Remember when Jidenna made a cameo on Insecure back in 2016? When he was a “Classic Man,” the singer-rapper appeared in all his glory on season one as Yvonne Orji’s onscreen date, Chris, from the super-selective online dating website, The League. (If you don’t remember, Orji’s character Molly somehow managed to ruin that relationship as well).
Years later, the once on-screen “couple” reminisced about their time working together during an ESSENCE Instagram Live chat last week. Jidenna revealed he’s down to return to the hit HBO series, and honestly we’d be here for it. “I’ve been pitching for like four years. [Creator] Issa [Rae] is not having it,” Jidenna joked.
“I’ve been watching all these muthaf-ckers,” he continued, referencing Orji’s onscreen love interests. “Andrew actually reminds me a bit of my actual self…You know the last episode, it revolved around being ‘lowkey distant,’ so he wasn’t giving access to her. I give access, I’m pretty open, but there’s certain topics that I won’t touch.”
During the discussion, the pair dove deep into relationships with Orji asking Jidenna, “What would you warn someone before they enter a relationship with you?”
Jidenna noted two distinct aspects of who he is that are polar opposites—his desire to work hard yet his need to prioritize his family.
“There’s my father, who I had a love/hate relationship with as a child,” he replied. “He worked a lot and he had a desk setup and he built his computer right in the living room. Which made me say, ‘Oh, I’ve got to work that hard.'”
The “Tribe” singer added, “Then I remember seeing the scene in Malcolm X, when I was looking for a father figure that I could see, and he just got back from some city, he sits at his desk, and he’s working and writing a speech. [Malcolm X’s wife] Betty Shabazz comes in and says, ‘You got to get some rest.’ And he responds, ‘I will Betty, I have to finish my speech, the people need me.’ And she says, ‘No, the family needs you.'”
As he reflected on that scene, Jidenna noted, “I admired him. And now I don’t.”
“He’s a man, a human being like all of us,” he continued. “But I don’t want to be that guy—at least that piece. I don’t want to be the guy who is mission and career over love. I want to be as good in my relationship as I am in my career.”
Although we may not see Jidenna, check out HBO’s Insecure on Sunday nights.