A man comes into the station, asking for a reinvestigation of his father's murder in 1970. The team looks into the case of the father, Billy Sanders, who was an aspiring musician looking to make magic with music.
Tropes:
- The Alcoholic: Billy began to drink to cope with the pressures of the music industry.
- Betty and Veronica Switch: Girl Next Door Chandra, who has grown up with Billy and is part of his old world of the church, is the Betty, while Femme Fatale Beatrice, who is new to him and a wealthy Daddy's Girl, is the Veronica. However, Beatrice believes in Billy’s potential and wants to start a family with him, while Chandra turns out to be a Yandere who kills Billy when she finds out he’s planning to elope with Beatrice.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Chandra's kind church lady facade crumbles during interrogation, revealing that she is intensely possessive of Billy and hatefully jealous of Beatrice.
- Bittersweet Ending: Billy's murder is finally solved. However, Rhonde won his Lifetime Achievement Award by taking credit for Billy's work while Beatrice died believing that she and her baby were abandoned by Billy. At least their son Archie and Reverend Tom meet, and know that they are not alone anymore.
- The Dreaded: Geraldine Watkins was a kindly but tough illegal club owner. Before that, she was a loan shark called "The Bank of Geraldine". Criminals would rather rot in jail rather than give up her name.
- Friendly Neighborhood Gangster: Geraldine is a restaurant owner in the present day but she used to be a loan shark and the owner of an unlicensed club. Her restaurant is also a front for running numbers.
- The Ghost: Billy's mother, whom Rev. Tom refers to as "Mother".
- Hot for Preacher: Geraldine had an affair with Reverend Tom Sanders—who was not only married, but he was Billy’s father. Imagine how the kid felt when he recognized his dad’s cufflinks on her dresser.
- I Coulda Been a Contender!: Billy died before proving that he can still make it as a composer. Chandra's cover of "Backstabbers" was a given to a group of other musicians and she was fired after Billy's death.
- If I Can't Have You…: Chandra smashes a bottle of church wine on Billy’s head when she finds out he plans to run away to be with another girl.
- Karma Houdini: Billy's former producer Rhonde got away with taking sole credit for his songs, even becoming a music legend himself by the time the case is reopened.
- Love Makes You Evil: Chandra loved Billy since they were kids, but he fell in love with Beatrice instead and planned to leave their town to be with her. Chandra was devastated, and when Billy tried to get away from her, she smashed a bottle of church wine on his head.
- Morality Pet: Billy was treated well by Geraldine despite her seedy reputation. Having an affair with his father might have something to do with it.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: Billy is loosely based off Marvin Gaye, a gifted black R&B musician with substance abuse problems and frequent fights with his disapproving father and an exploitative producer.
- Oblivious to Love: Billy never figured out that Chandra was in love with him until it was too late.
- Outliving One's Offspring: Reverend Tom lost both his sons 30 years prior to the series."My eldest was taken by the jungle. The youngest, by the streets."
- Parting-Words Regret:
- Beatrice and Billy quarreled the last time they saw each other because she thought that he was ashamed of her and she believed that he was not ready to be a father to their child.
- Billy’s older brother died after being drafted into the Vietnam War. Tom’s last words to his surviving child was, "They took the wrong son!"
- Posthumous Character: Aside from Billy, there is Beatrice, his mother, and his brother Tom Jr., who died in the Vietnam War.
- Someone to Remember Him By: Reverend Tom got to meet Billy's son Archie in the end. And Archie has a son of his own, which makes Tom a great-grandfather.
- Unlucky Childhood Friend: Chandra. She and Billy grew up together, and Chandra had loved him since childhood, but he never returned her affections and fell for Femme Fatale Beatrice instead.
- Wham Line:Billy: "Don't worry. We'll make another record together someday."
Chandra: "It ain't about the record!" - You Should Have Died Instead: Before the murder, Billy tried to break free of his father and make Tom understand his love for music. In the middle of the fight, he told his father that his brother, Tommy, who died in the war, was happy when he was drafted as it gave him the chance to get away from their dad. In response to this, Tom slaps him and says that the wrong son was taken away.
