73 pages • 2 hours read
Angie ThomasOn the Come Up
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2019A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Character Analysis
Brianna “Bri” Jackson
Bri is a 16-year-old Black high school student who lives in Garden Heights. Bri is from a single-parent family, and her father was murdered when she was only four years old. She has one older brother, and she lived with her grandparents for most of her childhood when her mother’s drug addiction made her incapable of being a parent for many years.
Bri has dreamed of being a rapper “since [she] was ten” (15), but she’s “never really put [her]self out there with it” (15). Her friends and family tell her that she has skills, but music is deeply personal for her, so she hesitates to bare her soul to the world with her songs. Her father was an underground rap legend, and Bri is determined to “make a name for [her]self” (16).
Despite the support of her family and friends, Bri feels invisible at her school because “at Midtown [...] if you’re not exceptional, you’re a nobody” (67). Bri doesn’t feel exceptional, especially when it comes to her grades or her discipline record. Bri acknowledges that she has a temper and a long track record of getting in trouble. She has been told that she is “stubborn like [her] daddy, smart-mouthed like [her] daddy, and hotheaded like [her] daddy” (23), and she is frequently sent to the principal’s office and suspended over small things like rolling her eyes or talking back to teachers. Bri knows that she can have a temper, but she expresses frustration that people seem to look at her and consider her a threat. Ironically, years of being told that she is too “aggressive” and “angry” has caused Bri to become aggressive and angry when provoked.
When Bri wins in the Ring battle at the beginning of the novel, she is overwhelmed by feelings of pride, hope, and the realization that she might have what it takes to be a real rapper. But she is still haunted by her past, and “hours after [her] battle, [she] dream[s] [her] nightmare” (52). She remembers her mother abandoning her and Trey when they were little, and because of this, Bri struggles to trust her mother. She admits that although rapping is her dream, “dreams aren’t real. You wake up from them or reality makes them seem stupid” (60), and Bri’s reality is that her mother lost her job, and their family is struggling to pay their bills. She confesses that “every time [her] fridge is almost empty, all of [her] dreams seem stupid” (60). Bri feels powerless in her own life. In her mind, rapping is the key to regaining control over her life because it is the one thing she knows she can do well. Because of this, she is willing to become whoever she needs to be to sell records.
In the end, Bri’s mother teaches her that “[she’s] the only one who can say who [she] [is] with authority” (429), and other people’s opinions of her do not matter. Bri learns that no amount of money is worth losing herself the way her father did. She is reminded that she is loved and cherished by her friends and family, and she declares that she is “not for sale” (476). The future is hers, and she doesn’t have to be what people say she is. The future is in her own hands.
Jayda “Jay” Jackson
Jay is the mother of Bri and Trey. She is a recovering drug addict who has been sober for eight years, and she still carries “the scars from her habit” (20). She is a secretary for her church until she loses her job at the beginning of the novel due to budget cuts, and she spends most of the novel looking for work and trying to provide for her children.
Jay holds high expectations for her children. She expects Bri to do her best in school, and even though money is tight, she makes sure to put Bri in ACT prep classes and doesn’t allow her to get a job. Jay is fond of saying, “Education over everything, including rapping” (56), and she considers education to be of the utmost importance. She is in college to become a social worker, and she encourages Bri to go to college like Trey. As a result, Bri doesn’t think that Jay is supportive of her rap career, and Bri claims that Jay “acts like [rap] [is] the latest video game [Bri’s] into” (21).
After Bri’s father died, Jay turned to drugs to take away the pain of her loss. Bri says that her mom “couldn’t take care of us and her drug habit, too” (54), and Jay left Bri and Trey at their grandparents’ house. Even though Jay got clean and worked to get her kids back, Bri was so traumatized by her mother abandoning her that she started calling her mother Jay because “there was no way she was [her] mom anymore” (55).
Although Jay has been clean for eight years, she faces the scrutiny of countless people. As she starts applying for new jobs, she notices that the interviews go well until they ask about her employment gap, and she is forced to talk about her past drug addiction. She feels like “everybody [holds] [her] mistakes against [her]. [...] Especially now as [she] go[es] on this job hunt” (113). Even Bri’s Grandma and her friends at church still gossip about Jay, as if they are waiting for her to relapse.
Still, Jay is determined to have a hopeful outlook on life. She tells Bri that “things have been tough for a while. But it’s gonna get better. Somehow, someway” (84), and she would do anything to make sure her children are safe and cared for. She refuses to take money from Aunt Pooh’s drug dealing, and even when food is tight, Jay still tries to take care of people who need her help. Bri looks at how her mother kept her head high and didn’t give in to other people’s perceptions of her, despite her past. Jay admits that she will always regret abandoning her children for drugs, but she is determined to spend every day of the rest of her life being there for them and making up for lost time. Bri doesn’t know what will happen in the future, but “[she] know[s] that [Jay] loves [her]” (447).
Trey Jackson
Trey is Bri’s 22-year-old brother and Jay’s other child. Unlike Bri, Trey was an exceptional student, and Bri complains that “[she’s] never been able to match Trey” (17). However, despite Trey’s excellent grades and the fact that he graduated from college with honors, “he also moved back home this summer. He couldn’t find a decent job, and as of three weeks ago, he makes pizzas for minimum wage” (17).
Ever since they were kids, Trey has tried to protect Bri. When Trey started to cry the day that Jay left him and Bri at their grandparents’ house, Jay ordered him “be [Jay’s] little man [...]. For [his] sister’s sake” (53). Because Trey is older, Jay places more responsibility on him, and she is more truthful and open with him about the family’s dire financial situation. In some ways, Trey acts as another parent to Bri, although he still has a playful sibling relationship with her.
Trey was always considered “too soft, not street enough, not hood enough” (104-105) by the people in Garden Heights. Even though he was successful in school and graduated from college, he is still seen as less than his father. However, Trey is unbothered by the teasing. He doesn’t care about his reputation or looking cool. He just wants to be comfortable and provide for his family. Trey knows who he is and what he wants out of life, and he is comfortable in his own skin.
Bri trusts Trey, and she is relieved to have him around. She admits that “as awful as the situation is and as big of a pain in the butt as he can be, [she’s] glad [she] [has] [her] big brother to go through it with [her]” (110). Trey assures Bri that she was a gift in his life, and if he had to go through losing his dad and being abandoned by his mom on his own, he probably would have turned to the streets like his aunt did. Bri and Trey love and support one another, and Trey offers stability and safety in Bri’s life.
Aunt Pooh
Pooh is Bri’s 26-year-old aunt and the sister of Jay. Because there is only a 10-year gap between Bri and Pooh, Bri admits that “sometimes she acts like an aunt and sometimes she acts like an annoying older sister” (28), but nevertheless, the two have a close relationship. Unlike Jay, who doesn’t encourage Bri’s rap career, Pooh takes great pride in Bri’s talent and wants to help launch her niece into stardom.
Pooh’s attention, however, is split between managing Bri’s career and getting caught up in gang activities. She wears green because “according to Garden Heights Gang Culture 101, a Garden Disciple’s always gotta wear green” (26). She is also a drug dealer, which confuses Bri because “at one time somebody else was the dealer and my mom, her sister, was the junkie” (100). Pooh is quick to fly off the handle and respond with violence, especially when she feels like she or her family has been disrespected. Because of her gang activity and drug dealing, Pooh can disappear without warning for long periods, such as when she suddenly abandons Bri in the middle of her recording “On the Come Up.”
Pooh’s behavior is childish, impulsive, and irresponsible. Bri notices that “Jay’s always treated Pooh like her third kid” (28) rather than like a sister. Even so, Bri claims that Pooh can have moments of deep insight and wisdom, and “sometimes she’s [Bri’s] personal Yoda” (95). Bri admits knowing that Pooh is involved in “foul stuff,” but Bri would rather “see [Pooh] as [her] hero than as somebody else’s villain” (126). As a result, Bri is in denial about Pooh’s character flaws, and she tries to maintain a relationship with her.
Bri loves Pooh, and Pooh cares deeply for Bri, but Bri gradually starts to understand that she can’t rely on Pooh the way that she relies on her mother and brother. Pooh laments that she doesn’t want to be selling drugs, but she still refuses to change her ways, even when she is arrested. Bri loves her aunt, but she knows that Aunt Pooh still has a lot of growing up to do, and until Pooh decides to change her ways and find herself, nothing will change in her life.
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