ABC sitcom black-ish, now in its fifth season, has been tackling issues of race and culture in America from the perspective of an upper-middle-class African American family since 2014. While the show mainly riffs on everyday racial issues in modern America, it will often focus its attention on a specific issue, historical event, or influential figure for an entire week’s installment, inhabiting that topic for a “special” episode. During last night’s episode of the show, the Johnson family purified themselves in the waters of Lake Minnetonka with a new half-hour dedicated to the towering legacy of the late, great Purple One himself, Prince.
The episode’s plot stems from a simple premise: The older members of the Johnson family are trying to explain to their uninitiated young Millennial family members why Prince was such a big deal. In the episode, each of the family members explains the different ways in which Prince had an effect on their life or their worldview, from empowering their sexuality to giving them confidence in being themselves during difficult times. As they do so, they each flash to daydream sequences themselves as Prince at various points in his career, matching his various iconic looks, beloved music videos, and more with amusingly accurate reverence.
You can watch the various Prince clips from the special black-ish episode below via ABC:
“Purple Rain”
“Kiss”
“Erotic City”
“Sign O’ The Times”
“Sexy M.F.”
“When Doves Cry”
“Nothing Compares 2 U”
To watch the full Prince tribute episode of ABC’s black-ish, head to the network’s website here.
[H/T Consequence of Sound]