Tonight on FOX Empire airs with an all new Wednesday November 11, season 2 episode 7 called, “True Love Never,” and we have your weekly recap below. On tonight’s episode, Lucious (Terrence Howard) explores the possibility of partnering with Jago (Patrick Mulvey) as he maps out a plan to turn Empire into a global music monolith.
On the last episode, Lucious and Cookie put aside their differences for the sake of their family who needed them to work together to stay out of danger; Jamal did his best to get back in the studio and broke away from the “gay artist” label; and Hakeem struggled with how to feel and act like a man. Did you watch the last episode? If you missed it, we have a full and detailed recap right here for you.
On tonight’s episode as per the FOX synopsis, “Lucious explores the possibility of partnering with Jago as he maps out a plan to turn Empire into a global music monolith; at the same time, Andre struggles to find a balance between his newfound values and demanding career. Elsewhere, Hakeem molds Laura into a star; and Cookie pushes to get Lyon Dynasty involved in a major televised charity concert.”
Don’t forget to join us for our live recap tonight at 9:00 pm when Empire airs on Fox. While you wait for the recap, check out a sneak peek of tonight’s episode below!
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#Empire begins with Cookie in bed with Laz. She tells him she has to go. She says the last time she came late to work her sons turned her office into a strip club. He kisses her then says she’s a legit mogul and says she can run her dynasty from bed. She says life is not that easy and he says bring her laptop and he’ll make breakfast in bed. She kisses him some more and they get busy again. This goes on a while. Later, Porsha brings her laptop and food. They are on a sex spiral.
His phone rings and she asks if he’s got a wife he didn’t tell her about. He says it’s some chick he used to see but says he’s done with her. Cookie kisses him then he shows her the line up for a Summer Jam he’s putting on then says they could put some Lyon Dynasty artists on it. She says Lyon Dynasty need something and says she’s going to do her on summer jam with a cookout. She says her name will be in giant letters at the top. She says Cookie’s Cookout and he says magic happens in bed with him.
They kiss and he says he’s taking all the cookie, not the credit. We see his gang tattoo on his back again – the same group that took Hakeem. Freda is in studio and Lucious is there producing her. She says it’s whack and he says to stop running from this. He asks what the hell her daddy did to her and she asks him the same. He tells her merge with the pain and her record will soar. He says this song is going to get play and tells her to do it again. She does. Lucious says that’s it and they high five.
Jamal works on his much less ghetto song. Jamal stops because he’s not feeling it. He sends Cookie the song and texts saying he needs help. Laz comes in and she drops the phone and tells him Jamal wants her feedback on the song. She says this will cause problems with her ex and other son but Laz says he’s her son and that trumps everything and says call him. Laz says he’s going to get a paper and she listens to the track then texts him to flip the perspective. Jamal tries it.
He plays it for her and she says it’s real close and says almost there. She tells him more funk on the piano but then Lucious is there and he says it’s almost done. He walks out and Jamal goes back to working with his mom over text. Laz scrambles to meet his guy who asks where he’s been. He says don’t worry about it then Big Heavy asks if that bitch is up there. He tells him to fall back off Hakeem and says they need to get paid. Laz says they’re going to get 10 times what they want.
He says they’re going to get paid up front and hit her for protection. He tells him to fall back when he sees Cookie come out of his place. Laz asks where she’s going and she tells him she’s hungry then asks where his paper is. He says the corner guy ran out and says he’ll got one at the diner and they go to eat. Lucious meets with Sir Huey and looks at all his gold records. They talk about how Lucious has been nominated but has never won.
Lucious asks him for an invitation to one of his living room sessions. Huey says let’s see what you got. Lucious says prison put a fire in him. He plays a song for Huey. It’s got the boom boom boom and Freda in it. Huey asks who the girl is and he says Freda Gathers. Huey says he’s on to something. He says he needs to feel more from it and says he needs to bring out the part of him he gets locked up tight and tells him to dig deeper. We see kid Lucious burying bullets in the backyard.
Cookie and Hakeem welcome a group of bloggers to their announcement about Cookie’s Cookout. He brings out Mirage a Troi. The girls kill it. Laura is annoyed that Carmen ass-bumped Laura out of her spot. Cookie says Laura doesn’t have the attitude to be a star and tell shim to swap their roles but he says Carmen doesn’t have the pipes. Cookie says make it happen. Mimi rants to the board about stock prices being low and says the shareholders are pissed.
Andre says the shares have gone up since Lucious’ return and says the music streaming move will make them the dominant player and says they’ll have beta in four to six months. Mimi says set up a merger with Swiftstream is the way to go. Andre disagrees but Lucious says set up the meeting and takes Mimi to his office to play some music even though Andre says they need due diligence. Mimi says she already checked into Jago the head of it. Lucious says go see Alvarez at the mayor’s office.
He says Freda has a gang issue he needs him to clear up. Alvarez is the chick that Andre used to bang for favors but now that he’s all churched up, he doesn’t want to do it. Hakeem asks Tiana to teach Laura the basics and then Tiana looks at her walk and says lead with your hips. She says pretend someone is always taking your picture and Laura says that sounds awful. Tiana says eventually it will be true. Porsha comes in and says Cookie looks badonk. She says Laz has seen it all before.
Cookie says she’s not going to see Laz and Porsha says her boss is a pimp. She meets Jamal at a cade who says her outfit is on fleek. Cookie says she didn’t think he’d show up and he says he has great news. He says Jamieson has been mentoring him and he got him on Huey’s next living room session. Cookie says they need champagne. Jamal says she did that for him with her work. Cookie says she misses him and Jamal echoes that back to her.
Andre sits thinking about his suicide attempt and puts his fingers to his head. He has his pastor there and he tells him that he was going to kill himself there to punish his father. Andre says his father wants him back in his old ways and break his bond with God. The pastor asks if fulfilling this venal task fulfill his larger task at Empire. Andre says he’s balancing medication and faith and the pastor says sometimes warriors have to do things that are repugnant in another context.
He tells Andre that there are other things he can accomplish what he needs without having sex with the woman. Cookie listens to the final cut of the song and gives Jamal some more notes. They drink champagne and she says Lyon Dynasty is around the corner if he wants to lay something down. He says let’s go, he doesn’t even care. She brings him to the studio and he runs into the studio. She tells him wait and she turns on the equipment.
Jamal and Cookie work all night and she says it’s almost there. Hakeem shows up and she tells him to stop. Cookie hugs him then asks why he’s there so early. He says he’s working with Laura. She asks if he promoted Carmen and he says he’s working on it. Jamal sneaks out like a secret lover while she distracts him. She tells Hakeem no one is there. Mimi takes Lucious to meet Jago. He says he’s not selling. Lucious says he’s not buying and wants a partner. Jago insists he spar with him.
Mimi told Lucious to let Jago beat him. Lucious puts on gloves and trash talks him about Beatflow kicking his ass. Jago asks if he’d get his catalog and he says exclusively. Jago says his lyrics are shallow. Lucious flashes back to bullets as a kid and punches Jago hard and knocks him out. He calls him a punk ass. Mimi tells Lucious they’ll pay for that. Andre asks her to lift the gang injunction on Freda. Alvarez comes on to him and he tells Raquel to stop then asks her to fix the issue. She asks why should she.
He says he and his wife enjoy watching their closed door bartering sessions and shows her a sex video of the two of them then threatens to report her to the mayor if she doesn’t lift the injunction. Andre then goes home and tells his wife he had to see the woman but prayed for the strength to resist his old ways and was successful. He puts the moves on his wife who is thrilled to have some sex finally. Hakeem works with Laura and it’s going well until Cookie shows up and tells him he’s wasting his time.
She says Laura ain’t got it and he says they need to get her on point. He insists that he’s not nailing her. Lucious plays in the studio and thinks back to his mom tearing up the house looking for the bullets then asking little Lucious where they are. Jamal shows up and Lucious says he’s looking for a sound. Jamal tells him he got a spot at Huey’s living room session. He tells Jamal that’s great news and embraces his son. He leaves. Lucious is jealous after Huey rejected him then took on his son. He sulks.
Cookie and Laz kiss and they talk about locations for the cookout. She says it has to be in a hood location. She says uptown and old school is better like in Harlem. He says he knows the perfect place then suggests Rock Steady Park on the upper west side and says they used to call it The Goat. She says show me and they sit at a laptop. He says it’s available but then says it’s in Big Heavy’s territory. She says she won’t work with him after what he did to Hakeem.
He says just sit down with Big Heavy and let him think he won then get her revenge later. She kisses Laz some more. Hakeem takes Laura into the city and says this is next level but she’s nervous. She steps up onto a balustrade and he tells her to make them stop. She sings loud. She sings I Will Survive in Spanish. The crowd starts grooving and clapping. Several are filming her. Hakeem chills with sunglasses on and his hoodie up so he’s not recognized. She ends to a cheering crowd. He helps her down and she rewards him with a big kiss.
Mimi and Lucious come to see Jago at the hospital. Lucious says he pissed him off by speaking truth and says as a result he dug deeper and he wrote a royalty song. Lucious tells him they are in this together while Mimi pushes the button for his morphine drip over and over. Jago starts to slur and Lucious says Mimi will call his lawyer and tell him to draw up a contract for their merger. Jago does as he’s asked. Cookie meets with Big Heavy about Rock Steady Park.
Laz acts like he’s on Cookie’s side. Hakeem comes in and Laz tells him to go easy. Hakeem comes inside and says she can’t do this without him. He tells Laz to move and he comes to sit beside his mother. He asks what percentage they want and says they only get the perimeter because state ordinance says they have to have bonded security on the inside. Big Heavy says he gets 15 off the top. Cookie asks Hakeem if it’s all right and he nods.
Later, Cookie tells Hakeem he did good and he reminds her that he’s her partner and she says he needs to make decisions with his head not his junk and he tells her the same about Laz. He says he doesn’t trust Laz and tells her to be careful but she says he just doesn’t know him. Jamal is at the living room session and Lucious is there to watch standing beside Huey. The assembled groove to his jam. Lucious pulls a face at the lyrics. Huey says that’s better than Uproar.
Lucious says he’s been working with him and Huey says he’s elevated him to another level but Lucious knows that’s not his influence he’s hearing. He thinks about his mom turning out the drawers and she finds one bullet he missed. Hakeem rehearses the girls. Laura boots Carmen out of the way. Cookie gives Hakeem a thumbs up. Lucious drinks later at Lavaticus when Mimi shows up. She sits by him and says she brought a present. She brings in several hot chicks.
She tells him the Jago deal is done and they drink while gorgeous women pose for them. He lies April and Mimi says she’ll fight him for her but he says they’re partners and can share. They take April with them and she says Lucious just wants to go first. She gets a call and Lucious follows her. He asks if it’s the wife or the GF and snatches the phone. He tells whomever it is that they need to treat her with respect and Mimi cries when the call ends.
Lucious tells Mimi to come on with him. He kisses her while April watches. She wipes her tears and they pull the girl in between them. They both shove her back and laugh. Lucious spreads her leg and looks at the gun tattoo on her thigh. He tells Mimi to get started without him and leaves the room. Mimi laughs then slaps her leg. He goes into his closet and pulls out his mom’s old gun he keeps in a box. He looks at it and thinks back to his mom loading it. She put the one bullet in it.
Then she spun the cylinder and put it to her head. Now, he tucks it into his waistband. She says boom, boom, boom as she pulls the trigger. He calls Freda in and shows her the gun and says she’s about to become part of his life story. She smiles. Lucious spins the cylinder. She and Lucious rap together. Lucious tells Freda this is history in the making as he clicks the trigger of the gun.
THE END!
