Brown sugar
Rolling Stones - The Lyrics

Gold Coast slave ship bound for cotton fields
A slave ship that starts its journey from the Gold Coast region of West Africa and goes to the cotton fields of America

Sold in the market down in New Orleans
The slaves brought by the ship were sold in the New Orleans market.

Skydog slaver knows he's doin' all right
The person in charge of the slave ship thinks he is doing well with his horrible business.

Hear him whip the women just around midnight
The skydog slaver beats the female slaves in the middle of the night.

Brown sugar, how come you taste so good?
The artist addresses the African American women slaves as Brown Sugar and questions why they taste so good.

Brown sugar, just like a young girl should
The singer compares the taste of African American women to the taste of a young girl, objectifying them both.

Drums beatin' cold, English blood runs hot
The cold and mechanical beat of the drums contrasts with the passionate and hot blood of the English, implying a tension between the two cultures.

Lady of the house wonderin' when it's gonna stop
The mistress of the house is worried and upset about the ongoing exploitation of slaves.

House boy knows that he's doin' all right
The slave who works inside the house as a servant thinks he is doing well, since he is not in the fields.

You should have heard him just around midnight
The house boy probably participates in the abuse of female slaves or knows about it.

Brown sugar, how come you taste so good, now?
The singer repeats the previous question, emphasizing his obsession with the taste of African American women.

Brown sugar, just like a young girl should (yeah)
The artist continues to compare the taste of African American women to that of a young girl, glorifying the objectification of both.

Brown sugar, how come you dance so good, babe?
The singer shifts his focus from the taste of African American women to their dancing skill.

Brown sugar, just like a black girl should, yeah
The singer is once again objectifying and fetishizing the dancing skills of African American women.

And I bet your mama was a tent show queen
The singer assumes that the mother of the female slave was a performer in a traveling show involving tents.

And all her boyfriends were sweet sixteen
The artist makes another assumption that the mother had boyfriends who were much younger than her, romanticizing an inappropriate romantic relationship.

I'm no school boy but I know what I like
The artist tries to justify his actions by claiming that he knows what he likes and is not ignorant.

You should have heard them just around midnight
The singer suggests that there were sexual activities going on among the slaves and the people in the house, further objectifying and fetishizing African American women.

Brown sugar, how come you taste so good, baby?
The singer repeats his question, once again emphasizing his obsession with the taste of African American women.

Brown sugar, just like a young girl should, yeah
The artist continues his comparison between the taste of African American women and that of a young girl, justifying his objectification and fetishization.

I said, yeah, yeah, yeah, woo
The artist expresses his excitement and enthusiasm about his obsession with African American women.

How come you, how come you dance so good?
The artist repeats his question, once again shifting his focus to the dancing skills of African American women.

Just like a, just like a black girl should
The singer glorifies and fetishizes the dancing skills of African American women, emphasizing their race and perpetuating harmful stereotypes.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, woo
The artist continues to express his excitement and enthusiasm, further emphasizing his objectification of African American women.