25 reasons to love Marvel’s Luke Cage

24. Live performances at Harlem’s Paradise create a strong atmosphere

One of the main settings in Luke Cage is the nightclub Harlem’s Paradise. The show did a great job of getting talented artists to perform hits that would help set the stage for what we were about to see.

When we first saw Harlem’s Paradise, Raphael Saadiq was performing “Good Man” as well as a song he wrote for the show called “Angel.” It was hauntingly beautiful and romantic, which was perfect considering Luke Cage and Misty Knight were flirting with him playing in the background.

The best performance in the show at Harlem’s Paradise is Jidenna. He performs “Long Live the Chief”to a crowd of one. Cottonmouth is the only person in the club as he tries to clear his head. He picked the right person to do so, because it’s a song that fits him perfectly. The scene is intercut with Luke Cage out on the streets, fighting crime, while cutting back to Harlem’s Paradise to remind everyone who the streets belong to.

The live performances show how Luke Cage uses music to tell a story. Music, especially when it’s diegetic, is such an important tool when it comes to setting the tone, and Luke Cage is one of the best shows at doing that. It also plays into the whole idea that the setting itself is a character, and watching live performances makes the viewer feel like they’re actually at Harlem’s Paradise.