2016 will go down in history as the year of The Simpsons hip hop episode. It has been revealed that the enduring yellow family will air an hour-long hip hop special in January 2017.
The Simpsons hip hop episode, “The Great Phatsby,” will also be an ode to The Great Gatsby.
In the episode, tyrannical millionaire Mr Burns gets conned into bankruptcy by a music mogul suspiciously similar to Terrence Howard’s character from “Empire.”
In order to get his money back, Burns enlists the help of rapper Jazzy James (played by Keegan-Michael Key, of comedy duo Key & Peele), the mogul’s ex-wife (played by Howard’s wife on Empire, Taraji P Henson), and, because they have to be part of it, Bart and Homer.
Executive producer Matt Selman explains the story behind the special episode. “This was just going to be a regular episode, but the table read went so well. In a fit of passion and excitement and ambition and excess, we decided to supersize it.” He added that “we haven’t done a huge amount of stories in the world of hip-hop and rap culture, so we just went for it”
The Simpsons 28th season will include the special episode. It will also include the show’s 600th episode.
The show’s executive producer, Al Jean, made one quip about the hourlong special. “I just pray it won’t be the last thing people see before a Trump inauguration.”