Even after 30 years, clips from the show regularly trend on social media. Most recently, the final scene of the series finale trended on TikTok with almost 3 million views when fans discovered that Khadijah whispered an additional line after her actual line. Clips of the title sequence and theme song continue to make the rounds online, as does the quartet of women breaking out into song in the bathroom, using brushes and toilet bowl cleaners as microphones. If not full clips, there are (of course) also GIFs of Regine posted whenever someone is acting bougie or some of Synclaire whenever someone is whimsically innocent — traits those characters are known for. “Living Single” has become a classic sitcom, and Bowser said that’s just how the circle of love works.
“I wanted to create a series that centered on and celebrated women,” she said. “When you create something that is intended to be a love letter, and you pour love into it over time, what I’ve found is that you continue to get love back over an extended and unexpected period of time.”
As a result, Bowser said “cultural impact” is the show’s legacy.
“We didn’t just set out to make a TV show,” she said. “We set out to make a universally entertaining but culturally specific experience. And I think we achieved that.”
She said the fact that it still lands with people is a credit to the audience for watching and popularizing the show.
“You don’t get to decide what’s going to resonate with the audience,” she said. “The audience decides. And I believe, over the last three decades, they’ve decided that it’s been significant for them, that it’s been life-changing for many, it’s been inspirational. And that’s incredibly rewarding and affirming as a writer, creator, and just as a Black woman in society.”
Bowser said the “Living Single” team remains in touch and are all in a group chat in which they “chat it up (and) chop it up on that thread pretty frequently.”
“We’re still true blue, tight like glue,” she said, referring to lyrics in the theme song. “It’s not just a title. It’s a spirit. It’s a thing. For us, it’s not just a moment; it’s a movement. It’s an energy that we carry with us as a group, which is really beautiful.”
Bowser said her goal all along was to be intentional and stick to her convictions — it nearly cost her the show.
“They really enjoyed the characters, but they asked me to lose Maxine from the show,” she remembered. “Yes, this incredibly daring, beautiful, confident, unapologetic Black feminist was apparently intimidating on paper.”
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
