This week we discuss “actors who music”—that is, actors who are also musicians. There are lots out there, so we sampled three: Awkwafina, Oscar Isaac, and Jada Pinkett Smith. We watched one episode from one show and listened to at least one song from each actor/musician. 

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Geek on!

“Awkwafina’s a genius/And her vagina is 50 times better than a penis”

-“My Vag” written by Awkwafina

“I crave your pain and how it soaks me in/I crave your pain cause I’m its only friend”

-“Bleed All Over Me” written by Wicked Wisdom

“I know now, and I just can’t forget/You’re the best I never had”

-“Never Had” written by Oscar Isaac

Well, folks, that about sums it up for this week at Geek Girl Soup! Okay, okay, we’ll say a bit more….

For Awkwafina, we watched s1 e1 of “Nora from Queens” (Comedy Central/HBO Max). Awkwafina’s birth name is Nora Lum, and she is from Queens. Biopic? Fictionalized-semi-based-on-true-life-ish comedy? Whatever. It’s really good. We love B.D. Wong. He first appeared on our radar in three different shows/movies. Susan: “OZ.” Kelly: “The Freshman.” Cort: “Father of the Bride.” And we love Lori Tan Chinn as Grandma. The first scene in which she appears is fabulous. (Callback to Awkwafina’s song below!)

We listened to “My Vag,” “Marijuana,” and “Money” by Awkwafina. We really liked all of them. “My Vag” is a response to Mickey Avalon’s “My Dick” (not so good—and we’re not just saying that because we have vaginas). “Money” is Awkwafina’s take on the Beatles’ “Money (That’s What I Want)” and was used in “Crazy Rich Asians” (HBO Max), a movie in which Awkwafina also appears.

Susan and Cort had already seen “Show Me a Hero” (HBO Max). Kelly had not. We all (re)watched e1. It is a limited series biopic/historical drama about Yonkers Mayor Nick Wasicsko who is in office during a battle of the building of public housing in a white, middle-class part of town. Oscar Isaac won a Golden Globe in 2016 for Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. 

Isaac performs both under his own name and with the band The Worms. From The Worms we listened to “Move On This,” a techno dance song, and “Freight Train,” a metal song. From Isaac solo we listened to “Never Had” (from the movie “10 Years” (HBO Max)) and others. We love his solo singer-songwriter work.

We went way back to 1993 for Jada Pinkett Smith and watched s6 e22 of “A Different World” (HBO Max): “Homie Don’t Ya Know Me?” This one features Tupac Shakur as Pinkett Smith’s past boyfriend. We remember loving this show. In this episode, Pinkett Smith and Shakur stand out as actors. They dated in real life around then, too. 

We listened to Pinkett Smith’s band Wicked Wisdom: “a very aggressive heavy metal band,” according to Apple Music. Yes, indeed. We listened to “Hoax” and “Bleed All Over Me.” Pinkett Smith totally rocks in Wicked Wisdom. And we love “Bleed All Over Me.” Here is Wicked Wisdom performing on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” on May 17, 2006:

But… check out the version by her daughter Willow. It is now Willow’s song:

We’re in the middle of Cort’s favorite time of year—scary movie season! Next week’s movies are assigned by her: “Wes Craven’s New Nightmare” (HBO Max), “Scream” (AMC+ or rent), and “The Witches of Eastwick” (HBO Max).

Extra credit: “The Fog” (the original—not that bullshit remake!—AMZ Prime), “Gothika” (HBO Max), “Hellraiser” (the original—tubi and Pluto), “Firestarter” (HBO Max), and “Halloween Kills” (theater and Peacock).