'We Are Lady Parts' Remains a Punk-tastic Treat

The band is finally back together for We Are Lady Parts. After securing their first gig and finding their following at the end of Season 1, which aired in 2021, the Muslim punk quartet find success in Season 2 and truth in the Notorious B.I.G. adage, "Mo' money, mo' problems." If the first season was about the quartet and their manager Taz (Lucie Shorthouse) finding their voice, then Season 2 is about staying true to it even under mounting pressure. 

The main objective for Lady Parts in Season 2 is to record their debut album, but the struggle is what they are willing to compromise to achieve the goal. We Are Lady Parts sings because it knows how to make that journey different and compelling for each of the women in the band and for their manager, Taz. 

Amina (Anjana Vasan) is in her "villain era," aka standing up for herself and setting boundaries after letting everyone tell her who she was in the first season. Ayesha (Juliette Motamed) and Bisma (Faith Omole) struggle to embrace the aspects of their identity that seemingly conflict with their faith. Saira (Sarah Kameela Impey) has to reckon with the idea that getting everything she wanted as a "serious" band is not actually what's important. As for Taz, she must learn how to pursue her own goals instead of assisting everyone else in making their dreams come true. There are obstacles like copycat bands, fashion shoots, and significant others that make everything more complicated and harder for the band to see what they need is each other. 

The groundbreaking aspect of We Are Lady Parts Season 1 remains true in Season 2. The show masterfully integrates multiple Muslim perspectives and experiences into the story and showcases that followers of Islam are not monoliths. Taz's journey especially hints that there are so many layers to the Muslim tradition that the show still hasn't explored. 

The best part of the show is that it can have frank discussions about what it is to be a Muslim woman while still being extremely funny. The new songs this season help highlight those struggles, like "Malala Made Me Do It," a surprising pop-punk anthem about the pressure to be perfect advocates. "Villain Era" and "Glass Ceiling Feeling" are bops you will have stuck in your head for days after watching the episodes. 

Second seasons are often about expanding the world set up in Season 1. We meet more characters as the band gets bigger, but the series never loses focus on its main quintet. It broadens the band's horizons without forgetting this is a show about five friends who love playing music together. The show drills down on what it knows it is good at – telling stories about sisterhood with irreverence, charm, and a little magical realism. Amina finds the strength to stand in her horniness while chanting "vagina" at her best friend's birthing class. Bisma figures out how to parent her hormonal adolescent daughter by literally pressing pause on the teenager's rants with a remote. 

We Are Lady Parts is so successful because it knows specificity is more relatable. Non-Muslim viewers may not know exactly how it feels to decide not to wear a head scarf or hijab anymore, but we do know what it means to struggle with how to represent yourself to the world. Saira is silenced by a mystical force when she wants the band to record a more politically vocal song. In the digital age, we are all contemplating our responsibility to use our platforms, no matter how meager, to help the greater good. 

Season 2 is a reminder that life is complicated and there is no perfect mold for anyone to fit into. There isn't a linear path to your dreams, and there is no way to be an ideal woman, a perfect person of faith, or a perfect person of any kind. We just have to do the best we can and try to make the world a better place. The band figures out their version of that by the end of the season, and We Are Lady Parts Season 2 is doing that for the audience for being the authentic and hilarious gem it is. 

We Are Lady Parts Season 2 premieres with all episodes on Peacock on Thursday, May 30, 2024.