We Are Lady Parts is a British comedy series about an all-female, Muslim, punk band as they attempt to rise from obscurity and make a name for themselves. The first season is largely from the perspective of the main character, Amina Hussein– a dorky PhD student who is on the hunt for a husband (I know– stay with me here). In the pilot episode, a guy that Amina finds attractive hands her a flyer for an audition. This is how she ends up crossing paths with the women of Lady Parts.
There’s Saira, the lead singer and founder of the band. She works as a butcher and has what can only be described as a soft-butch aesthetic (read: she is almost always wearing flannel). She is passionate about her music and the band, but is uncomfortable being vulnerable. In the first season, she has a boyfriend who she literally never wants to spend time with. She ultimately does the guy a favor by breaking up with him. Reason being that she “can’t give him what he wants.” Then thankfully, we never see him again.
Rounding out the band are Ayesha; the hot-headed drummer and Uber driver who is actually confirmed to be a lesbian, and Bisma; the kindhearted bass player who is a mother and an artist. Also along for the ride is Taz, their upcoming band manager and friend.
Over the course of the first season’s six episodes, Amina slowly overcomes her debilitating stage fright and her fear of being judged, and takes her rightful place as the lead guitarist of Lady Parts. Taz also organizes the band’s first real show after being rejected from multiple venues. The women play the show and hug it out in the end. It’s all very… cute.
However, season two goes far beyond cute and delivers funnier lines, more in-depth storytelling, as well as bigger and better songs. The new season has two major strengths compared to the first and those are: the fact that the screen time is split more equitably among the castmates this time around and the fact that Amina has entered what she describes as her “villain era.” She is no longer a people-pleaser who is running away from her calling due to fear and shame. She sets boundaries and stands up for herself. Being in the band has made her a significantly more confident person, and her growth is a joy to witness.
Adding to the list of storylines that were more developed this season, Ayesha gets a serious girlfriend and struggles with the pressure she is facing to “come out” and be a role model for gay youth. She learns that many of Lady Part’s Gen Z fans already assume that she is both queer and hooking up with Saira. Her actual girlfriend, Laura is out to her supportive parents, and she understandably wants Ayesha to come out to her own parents, but Ayesha is afraid that telling them the truth might change the way they view her. It is a risk she isn’t willing to take at the moment. This causes a rift in her relationship with Laura, but the two women ultimately find their way back to each other.
In the sophomore season of We Are Lady Parts, the band first struggles to come up with the money they need to record a studio album while being signed to Taz’s very independent and very broke music label, and then they struggle to stay true to themselves after leaving Taz for the big leagues. In the end, sisterhood and community win over the promise of playing sold-out stadium tours.
We Are Lady Parts is one of the few shows on TV in which female voices are truly centered. The first season was good and the second was in a league of its own. I look forward to what the third season will bring.
We Are Lady Parts is streaming on Peacock
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