This Is America
Childish Gambino * Track #4 On Guava Island
Download "This Is America"
Album Guava Island
- #1
Die With YouChildish Gambino & Bibi Bourelly
- #2Red’s Cargo
Childish Gambino
- #3This Is America
Childish Gambino
- #4
Summertime MagicChildish Gambino
- #5Time (Guava Island Version)
Karla Talia Pino Piloto & Alain Jonathan Amat Rodriguez
- #6
Feels Like SummerChildish Gambino
- #7
SaturdayChildish Gambino
- #8Die With You (Island Version)
El Alacran
This Is America by Childish Gambino
Release Date
Performed by
Childish GambinoAbout
Dropping amid ongoing political and cultural tumult and turmoil, Childish Gambino’s “This is America” appears to be a commentary on black life in America and American culture as a whole. It contrasts popular culture’s perception of the black experience and its often brutal reality by juxtaposing hap...
This Is America Lyrics
[Intro: Choir]
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, go, go away
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, go, go away
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, go, go away
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, go, go away
[Bridge: Childish Gambino & Young Thug]
We just wanna party
Party just for you
We just want the money
Money just for you (Yeah)
I know you wanna party
Party just for free
Girl, you got me dancin' (Girl, you got me dancin')
Dance and shake the frame (Yeah)
We just wanna party (Yeah)
Party just for you (Yeah)
We just want the money (Yeah)
Money just for you (You)
I know you wanna party (Yeah)
Party just for free (Yeah)
Girl, you got me dancin' (Girl, you got me dancin', yeah)
Dance and shake the frame (Ooh)
[Chorus: Childish Gambino]
This is America
Don't catch you slippin' now
Don't catch you slippin' now
Look what I'm whippin' now
This is America (Woo)
Don't catch you slippin' now
Don't catch you slippin' now
Look what I'm whippin' now
[Verse 1: Childish Gambino, Young Thug, Blocboy JB & 21 Savage]
This is America (Skrrt, skrrt, woo)
Don't catch you slippin' now (Ayy)
Look how I'm livin' now
Police be trippin' now (Woo)
Yeah, this is America (Woo, ayy)
Guns in my area (Word, my area)
I got the strap (Ayy, ayy)
I gotta carry 'em
Yeah, yeah, I'ma go into this (Ugh)
Yeah, yeah, this is guerilla (Woo)
Yeah, yeah, I'ma go get the bag
Yeah, yeah, or I'ma get the pad
Yeah, yeah, I'm so cold like, yeah (Yeah)
I'm so dope like, yeah (Woo)
We gon' blow like, yeah (Straight up, uh)
[Refrain: Choir & Childish Gambino]
Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh, tell somebody
You go tell somebody
Grandma told me
Get your money, Black man (Get your— Black man)
Get your money, Black man (Get your—Black man)
Get your money, Black man (Get your—Black man)
Get your money, Black man (Get your—Black man)
Black man
[Chorus: Childish Gambino, Young Thug, Slim Jxmmi & Quavo]
This is America (Woo, ayy)
Don't catch you slippin' now (Woo, woo, don't catch you slippin' now)
Don't catch you slippin' now (Ayy, woah)
Look what I'm whippin' now (Slime!)
This is America (Yeah, yeah)
Don't catch you slippin' now (Woah, ayy)
Don't catch you slippin' now (Ayy, woo)
Look what I'm whippin' now (Ayy)
[Verse 2: Childish Gambino, Quavo, Young Thug, 21 Savage & BlocBoy JB]
Look how I'm geekin' out (Hey)
I'm so fitted (I'm so fitted, woo)
I'm on Gucci (I'm on Gucci)
I'm so pretty (Yeah, yeah, woo)
I'm gon' get it (Ayy, I'm gon' get it)
Watch me move (Blaow)
This a celly (Ha)
That's a tool (Yeah)
On my Kodak (Woo) Black
Ooh, know that (Yeah, know that, hold on)
Get it (Woo, get it, get it)
Ooh, work it (21)
Hunnid bands, hunnid bands, hunnid bands (Hunnid bands)
Contraband, contraband, contraband (Contraband)
I got the plug in Oaxaca (Woah)
They gonna find you like "blocka" (Blaow)
[Refrain: Choir, Childish Gambino, & Young Thug]
Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh, tell somebody
America, I just checked my following list, and
You go tell somebody
You mothafuckas owe me
Grandma told me
Get your money, Black man (Black man)
Get your money, Black man (Black man)
Get your money, Black man (Black man)
Get your money, Black man (Black man)
Black man
(1, 2, 3—get down)
Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh, tell somebody
You go tell somebody
Grandma told me, "Get your money"
Get your money, Black man (Black man)
Get your money, Black man (Black man)
Get your money, Black man (Black man)
Get your money, Black man (Black man)
Black man
[Outro: Young Thug]
You just a black man in this world
You just a barcode, ayy
You just a black man in this world
Drivin' expensive foreigns, ayy
You just a big dawg, yeah
I kenneled him in the backyard
No, probably ain't life to a dog
For a big dog
This Is America Q&A
Who wrote This Is America's ?
This Is America was written by Young Thug & Ludwig Göransson & Childish Gambino.
Who produced This Is America's ?
This Is America was produced by Ludwig Göransson & Childish Gambino.
When did Childish Gambino release This Is America?
Childish Gambino released This Is America on Sun May 06 2018.
Is that BlocBoy JB rapping the adlib at about 1:20 in the video?
Yes, that’s BlocBoy JB’s adlib. At about 2:33 in the video Childish and the dancing kids also did the “shoot dance” that BlocBoy JB popularized in both the music video and the performance on SNL.
Could this video be about gun control?
There is certainly some kind of political undertones about gun violence in the official music video, as Bino is seen shooting an anonymous person in the head and later on gunning down a gospel choir.
Is that SZA in the music video?
Yes, she later took to Instagram to confirm the cameo, posting:
This is America
Why is he running at the end of the music video?
One theory suggests that Gambino is running from The Sunken Place, a concept developed in Jordan Peele’s film Get Out. In a tweet, Peele explained The Sunken Place represents the marginalization of black people in America. Get Out star Daniel Kaluuya introduced Glover’s performance of “This Is Ame...
Why do artists like Quavo and 21 Savage feature in the form of ad-libs?
All the featured artists are black Americans, and some of them have contributed to the fight against police brutality in America. On his 2017 track “Nothin New,” 21 Savage rapped about the cyclical nature of poverty, violence, and racism in America as well as gun violence and police brutality. In a...
Doesn't this song bare similarities to Kendrick Lamar's "Institutionalized"?
“This is America” definitely touches on similar themes. These include institutionalization and marginalization, as well as the conflict between celebrity/pop-culture and the real issues with the treatment and state of black America.
Also the “Grandma told me, ‘Get your money’” line is very reminisc...
Why is there a white horse in the music video?
A brief scene in the music video portrays a hooded figure riding on a white horse through the chaos behind Bino. One theory suggests that the horse alludes to the pale horse Death rides as a member of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse in Revelation 6
And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and the...
Did Bino include African dances in the music video?
Yes, According to Insider they are performing a South African dance, called the Gwara Gwara. This could be a possible nod to similarities between racism in America and South Africa’s apartheid.
What is the meaning of the dancers in what appears to be school uniforms?
The video has multiple references the dancers in the school uniforms are referencing the Florida shootings and other harmful events that have happened to school students
Are there any good essays to read about "This is America"?
Yes! Some strong early analyses include Doreen St. Felix’s “The Carnage and Chaos of Childish Gambino’s ‘This is America’” in The New Yorker and Frank Guan’s “What It Means When Childish Gambino Says ‘This Is America’” in New York Magazine.
What's the symbolism of Glover's outfit in the video?
Gambino’s gold chain necklace and trousers appear to be inspired by the late Fela Kuti, a Nigerian musician dubbed “Africa’s answer to Handel” by one arts critic.
Is this guy not also an actor?
Yes, he is an actor. Donald Glover (or Childish Gambino) was originally an actor/writer for the NBC sitcom, 30 Rock, actor/comedian known for his role as Troy Barnes on the NBC sitcom Community, as the creator and star of FX’s Atlanta, and as young Lando Calrissian in the Star Wars prequel Solo.
What is the meaning of Gambino's different facial expressions at the beginning?
According to Insider the movements and facial expressions are modeled after Jim Crow), who was a theatre character created by Thomas D. Rice in accordance with contemporary Caucasian ideas of African-Americans and their culture. In the 1800’s and 1900’s white actors would perform in blackface and ac...
What does Donald Glover want people to feel when they hear "This Is America"
Donald Glover was presented with this question when he was interviewed by Vogue at the Met Gala. He responded coyly allowing his art to speak for itself saying,
I honestly just wanted to make a good song. I hope they just get to enjoy it
Glover wants to leave “This Is America” up for interpretatio...
How did this song perform on the Billboard Charts?
“This Is America” debuted in the #1 spot on the Hot 100, marking Gambino’s first time in the top 10 on the chart. The song’s video garnered 100 million views on YouTube in its first week and 36 million streams on Spotify.
How long did it take for them to make the song?
We started out with the beat and then I think within an hour [we had] the main hook. We made like 80 percent of the song within two hours, and then to finish the rest, it took like two more years.
- Ludwig Goransson, EW Interview
Has the song received any accolades?
“This is America” was awarded with the GRAMMY for Best Rap/Sung Performance, Best Music Video, Song of the Year, and Record of the Year at the 2019 GRAMMY Awards: