Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in On the Come Up, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Identity and Individuality
Racism and Prejudice
Trauma, Poverty, and Childhood
Control, Image, and Fame
Summary
Analysis
Sixteen-year-old Bri tells the reader that she might have to "kill somebody tonight," but this is assuming she gets "the call." She's currently stuck in Mrs. Murray's class, doing ACT test prep. Bri is usually fine turning her phone in to Mrs. Murray for an hour, but today, she's waiting for a call from DJ Hype. Bri's friends, Sonny and Malik, nonverbally ask if she's heard anything, and Bri narrows her eyes at them. Mrs. Murray calls for students to submit their practice tests and Bri hastily clicks through the multiple-choice answers without looking at them.
This introduction to Bri sets up the fact that she is already prioritizing rapping over education and college specifically, as represented by the ACT test prep. That her friends are curious if she's gotten "the call" too suggests that they're just as excited about this as she is, and want to see their friend begin her rise to stardom.
Themes
Malik looks over Bri's shoulder and starts to say something about her test, but Bri shushes him. Sonny tries to grab Bri's phone from Mrs. Murray, but Mrs. Murray sends both Malik and Sonny outside so she can speak to Bri. Bri tries to insist that she wasn't distracted in class and is shocked when Mrs. Murray says that her grades are slipping even though she hasn't missed class lately. Bri tells the reader she hasn't been suspended in a month, and tells Mrs. Murray that everything is fine at home. With a sigh, Bri says she's waiting for a call from DJ Hype so that she can battle in “the Ring” tonight.
Bri will later explain that she's one of only a handful of black students at her school. This is one of several reasons why Bri ends up in the office and suspended so much—her white teachers target her unfairly because of the color of her skin. This begins to offer up some reasons why Bri might not be all that interested in school, given that it doesn't appear to be set up to properly serve her. Instead, she has to be constantly on guard.
Themes
Mrs. Murray says she's surprised Bri would be going to the Ring and wants to be a rapper, which makes Bri's stomach drop. Bri tells the reader that she's been rapping for years now, but just for Sonny, Malik, and her mom, Jay. Battling at the Ring is her chance to get her name out there and, if she wins, continue to participate in rap battles. Softly, Mrs. Murray asks if Bri is going to follow in her dad's footsteps. Bri thinks that hearing him referred to as "her dad" is weird, as she barely remembers him and people only ever call him by his rap name, Lawless.
It's important to note that throughout the novel, Bri's dad is only ever referred to as her dad or as Lawless—people never use his given name, or even a nickname that's entirely personal rather than his public persona. This suggests that Lawless exists for most people as a public figure, not necessarily as a regular individual—a side effect, Bri will learn later, of fame.
Themes
Bri tells Mrs. Murray that she's been preparing for this for a while and believes it could jump-start her career. Sharply, Mrs. Murray reminds Bri that if she wants to go to college or even just get through high school, she needs to bring her grades up. She mentions having this conversation once with Bri's older brother, Trey, which makes Bri roll her eyes: Trey was a genius, but despite graduating from college with honors, he now lives at home and works at a pizza shop. Bri promises to improve her grades and accepts her phone. She meets up with Malik and Sonny in the hallway. They eye the security guards, Long and Tate, and leave when the guards nastily tell them to.
The fact that even college-educated Trey is living at home and working in food service offers even more evidence for why Bri isn't especially interested in applying herself at school—she can see that even doing everything right doesn’t always lead to success in a world that seems determined to see people like her fail. Mrs. Murray's earlier comment about following in Lawless's footsteps may suggest that to Bri, making it as a rapper is an easier and more likely way to be successful in the world.
Themes
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Bri gets home and finds Jay blasting Gospel music, which is unusual. The house is freezing—the gas is shut off—and Jay is getting ready to head to night school to get her social work degree after her day job as a church secretary. She wants to give people on drugs the help that she never got when she was addicted. As Jay serves up Popeyes chicken, Bri moans that DJ Hype hasn't called her yet. Jay just wants to know how the practice ACT went and reminds Bri that she has to take school seriously if she wants to get into a good college. Bri rolls her eyes; she wants to rap. She mentions that Aunt Pooh said that the call would come between 4:30 and 5:30, and Jay points out both that Pooh isn't trustworthy and that there are still ten minutes to go.
Jay's wish to be a social worker represents a desire to break the cycle of poverty that, the reader will learn, is gripping so many people in Garden Heights and those involved with drugs in particular. This shows that Jay understands that having a mentor figure is one of the most important indicators of whether or not a person will be able to get clean and pursue a more culturally-sanctioned version of success. That she's doing this while her gas is shut off speaks to Jay's sense of responsibility to her community.
Themes
Jay says that Bri is impatient like Lawless, and Bri tells the reader that Jay says this often—even though Jay is also impatient. Jay tells Bri to come right home after the battle and not stay out with Pooh and all the "things" Pooh is into. Bri starts to defend Pooh, but then notices what Jay is serving: food from KFC, Church's, and Popeyes. This is known as "Popkenchurch," and it means that something bad has happened. Bri asks what happened, but then she gets her call from DJ Hype, telling her she'll battle later.
“Popkenchurch” tells Bri that there's probably more amiss than just having the gas shut off, which her tone suggests is unfortunate but not unexpected. This indicates that for Bri, poverty is something that she deals with every day and is something that she's relatively acclimated to.
Themes
