Next month, viewers will return to Harlem in Prime Video's original series. It follows four best friends -- Angie (Shoniqua Shondai), Tye (Jerrie Johnson), Camille (Meagan Good), and Quinn (Grace Byers) -- who live in Harlem NYC. Throughout the first season, the group pursued their various professional goals and offered a support system to each other for both work and personal challenges and triumphs.
When Season 1 ended, all four were left with big changes on the horizon. First, Camille decides to quit her job, and she confesses her love to her ex, Ian, and the two kiss -- the night before Ian is meant to marry someone else. Quinn also had some romance of her own as she kissed Isabela and asked her out. Tye experienced a major a health scare and had to confront her husband. Angie, meanwhile, lost her job in Get Out: The Musical, as it was not legally approved. In Season 2, Camille now finds herself caught in a love triangle and trying to salvage her career prospects. Tye begins to think more seriously about her future and faces her health more directly. Quinn will explore her sexuality, and Angie's career begins to look up.
Similar to Season 1, Season 2 is certain to have its fair share of drama in many aspects, but it will also focus on joy. During an interview with Variety, creator Tracy Oliver revealed what to expect from the upcoming season:
"I would say thematically we leaned into the idea of Black joy. And part of that was because I felt like there was a lot of content that was leaning into Black trauma and Black pain. I think because of the pandemic, we just were feeling already heavy, and we wanted to kind of have lightness and use the show as an opportunity to be escapist and fun and soapy and romantic, and just all the stuff that maybe we weren't experiencing in our real lives, and have the show be kind of cathartic in that way. And fun."
Johnson adds that much of the joy within the season will also focus on finding and reaching it, saying:
"[It's about] the journey, too, to joy. Not that it's like a whole joyous season, but that it’s like the contemplation of having the lack thereof, and then getting to the place of joy. How do we get to joy, and how do we find, actually, the thing that will make us joyous, even if it's not the thing that we feel like we should be doing."
Harlem was created by Oliver, who executive produces with Amy Poehler, Kim Lessing, Dave Becky, Britt Matt, Linda Mendoza, Pharrell Williams, and Mimi Valdés. Amazon Studios and Universal Television produce in association with Paper Kite Productions. Additional cast includes Whoopi Goldberg, Sherri Shepherd, Tyler Lepley, Sullivan Jones, and Juani Feliz.
Harlem Season 2 premieres Friday, February 3 on Prime Video. Season 1 is available now on the streamer. Watch the Season 2 trailer below: