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The organization We Need Diverse Books, which provided Thomas a grant to help write The Hate U Give, focuses on producing and promoting children's and young adult literature that features diversity of all kinds. Black Panther, which was directed by a black director and features a predominately black cast, has been praised by critics for positively portraying people of color as nuanced individuals and powerful heroes.Īs a companion novel of sorts to Thomas's first novel, The Hate U Give, On the Come Up shares a number of similarities with it: both novels take place in the same fictional world, and both deal with the issues of racism and perception that people of color face.

Bri, Malik, and Sonny are also excited about the 2018 superhero film Black Panther, which would've been out for about ten months by the time the novel starts. The state of Garden Heights post-riots (the riots Bri mentions took place in The Hate U Give) draws from the riots that broke out in Ferguson, Missouri, after a white police officer shot Michael Brown, a black teen, in 2014, and more broadly on the history of the Civil Rights movement-Bri notes that Malik idolizes Malcolm X and the Black Panthers. The contemporary rappers she lists as favorites are overwhelmingly female rappers like Nicki Minaj and Cardi B, though her mention of Sonny's crush on Justin Bieber (whose first hit, "Baby," was released in 2010) suggests that she's plugged into the broader pop music scene as well. Bri was exposed to the music of a number of famous rappers, including Biggie Smalls (1972-1997), Tupac (1971-1996), and Nas (b. Though fictional, Bri's world in Garden Heights exists solidly within the context of late 2018 and into early 2019.