Outside or her cultic participation in JAMLA affairs, Rapsody was been quiet as kept for much of 2018. In fact, Laila's Wisdom was the last open look we had at her creative reservoir since 2017, and I don't count the Netflix mini-doc as significant plot development. Although I must attest, Rapture served well in the interim. Her latest single "Phylicia," performed with a self-effacing Buddy, is a necessary function of the post-Cosby era. Think about it this way, Phylicia Rashad definitely has done enough in her lifetime to transcend the role she played on the Cosby Show. Yet, if she chose to live vicariously through a "Clair Huxtable" archetype, no one would question her motives.
Therein lies the powerful subtext of Rapsody's "Phylicia," Burn down the Cosby altar at your own discretion, but Rapsody would much rather you did it without affecting the other institutional characters like Theo, Clair, and to a lesser degree, the childlike innocence of Raven Symone. An entire generation was raised on the Cosby dynamic, prompting those who felt duped to become revisionists - others like Buddy and Rapsody have chosen the middle path in place of the more rhetorical options. They aren't about to let Mrs. Rashad stumble down the same stairwell as her fictional husband. Not because she's the dearest soul there ever was. But to a lot of folks, "Phylicia" came to symbolize "Black Love" in an unquestionable manner. Doesn't hurt that Rapsody and Buddy make for a good song dynamic with JAMLA's own 9th Wonder.
Quotable Lyrics:
They like your momma fine
I know she fine!
Y'all late.
- Rapsody