy, I am your father.
Oh shit. Your pops is twelve and you in a gang?
-Dinner must be awkward as fuck. -Man, shut your ass up.
Junior, you put that gun down right now. Your gangbanging days are over.
[people cheering, applauding]
[dramatic music playing]
-[gun fire] -[people screaming]
-[woman] Gang shooting! -The gangs?
Junior!
[Beverly panting, gasping]
Mama! Somebody got shot!
It was you, baby. You got shot.
Oh, Jesus! Lord!
Mom, it hurts.
Oh, baby. Just breathe. Breathe.
Reggie, do something!
I need an ambulance. Gunshot victim in front of Do or Die Projects.
Right away! Right away!
[officer laughing] Yeah, okay. I'll see if anyone's brave enough to come.
My skull's bleeding out.
I'm gonna die.
Or worse. What if I have brain damage?
Man, impossible. You don't have a brain.
[grunting, scoffs]
This must be the end if my sister came to say goodbye.
Grey, even though you get on my nerves,
and you ugly, I love you.
Yeah, yeah. And here's your earlobe.
It was stuck to my shoe.
I thought it was gum, but it's got your stupid earring in it.
Wait!
So… I'm okay?
Yes, baby! Won't he do it!
I'm glad you good, big bro. But this ain't over.
You got that right. Not 'til I find out who did it.
Did what?
Who shot Junior!
Mama, it's J.R.
Who shot… J.R.?
[theme music playing]