'P-Valley' Episode 7 shows spectacular montage of work, love and vulnerability behind Pynk's fantasy nights
Every Sunday, we enter the magical blue-pink wonderland that is the Pynk. In every episode till now, the twirls around the pole and the effortless rapping that keeps the crowd swaying to the beat, has been in the spotlight. But Episode 7 shows us that behind those main elements of "labor" at the strip club, there is a lot going on behind the scenes to pull off "a night to remember".
'P-Valley' has shown some spectacular montages this season, the most recent being Autumn and Mercedes turn as Thelma and Louise hustling their way across state lines. But the "labor" montage in this episode is unique because it registers as one fluid moving shot scanning the different "zones" of the Pynk as it gets ready for its final night. This pan, with the walls between each room serving as the frames, we see not only the work and sweat that goes into making the Pynk "customer-ready" but also the love.
Yup, you read that right. It is "love of the craft" you see in the eyes of Maite, the seamstress, who rustles up Mercedes's "strings of pearls" outfit. It is with love that Uncle Clifford pins up the posters for Murda Night at the Pynk with Lil' Murda as the main rap act. It is love you see lavished on the pole as it is cleaned and greased up for the night's performance as perfect chicken winglets fry in the Pynk's kitchen.
Before this montage, you also have Uncle Clifford pull everyone into a game night huddle. Everyone has a purpose for the night — from bouncers Diamond and Big L (tasked with getting the anti-casino petition signed by every club entrant) to DJ Neva Scared spinning tracks to Maite the seamstress dressing the girls to the girls themselves. And they all have fire in their eyes as they put their hands together one last time. Uncle Clifford's stripper prayer in the name of "the Father, the son, and these a**es and t***ies", might have "Pastor" Patrice Woodbine turning in her grave before her death, but it shows the real desperation behind Pynk's last night. One of the girls even asks why they can't draw unemployment checks if the Pynk shuts down.
This vulnerability of the strip club life also shows up in Keyshawn's "coaching session" with Lil' Murda who is all nerves and little less before the night of his big stage performance. She makes Lil' Murda strip all the way in one of the private rooms and then rap, by imagining his audience before him. It flips the "imagine your audience naked" guide to conquering stage fright. At first, Lil' Murda looks completely uncomfortable and self-conscious, wondering why he let Keyshawn talk him into being in such a vulnerable position. And then, Keyshawn lets her words of wisdom drop. "The same way you strip yourself naked on that track, you gotta strip yourself naked on the stage. See the crowd, that's who you are rapping to — now tell em' what you got to say." And with that, just like Keyshawn puts her abuse and insecurities on hold each time she goes up on stage under the lights, so does Lil' Murda.
Each of the behind-the-scenes shots at the Pynk illustrates that stripping is not only about easy eye-candy and the strip-joint is more than just a backdrop for men's fantasies or business — unlike how strip joints have been portrayed all these years on the TV landscape.
'P-Valley' finale airs on Sunday, September 6, at 8 pm ET on Starz.