Brown Sugar
The Rolling Stones Lyrics

Gold Coast slave ship bound for cotton fields
The song is about the transatlantic slave trade that saw Africans transported from West Africa to North America to work as slaves on cotton farms.

Sold in the market down in New Orleans
Once in North America, slaves were sold like any other commodity in markets such as the one in New Orleans.

Skydog slaver knows he's doin' all right
Slave traders such as Skydog knew what they were doing and saw nothing wrong with it.

Hear him whip the women just around midnight
Slaves were often punished harshly, including being whipped, for not meeting their quotas, running away, or for other perceived wrongdoing.

Brown sugar, how come you taste so good?
The singer is using the metaphor of brown sugar to describe his attraction to black women, comparing their sweetness to that of sugar.

Brown sugar, just like a young girl should
The singer's expectation of what a young black girl should be like is based on stereotypes of innocence and sweetness.

Drums beatin' cold, English blood runs hot
This line refers to the influence of African rhythms on rock music, which originated in England. The English may have adopted these rhythms, but they are derived from the music of African slaves who were brought to North America.

Lady of the house wonderin' when it's gonna stop
This line refers to the mistress of the house, who is probably aware of her husband's affairs with slaves but feels powerless to stop them.

House boy knows that he's doin' all right
This line refers to a male slave who is performing his duties successfully and thereby avoiding the harsh punishment that awaits those who do not meet their quotas.

You should have heard him just around midnight
The male slave in the previous line may have engaged in sexual activity with the female slaves around midnight, when most of the other people on the plantation were asleep.

Brown sugar, how come you taste so good, now?
The singer is again expressing his attraction to black women as being irresistible, like the sweetness of sugar.

Brown sugar, just like a young girl should (yeah)
The 'young girl' stereotype is again perpetuated in this line, as is the link to sweetness and innocence.

Brown sugar, how come you dance so good, babe?
The singer is praising the dancing abilities of black women, suggesting that they are natural performers.

Brown sugar, just like a black girl should, yeah
The phrase 'just like a black girl should' reinforces stereotypes around the behavior and attributes that are expected of black women, rather than acknowledging them as individuals with their own unique qualities.

And I bet your mama was a tent show queen
The singer is making assumptions about the mother of the woman he is singing about, suggesting that she may have performed in traveling shows or circuses that were common during the time of slavery and beyond.

And all her boyfriends were sweet sixteen
This line suggests that the woman's mother had relationships with much younger men, further objectifying and sexualizing black women.

I'm no school boy but I know what I like
The singer is suggesting that he knows what he finds attractive, even if it may not be socially acceptable or morally right.

You should have heard them just around midnight
The singer is again alluding to the sexual activity that may have taken place between male and female slaves on the plantation, emphasizing the taboo nature of interracial relationships at the time.

Brown sugar, how come you taste so good, baby?
This line is a repeated refrain, re-emphasizing the singer's attraction to black women as being linked to their sweetness.

Brown sugar, just like a young girl should, yeah
The concept of black women as inherently youthful and innocent is again perpetuated in this line.

I said, yeah, yeah, yeah, woo
This is an exclamation without any specific meaning, emphasizing the passionate and sensual nature of the song.

How come you, how come you dance so good?
This line is a repetition of an earlier phrase, which once again praises black women's natural ability to dance.

Just like a, just like a black girl should
The repeated phrase reinforces the idea of a narrow set of behaviors and attributes that are expected of black women, further erasing their unique identities and personalities.