Aahana Swrup
Lamar and Artillery’s climb to the top remains an uphill battle in episode 4 of ‘The Drop: A Snowfall Saga.’ The musical duo’s name to fame proves to be a short-lived victory when corporate politics behind the scenes threaten their future under the record label. This serves to only further heighten the tension brewing between Wanda and her music-producer nephew, who feels betrayed by the business choices she has recently made. Simultaneously, things continue to get worse on the family front when Gerty refuses to acknowledge and embrace her grandson’s dreams, unable to move on from the losses of her past. Consequently, as Wanda continues to lose the trust of those around her, she has no choice but to turn to Lee for help in the hopes of bringing her real vision to life and proving her worth. SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Label Pulls Artillery’s Music From the Radio
Jenny’s decision to pursue rap under her record label has been a risky move from the beginning. Internal power struggles already promise to kick her out of her father’s company as the other board members remain more interested in selling the entire venture. Nonetheless, her attempts to make a mark on the industry are undone when her subordinate, Cal, goes behind her back and lodges internal complaints and concerns regarding Artillery’s legal troubles. As a result, Jenny’s control over the label slips as she’s forced out of her position. With this, the single that Artillery, Lamar, and Wanda have worked so hard on to bring to the public gets pulled from the radio. Yet, in the aftermath, they refuse to surrender to this loss without a fight.
Wanda comes up with a promising but dangerous plan to get the music out to the public. The only problem is that she needs capital to fund her methods. This brings her to Lee, her ex-husband, who is as reluctant as ever to support her dreams. This leads to an argument between the couple that reveals a deeper truth about the reason behind their separation. As it turns out, the duo had lost a baby, which likely led to the unraveling of their marriage and the existing tendrils of contention between them. Still, when all is said and done, Lee ends up agreeing to loan Wanda the money. She then goes on to use this funding to produce tapes of Artillery’s song, which she distributes around the neighborhood and local communities. This creates a demand for the product, which turns Artillery and Lamar into local stars seemingly overnight.
Mama G Continues to Blame Wanda For the Past
The Kinsey family has never been very supportive of Lamar’s dreams of breaking into the music industry. Among them, his grandmother, Mama G, is the most vehemently against this prospect. Therefore, when she learns about his contract with the record label, she doesn’t take the news too well. In turn, Wanda, who orchestrated the entire thing, tries to talk ot her grandmother in hopes of making her see the positive side of Lamar’s progression as a professional music producer. Nevertheless, the older woman has no interest in hearing Wanda out. This is because she is too steeped in her own fear about history repeating itself. Mama G lost her daughter, Lamar’s mother, to the drugs that overtook the streets of Los Angeles a few years ago.
The music industry, though different than the drug empires of Franklin’s time, comes with many of the same pitfalls. Despite its legitimacy, they’re entrenched in gang violence, contention against the police, and financial greed. As such, the thing Mama G is actually scared of is losing her grandson in a similar way that she lost her daughter. However, Wanda fights back against her fears and insists that the reason this is creating friction between her and Lamar is that she never told the young boy about the nature of his mother’s death. All of this provides much-needed context about the family’s reluctance to support Lamar’s career and his own sense of disconnect from his loved ones. In the end, Wanda’s bold defiance invites Mama G’s anger, and the latter ends up slapping the former, fracturing the relationship between the two.
Wanda’s Strategy Makes Big Bucks, and Lee Enters a Dubious New Arrangement
Wanda’s decision to move Artillery’s music through the neighborhood proves to be a great move in terms of bringing recognition to the artist. Moreover, it also ends up making them a lot of money as the tapes begin to sell for profit. However, this also puts her in a compromising position. As it turns out, all this time, Daryll has been working on his own strategy to go around the label’s restrictions and put Artillery’s music back on the radio. He and his men have been looking up dirt on Cal to exile him from the company and bring Jenny back to power. While Wanda’s method ended up working, it also runs the risk of a contract breach since the label technically owns the work of the rapper and Lamar.
Yet, Lee nips the problem in the bud by offering Daryll the profits they had made on the tapes. Fortunately, this loss of money isn’t felt for long as the tapes continue to make more and more money. Ultimately, the gang remains in a big profit and decides to go out to a club to celebrate. Thus, Lamar gets his first taste of success. On the other hand, Lee and Wanda, who have decided to become business partners, share a romantically charged moment. Even so, they decide not to go down that road, preferring to remain just friends. This ends up working well for Dara, who has had her eye on Lee for a long time. After she makes her intentions clear to both him and Wanda, Lee eventually ends up hooking up with her. Considering that he has decided to invest in Wanda’s venture, which significantly relies on Artillery, this new romance can’t possibly end well.
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