On the Come Up - Angie Thomas Page 0,120
happened.”
“Huh?” I say.
“I’m serious, Bri. Get on Twitter.”
Curtis grabs his phone. I type in the address on my laptop. “What for?” I ask.
“You won’t believe who posted your freestyle from the other night,” he says.
“What are you—”
My notifications are at 99+, like Twitter can’t keep up anymore. There’s one tweet that people keep liking and retweeting. I click it and stare at it. Then I stare at the profile pic and name, too.
Mom comes over and stares at it with me.
“Oh my God,” she says.
“‘This girl is the future of hip-hop.’” Curtis reads the tweet aloud. “‘@LawlessBri, we gotta do a song together. Let’s make it happen!’”
It was tweeted by . . .
Oh my God.
“Goddamn, Princess,” Curtis says. “That’s some life-changing shit—stuff.”
Mom still side-eyes him. “Bri, you wanna do it, baby?”
I stare at the tweet. This is major. It could be the shot I need.
“Yeah,” I say, and look at my mom. “Long as I can do it my way.”
Acknowledgments
Like last time, this will probably sound like a rapper’s acceptance speech, but hey, for this book, it should, right? I first have to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It has been quite a journey, and I wouldn’t have made it this far without you. Thank you for carrying me and keeping me. Whatever you want to continue to do through me, I’m yours.
To my incredible, amazing, phenomenal editor Donna Bray. There aren’t enough adjectives in the English language to describe someone as awesome as you. This wasn’t an easy journey, and I wouldn’t have survived it without you. Thank you for being there every step of the way and for believing in me as much as you do. Also, thank you for being so patient haha. We got it done!
Brooks Sherman, aka the best literary agent an author could hope for. Thank you for keeping me going and for always having my back. Even more so, thank you for knowing I would get here with this book, even when I didn’t know that I would. I’m eternally grateful to call you my agent and my friend.
Mary Pender-Coplan, you are an angel, a lifesaver, and I still don’t know what I did to deserve to have such an incredible film agent. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Thank you, Akhil Hegde, for being an amazing assistant angel, and Nancy Taylor, the former assistant angel. Thank you to everyone at UTA.
To every single person at Balzer + Bray/. I feel like the luckiest author in the world with you all on my side. Your love, your support, and your hard work do not go unnoticed. I can never thank you enough. Special thanks to Suzanne Murphy, Alessandra Balzer, Olivia Russo, Tiara Kittrell, Alison Donalty, Jenna Stempel-Lobell, Anjola Coker, Nellie Kurtzman, Bess Braswell, Ebony LaDelle, Patty Rosati, Rebecca McGuire, Josh Weiss, Mark Rifkin, Dana Hayward, Emily Rader, Ronnie Ambrose, Erica Ferguson, Megan Gendell, Andrea Pappenheimer, Kerry Moynagh, Kathy Faber, and Jen Wygand.
My incredible UK publishing family at Walker Books, aka my cheerleaders across the pond, especially Annalie Grainger and Rosi Crawley. Thank you for always giving me a home away from home.
My international publishers, thank you for taking a chance on me and my stories.
To my Janklow & Nesbit family, thank you for all of the love and support. Special thanks to Wendi Gu. Thank you also to Stephanie Koven and everyone at Cullen Stanley International.
Molly Ker Hawn, the fact that you introduced me to roasted beets was enough to get you my eternal gratitude, but thank you for your love, support, and for being just an all-around badass.
Marina Addison, I seriously don’t know what I’d do without you as my assistant. Thanks for putting up with all of the chaos.
David Lavin, Charles Yao, and everyone at the Lavin Agency, thank you for believing in me, supporting me, and investing in me.
To the homies: Becky Albertalli, Adam Silvera, Nic Stone, Justin Reynolds, Dhonielle Clayton, Sabaa Tahir, Julie Murphy, Rose Brock, Tiffany Jackson, Ashley Woodfolk, Jason Reynolds, Sarah Cannon, Dede Nesbitt, Leatrice McKinney, Camryn Garrett, Adrianne Russell, Cara Davis, Justina Ireland, Heidi Heilig, Kosoko Jackson, Zoraida Córdova, Nicola Yoon, Ellen Oh. Every single one of you played a role in this book’s birth, simply by being there. Thank you.
To my THUG movie family—George, Marcia, and Chase Tillman, Shamell Bell, Bob Teitel, Marty Bowen, Wyck Godfrey, Tim Bourne, John Fischer, Jay Marcus, Isaac Klausner, Elizabeth Gabler, Erin Siminoff, Molly Saffron, everyone at Temple Hill, State Street, and Fox 2000, and the entire cast and crew, thank you all for making one of my dreams come true. Amandla, thank you for being the best Starr I could’ve asked for and most of all for being you. I’m honored to call you my little sis. Common, thank you for the inspiration and the encouragement.
To all of my family and friends, thank you for knowing that I’m still Angie. Please don’t be upset that your name isn’t here. There are way too many of you to list but know that I appreciate and love you.
To my mom, Julia. Thank you for being who you are and for always making sure I know who I am. I love you.
To hip-hop. Thank you for being my voice, for giving me a voice, and for showing me myself. The world criticizes you often, and sometimes rightfully so. Hell, sometimes, I’m one of your biggest critics. But I do it from a place of love. I’ve seen what you’re capable of—you can, you will, and you have changed the world. I’ll never give up on you. I’ll always have your back. Keep sparking brains and making noise.
And finally, to those roses in concrete in the real Gardens of the world—even when they doubt you, even when they try to silence you, never be quiet. They can’t stop you, so get your come up.