Tonight on FOX Empire airs with an all new Wednesday May 18, season 2 finale called, “Past Is Prologue.” we have your weekly recap below. On tonight’s episode, a life-changing experience leads Jamal (Jussie Smollett) to put the breaks on his music career as long as those closest to him continue the endless cycle of violence and fighting in the Season 2 finale.
On the last episode, Hakeem felt under pressure as he struggled to find a place for his fiancé, Laura, in both his family and his career; Cookie finally let Jamal in on the truth about what happened to Freda’s father, prompting him to warn Freda about his family’s ulterior motives; and a sacrifice was made on behalf of Lucious. 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, “a life-changing experience leads Jamal to put the breaks on his music career as long as those closest to him continue the endless cycle of violence and fighting in the Season 2 finale. Meanwhile, the feds pressure Anika to testify against Lucious; and Cookie decides how best to protect her family when she meets with people from her and Lucious’ past at Hakeem and Laura’s wedding.”
Don’t forget to join us for our live recap tonight at 9:00 pm when Empire airs on Fox.
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#Empire starts three weeks later at a welcome home celebration for Jamal. Cookie wheels him in and Andre gives him a big hug. Lucious plays piano and he’s serenaded. Crazy Leah is there too. Jamal looks uncomfortable and unhappy about the fuss.
Cookie says sing girl. Hakeem asks Jamal to sing with Vida at the wedding but Jamal says he won’t perform. Lucious says he got him the top physical therapist. Andre is ordained and doing the ceremony and Hakeem says he wants Jamal there singing.
Andre says let’s give Jamal some rest but he says he’s not singing. He cries and says he’s sick of the cycle of death and incarceration. He says he’s not singing again until they break the cycle. Lucious reminds Jamal that he saved his life.
Jamal says he won’t forget it and Jamal asks about Freda and says she’s a victim in this too. Cookie tries to talk him down. Leah says Jamal is paying for crimes of Lucious’ daddy. We see a flashback to Lucious as a kid and his dad assaulting someone.
Cookie says Jamal is tired and grumpy because he ain’t been shot before. Lucious insists his dad was a cop and a good man and tells Leah it’s time for her nap. He leads her out of the room. Lucious says she’d better count herself lucky that Thirsty stopped her from blabbing the truth.
He tells her to stop trying to tell his kids the truth about his childhood. Cookie tells Lucious she’s worried about Jamal who is refusing physical therapy. Anika asks to speak to them and says she was picked up by two Federal agents and says she demanded they cut her loose.
Thirsty says they’ll try to subpoena her and Cookie says what did they ask you. She says Shine Johnson. Rhonda comes in and chokes Anika, calls her an evil bitch then punches her in the face. Rhonda says she knows she pushed her.
She says she woke up and saw her little slippers she loves. Lucious says lots of women have those shoes. Cookie says you think that debutante pushed you down the stairs. Rhonda asks Andre to weigh in but he doesn’t back her up and says he’s sorry for coming in like this.
Anika insists she’d never do that and Thirsty goes to clean her up. Andre says they don’t believe it and neither does he. Rhonda asks what about his visions that God told him someone pushed her down the stairs. Rhonda says do what I did for you with Vernon.
She wants him to kill Anika. Rhonda says he inherited the killer instinct from his father. Rhonda is angry and walks out on him. Cookie and Lucious talk about their problems. He turns on some music so no one can hear what they’re saying.
He sits close to her and says after she was locked out, he had to deal with some of their enemies from the drug deal. He says one of them was a job he did for someone else. It was for Tommy and Rosie and says they had an artist they needed handled.
Cookie asks who else knows and he says Tommy, Rosie, me and you and says they’re coming to Hakeem’s wedding. Cookie says no one can know about this. Cookie goes looking for Shyne at his crib. He’s got a body in a box and then they tell him Cookie is on the way up.
Cookie stares down Mario and they let her in. She tells Shyne that he needs to have Lucious’ back on this but he says Lucious owes him profits. She asks how much he wants. He says he wants a publishing deal for his nephew Joey who’s talented.
He plays her some music and she rolls her eyes when he’s not looking but then acts enthusiastic when he looks over. She says done and he says he wants Hakeem to record it then says he also wants to come to Hakeem’s wedding because his feelings are hurt.
Hakeem takes Jamal back to his place and he tells him he doesn’t have time to nurse him. Andre is there too and Jamal says please go, I’m fine. They head out. Hakeem asks Andre if Rhonda really left him and he says she went to LA about a design opportunity.
Lucious goes to see Freda at the jail. He tells her she broke his heart. She glares. He asks why she’d come at him and he lies and says he doesn’t know why. She says Carol told him he killed his daddy. He says she’s a crackhead and says he and her dad grew up in violence.
He says he saw her talent and says she was worth saving. He says he never laid a finger on her dad. He says this is about Jamal then asks if she cares about him. He says Jamal is in a bad place because of choices she made.
Lucious says he doesn’t care what people think about him and says life made me like this but Jamal is not a bad guy. He says he needs her help so he can help Jamal. He hands her a paper and says it’s something he wrote. He hands her his phone with a beat on it.
She records on the beat he wrote. Lucious listens pleased as she rhymes. Lucious comes to see Jamal and says he saw Freda. Jamal asks about her and Lucious says she was stubborn and refused to let him pay for her lawyer but accepted in the end and asked him to give this to Jamal.
Lucious says he ended the cycle today and says she’s not mad anymore. He leaves. Jamal plays it but then cuts it off. He goes to his keyboard and makes some notes in his journal and sings a little and writes down lyrics. He plays the keyboard.
There’s a family dinner the night before the wedding. Laura’s parents are there too and her dad asks about Shyne Johnson and call him a notorious thug who shot up a club in Vegas and beat up a white rapper. He says he’s not comfortable having him at his daughter’s wedding.
Laura’s parents push on them and Hakeem says this is where his parents come from but he also wants to break away from that history. Hakeem says he and Laura are ending that cycle. A string section is at Jamal’s place working with him on a song. He tells them to stop impatiently.
He talks to the cello player and says this has to soar. He starts them again. They play it again. He smiles. At Empire, Lucious tells Cookie he thinks Jamal is making music. Hakeem calls his parents and says to come quick, it’s an emergency. Anika is on the ledge.
Anika sits on the ledge teetering and Cookie runs out to ask what’s going on. Anika says she’d rather kill herself than snitch on Lucious. She says they’re going to make me testify and put me into Witness Protection. Lucious says he found out good news and it won’t go down like that.
Cookie tells Anika she’s carrying her grandson and will never be alone. She tells her she knows what it feels like and she’s a Lyon know. She asks Anika isn’t that what she always wanted – to be one of them. Cookie hugs her and pulls her off the ledge.
Jamal works with the singers and musicians. D-Major says his dad wouldn’t let him in at his hospital room when he came to visit. Jamal tells them that they need to change a spot where he sings. He gets out of his wheelchair and goes to check them out.
Jamal joins the song but then he gets hit with pain and D-Major runs to help him and wants to call off rehearsal. Jamal says it’s okay calm your ass down. He insists they go on. Derek stands guard by his wheelchair.
Cookie tells Lucious he did something good for Jamal and she’s thinking he may not be the devil after all. Lucious says Jamal made him a lot of money and she slaps his head. He says do it harder. Lucious says he hopes this crap is done with the Feds and the grand jury is done.
Lucious says if she’d been around, none of this would have happened and he’s no good without her. Cookie says stop that talk and he says he never should have let her go. He says that’s why he never married anyone else.
Cookie says let’s get Hakeem married then maybe they’ll talk. He wants to toast to maybe and she says maybe if his noodle works. Lucious jokes about getting a blue pill and she calls him a dirty old man and he says to twerk it out when she goes. She shakes her booty and says get your ones out.
Leah says Hakeem is handsome and Jamal asks her about what she said about Lucious’ dad crimes. She says it’s bound to be in them or at least one of them. She says Joe got what he deserved. We see Joe beating on a guy and then him being shot in front of Lucious.
Lucious comes in and says don’t believe anything she tells you and Andre says she was telling them how handsome they are. Lucious glares at his mother. It’s the wedding day and Hakeem heads inside to greet some of their guests.
Porsha complains that they don’t have any chicken and she had to bring a donut. Thirsty is babysitting Leah. Rosie and Tommy talk to Lucious. Hakeem comes over and he greets them. Lucious introduces them to Jamal and says he can’t wait to hear what he does when he cuts his parents loose.
Shyne rolls in with a gaudy crew dressed all raunchy. Rosie says he brought hookers to your son’s wedding. Cookie says they have to make sure Shyne behaves. Lucious talks to Tommy and Rosie somewhere private. Cookie says it’s important that they keep Shyne in the circle of silence.
Rosie says if someone gave them Shyne already, there may be more problems. Tommy says nothing good will come from Shyne’s punk ass and Cookie says let’s go do this wedding. Laura is dressed and looks wonderful. Her parents are there and she’s ready to walk down the aisle.
They lower her veil and the big event is ready to go off. Shyne intercepts Cookie and Lucious to talk about his son. A process server slaps a notice into Anika’s hand and then runs out. The wedding is in disarray and Shyne starts a fight.
Rosie tells him he’s a damn fool and calls him ghetto ass. Laura starts crying and Hakeem runs over. Laura says this can’t be her life and he says he’s got it. He begs them not to go but they do anyway.
Lucious tells everyone to get out of the room and his family comes in with him. He shuts the door and Anika says tell me what to do so I don’t have to testify. Lucious asks Thirsty if he marries Anika, she won’t have to testify but Cookie is furious.
Hakeem says he can marry her since she’s carrying his baby. Cookie says there has to be another way. Lucious says there’s not and it’s just on paper. Thirsty says it has to go down tonight and Lucious says ride or die, I need you on this one. Cookie is in tears.
She tells her sons she loves them and says she’s going to do whatever she can to save her family. She says she can’t do this and tells Lucious to get his hands off her when he tries to grab her. Cookie walks out. Lucious and Anika get married with the family watching and their employees.
Anika says I do. Lucious says I do. Hakeem is not happy this is what his wedding turned into. Andre does their vows. He declares them married and says kiss the bride. Lucious kisses her cheek. Lucious tells Jamal to sing and Thirsty tells him to do it.
Lucious tells Anika he knows that she pushed Rhonda. Anika excuses herself. Jamal takes the stage. Hakeem gets support from his crew. Andre glares – he’s miserable about all of this. Jamal is on stage but won’t sing. Tommy and Rosie walk out.
Lucious take a seat and looks defeated. Thirsty spot Tariq who congratulates Lucious on his unholy matrimony. Lucious says he’s wasting taxpayer money. Leah asks why his half-brother is there. We see the flashback to the shooting.
Tariq says our father was a good cop but a bad man and we each got half of him. Turns out Tariq knew but Lucious didn’t. Lucious tells Andre – get my wide. Tariq leaves with a laugh. Anika is out on the balcony looking at the ring on her finger.
Rhonda creeps up on her and punches her then bashes her head against a post. She says Anika wanted her devil child to be the only heir and Anika says damn right and fights her off. Andre comes out and finds them grappling. There’s a scream but we don’t see if someone fell.
What a cliffhanger!
THE END!
