Original subtitles

[bright music]

[smooth jazz music]

[casual catchy music]

- Let's show some love for Aklia Jackson, y'all!

[audience applauding]

And my girl Val. All right.

Whoo, and look at y'all.

Give it up for your beautiful queer selves.

All right, all right.

Welcome to Queer Poetry Night.

You could be anywhere, but you chose to be with us,

and I thank you.

And this beautiful Negress is definitely going

to make it worth your night.

[audience applauding] Hello!

Now, if you've been here before, you know how it goes down.

Tonight, it's going to be full of divine elevation,

and it's going to be as queer as fuck.

[laughs] Yes, what?

The poets coming to the stage tonight

are going to strip your soul bare.

Every month, I like to have a theme question

that I pull from my personal journey

and things that are going on in my life,

so tonight's question is

what would you do when you get what you want?

Let that sink in.

You see, we spend so much time wanting, praying for,

obsessing over that thing, and sometimes that person.

[women moaning]

But what happens when you get it?

- You know, I don't know if she stayed

because she didn't want to give that motherfucker half

or if she actually wanted to work it out.

- I think she wants to work it out.

I mean, shit, last time she saved their marriage

with a baby.

- Did she, though?

She gave him a baby and he went to Africa for a year

because he needed space.

That's some bullshit.

But what I don't understand

is why she gave up the entire firm for him.

- Don't you worry yourself about that.

When push comes to shove, you can always come

and work with me and George.

- Candice, I can't do that.

I mean, you and George have enough of your own problems.

- That is true.

Don't worry, you'll land somewhere.

- Not anywhere I want to be.

I mean, my degrees don't mean shit in this market

because I'm going up for jobs

against these app savvy millennials.

- I slept with a woman.

- What?

- I slept with a woman last night

and I liked it.

- Are you serious?

What woman?

What, wait, why?

- I, I don't know.

I, I went to Ginny's

and then this fine-ass sister sends a drink to my table

then she sits down next to me, starts macking me,

and next thing I know I'm in her apartment.

I'm there most of the night

and I don't recognize myself

and it's wonderful.

[both laughing]

- Candice!

- [Candice] I know, right?

- Hey!

How y'all motherfuckers doing tonight?

Y'all look great. Fucking beautiful.

You know, I love to give people a compliment

because my name is Lo and I'm a hoe.

I say that because it's the truth

and I really don't know how else to introduce myself.

I'm Lo, I'm a hoe. I really, really like sex.

You know, most people are afraid

to get what they really want.

Not me. I like to put it out there.

I like to let people know what their options are.

You know, some people have friends with benefits.

Not me, no.

I'm a fuck with benefits, okay,

because to me the fucking part

is the essential part of the relationship,

the friendship part is what happens afterwards

'cause motherfuckers gotta eat, you know what I'm saying?

Like, I'm hungry, you hungry, let's go get something to eat.

So that's how we become friends, you know?

But I'm just, look, I'm just trying to get free,

you know what I'm saying?

Can I live?

- [Crowd] Yes!

- This is scolding hot tea.

Does George know this?

- No, but Jake does.

- Wait, why does your son know this?

- Because they're friends.

I had no idea, and then he walks in on us.

- Wait, wait, wait.

That's messy, Candice, and you're not messy.

Is this some kind of revenge on George?

- No. This has nothing to do with George.

I mean, yeah, he's a lying cheating son of a bitch,

but no, this is not about him.

I have been trying to work with that.

Listen, we've been disconnected for so long.

We hardly have sex, and when we do,

shit, he hasn't made me cum in a year.

But with her, I had multiple orgasms.

It was amazing.

The whole room was an ocean.

- You hear yourself, right?

You're gonna break up your entire family for an orgasm?

- Michelle, what are you talking about break up my family?

My family's been broken for years.

- So you're gay now?

- I am

myself now,

and I deserve to be happy and I deserve to feel good

and I deserve to be coming on the regular.

- Okay, and that all sounds really, really good,

but it's just not worth everything you're giving up, babe.

- What are you talking about I'm giving up?

- Okay, so you remember Sarah and David?

- Yeah. - Okay.

He dumped her ass and now she has nothing.

Her whole life is ruined.

- Michelle, that's not gonna be me.

I own half my company.

If I wanted to be nasty,

I could walk away with the whole thing.

- So what's next? Hmm?

Gonna get a divorce?

- I don't know.

I just know I'm tired of pretending.

- Wow, Candice.

You really like this girl?

- And I miss her.

- I had to find out I was beautiful

by falling in love with other black women.

There is nothing more honest than lying naked

with everything you've been taught to hate about yourself.

- Amen! - Speak about it!

- She kisses me with her eyes open.

Says she needs proof.

- She better. - Okay!

- And what about your parents?

I mean, oh god, your poor mother, poor Dottie.

This is gonna kill her.

And then there's George.

Okay, when he finds this out,

he's gonna lose his entire grip on reality.

Oh my god, and then what about Jake?

- You know what, Jake is an adult

and he's gonna be all right.

I'm gonna talk to him and explain.

And why should I give a damn

about what George thinks about anything?

- Because you need to consider George, okay?

- Do I? - Yes, you do.

Why are you being so selfish?

- Oh, I'm being selfish?

You know what, fuck George!

I mean, I didn't tell you this for you to start judging me.

- Then why did you tell me? - Because I thought I could.

- And you can, and you always can,

but that's not gonna stop me

from being your voice of reason, okay?

You had your fling.

Now cut this shit out, Candice.

- No, this is not new.

- What's not new?

- This wasn't my first time.

You remember Bridget Stephens

from freshman year?

- Kind of.

- She was the head cheerleader.

She was dating Chris, that point guard

that everybody wanted to get with,

the one with the pretty eyes.

- Yes, yes.

- Well, her dorm room was right next to mine.

And that first Memorial Day,

remember everybody else left town and I couldn't

because my parents were traveling?

And Bridget stayed too,

and we,

we spent the entire weekend together.

- You messed around with her?

She's gay?

- All I know is that we were together

the entire weekend

and it was crazy and amazing.

Taylor brings all that back to me.

You know, I've been so worried

about everything and everyone else,

and I'm just tired of living like that.

- Listen, you just don't know how lucky you are.

Okay, like George isn't perfect, Candice, but he loves you.

- Michelle, what?

- Listen, listen, you're gonna leave all that,

you're gonna leave your family

for a girl that your son's age.

I mean, that's just dumb.

- Oh, so I'm dumb now?

- No.

- I'm dumb? Whose side are you on?

- I didn't mean it like that.

I just don't understand all this.

- I thought you were my friend.

Damn.

- Aklia, sweetie.

Hi, baby.

You look good.

- [Aklia] Mom, what are you doing here?

- What do you mean what am I doing here?

Your father had to go to work tonight.

Told me you were performing, so I came to watch you.

- You can't be here.

- Why not?

- Whiskey neat.

- Whiskey? Can I have water please?

Thank you.

Why can I not be here?

- This is my place, not yours.

- Your place?

Since when are you buying stock in Ginny's?

Thank you, dear.

- [Fan] Excuse me.

- [Diana] Mm-hmm?

- [Fan] Oh my god, we love you.

- Thank you, thank you.

- [Fan] Can we get a picture?

- [laughs] Absolutely.

Kli, Kli, take a picture of us.

Thank you, baby. Oh, the camera here.

And you know how to do it, baby.

Hold the whole camera up so we can look pretty

and young and skinny.

- One, two. - On three.

- [Aklia] One, two, three.

- Fantastic.

- Thank you so much. - Thank you, ladies.

You beautiful too. Have a good night.

- Thanks.

- Did I miss your set?

- I'm playing all night.

- Really?

What are you playing 'cause there's no band up there.

- Just go home.

It's taken me a long time to finally work up the nerve

to get back on that stage,

and you being here is gonna mess that up.

- Wow.

I didn't know that my presence

has caused you so much discomfort.

- It does.

- You might want to go easy on that drinking, dear.

- You know why I don't want you here?

It's because you're a hypocrite.

You come here and you pretend like you like gay people,

but at home you treat me like shit,

and I don't have the energy to pretend with you

to make you feel good.

So can you just fucking go?

Just go, Mom.

Can you just leave?

- Okay.

All right. - Another.

[catchy music]