Five years after its final episode aired, people are still arguing about Lawrence on the timeline. It’s wild. Most "relatable" comedies fade into a blur of mid-2010s nostalgia, but the HBO TV show Insecure feels different. It isn't just a show you watched; it was an event you survived with your friends every Sunday night.
Honestly, it changed the way we look at Los Angeles. Forget the Hollywood sign and the Santa Monica Pier. Issa Rae gave us the real stuff—the 7-Elevens, the Hilltop Coffee in Inglewood, and those specific, golden-hour views of Leimert Park.
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The "Awkward" Blueprint
Before the HBO checks started clearing, there was a YouTube series. The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl was the scrappy, low-budget ancestor of what would become a prestige cable juggernaut. Issa Rae basically bet on the idea that being a "weirdo" was a universal experience, even if Hollywood hadn't figured that out yet.
When the HBO TV show Insecure premiered in 2016, it didn't just bring the awkwardness; it brought a cinematic gloss that we hadn't seen applied to South LA before. Cinematographer Ava Berkofsky literally changed the game for how to light Black skin on screen. She used specific polarizers and reflected light to make sure the cast didn't just look "visible," but radiant.
Why the friendship was the real romance
Everyone focuses on the guys. Nathan vs. Lawrence. Dro vs. common sense. But the soul of the show was always Issa and Molly.
Their friendship was messy. Like, actually painful to watch sometimes. Remember Season 4? That slow-motion car crash of a falling out was harder to stomach than any breakup. It felt real because it didn't rely on "catfight" tropes. It was about two people outgrowing their old patterns and realizing they didn't know how to fit into each other's new lives.
- Issa Dee: The creative who felt stuck in a "We Got Y'all" nonprofit rut.
- Molly Carter: The high-powered lawyer who could win a case but couldn't stop self-sabotaging her Hinge dates.
- The Conflict: One wanted to evolve; the other felt left behind.
Breaking the "Strong Black Woman" Trap
For a long time, TV characters who looked like Issa and Molly had to be perfect. They had to be "strong." They had to be the moral compass.
The HBO TV show Insecure threw that out the window.
Issa was kind of a mess. She cheated. She rapped to herself in the mirror to cope with her social anxiety. Molly was frequently "the villain" of the week in fan discussions because of her elitism and rigid expectations.
That was the point.
The show allowed Black women to be mediocre, indecisive, and selfish. It gave them the same grace that shows like Girls or Sex and the City gave their protagonists for decades. It wasn't about being a role model; it was about being a person.
The Sound of South LA
You can't talk about this show without talking about the music. Raphael Saadiq and music supervisor Kier Lehman didn't just pick hits. They broke artists. If you heard a song during an end-credit sequence, it was probably on your Spotify "On Repeat" by Monday morning. SZA, Bryson Tiller, and Victoria Monét all felt like part of the show's DNA.
The music functioned as a third narrator. It filled the gaps where Issa’s "mirror raps" left off.
The Real-World Impact on Inglewood
Gentrification is a heavy topic, and the show didn't shy away from it. While Issa was trying to "save" her neighborhood through art walks and block parties, the real-world Inglewood was changing rapidly.
Fans still flock to "The Dunes"—the apartment complex where Issa lived. It’s a real place on West Boulevard. But there’s a bittersweet irony here. The show’s massive success helped put a spotlight on these neighborhoods, which, alongside the construction of the SoFi Stadium, contributed to the very rising costs the characters complained about.
It’s a complicated legacy.
How to Revisit the Magic
If you're looking to dive back into the world of HBO TV show Insecure, don't just binge the episodes. Pay attention to the "show within a show." Whether it was the slave-era soap opera Due North or the 90s reboot spoof Kev'yn, these parodies were low-key the funniest part of the writing room’s output.
Practical Steps for Fans in 2026:
- The Location Tour: If you’re in LA, grab a lavender latte at Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen. It’s partially owned by Issa Rae and served as a frequent filming spot.
- The Soundtrack Deep Dive: Go back and listen to the Season 2 soundtrack. It’s arguably the peak of the show’s sonic influence.
- The "Insecure" Effect: Look at shows like Harlem or Run the World. You can see the DNA of Issa’s storytelling in almost every contemporary "friendship" comedy.
The show didn't end because it ran out of steam. It ended because the characters finally grew up. They found a version of "secure" that worked for them, even if it wasn't perfect. That’s why we still talk about it. It taught us that the "mess" isn't something to be fixed—it's just life.
Support Black-owned businesses in South LA next time you visit the filming locations. Keep the energy of the "Block Party" alive by engaging with the local creators who are still there, long after the cameras have packed up.