Many would agree that the ’90s was a monumental decade — one of the most beloved and appreciated for Black television shows, against which we still measure every other television show. We had In Living Color, A Different World, Martin, Moesha, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, and New York Undercover just to name a few.
There was also Living Single, created by Yvette Lee Bowser, which aired on Fox from August 1993 to January 1998. “…And in a ’90s kind of world,” Living Single was one of the ’90s most watched television shows starring six Black leads — Queen Latifah, Kim Coles, Kim Fields, Erika Alexander, T.C. Carson, and John Henton.
It was the show’s intro, for me. Performed by Queen Latifah, it was like a national anthem for Black women friendship. It featured that iconic silhouette of dancer Big Lez, which set the tone for the show. The song would stay in my head for days, and I can still quote every word.
In the ’90s, Fox was the new network on the block and quickly saw a much-needed void they could fill. They cleverly marketed towards audiences that other networks overlooked, mainly Black people. Along with Living Single, their other flagship shows got them off the ground quickly. Yet, the impact of Living Single, to this day, still remains relevant and funny. This is when we began to see television expanding their scope of Black women.
After A Different World ended in 1993, there weren’t any Black sitcoms that centered a group of young, single Black friends, not to mention ones that dismissed negative stereotypes about Black people and fostered Black excellence. We were watching magazine editor Khadijah James (Latifah), receptionist and aspiring actress Synclaire James-Jones (Coles), attorney Maxine Shaw (Alexander), retail buyer Regina “Régine” Hunter (Fields), handyman Overton Wakefield (Henton), and stockbroker Kyle Barker (Carson).
The show placed a strong emphasis on the positive representation of Black people. It also did an amazing job of presenting the characters’ friendships and how they evolved. We followed their lives, and we were able to see ourselves reflected. The show created a different representation of living in Brooklyn. Bowser created characters and storylines that reflected the diversity of young Black people’s realities; stories that we knew existed but hadn’t seen depicted on television.
Every Sunday night, my college roommate and I would have friends over to watch the show. Although the women of Living Single (with the exception of Maxine) shared a house, they came from a wide variety of social and geographic backgrounds and all facets of Black life. It felt like we were watching people we knew.
Living Single provided a formula for shows that centered on four Black women, their relationships, careers, families, and social adventures while living a major city. It is a solid blueprint that has continued to work for decades in shows like Girlfriends, Insecure, Harlem, and Run the World, which is another brainchild of Bowser.
The heart of Living Single was, of course, its leading women. However, the friendships and romances were a part of the story, so characters Kyle and Overton were key to the overall make-up of the show. What I love is that you can never look back and say that Kyle and Overton were just token characters or room fillers. They played intentional parts in the growing arc of the show and showed realistic interactions between Black men and women.
Oftentimes, society wants to group all Black people together like we are a monolith. Of course, we share cultural similarities as a people. However, there is so much range in who we are, what we do, and how we present. Living Single consistently showed the power and beauty of being different — in how we look to the way we carry ourselves, like Kyle’s speech in Season 2 about hair professionalism. The show’s writers made a point to highlight the authentic representation of Black people through the lens of its characters. Today, as Black people go deeper into their natural hair journeys and take up space as their whole selves, the show made it crystal clear that it is okay to just be you.
The show tackled same-sex marriage in Season 3, when Maxine plans a bridal shower for a college friend who is marrying a woman. Although Living Single was a comedy, the show was able to spotlight hard-hitting topics like ageism, sexual liberation, and gender equity in a way that made it comfortable and relatable. The show proved it was ahead of its time.
I also loved the fact that Latifah’s magazine owner Khadijah James employed an office full of Black creatives, including her cousin Synclaire. We were able to witness Black professional creatives carving a space for themselves, which speaks so loudly now.
In the last 30 years, there have been several shows that did it for the culture. Living Single is one of the most influential shows and launched the “friends hanging out” boom of the ’90s and 2000s sitcoms. It made hip-hop legend Queen Latifah a household name in white America, while showcasing the beauty of Black culture, friendships, and love. “True blue, it’s tight like glue.”
Living Single is currently streaming on Hulu and Max.
