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The Candy
The candy seized as “contraband” from Bri’s backpack symbolizes how Bri herself is misconstrued as a threat by the white world. For Bri, selling candy is one of the few legitimate ways she can earn some spending money, as innocuous as setting up a corner lemonade stand. But for Long and Tate, Principal Rhodes, and other white authorities, Bri’s possession of candy arouses suspicion, leading to a violent search and the confiscation of Bri’s “contraband,” a characterization that seems ludicrous to both Bri and Jay. After Bri is suspended for selling candy at school, a rumor circulates that she was selling drugs, an assumption driven by racial stereotypes. In Bri’s “Ten Snack Commandments,” a rap about selling candy, Bri encapsulates the light and dark aspects of candy as a symbol in the novel. She articulates both her own playful perspective on selling snacks and the life-or-death consequences she could face if a cop assumed she was selling something harder than candy. The fact that Bri raps about candy and police violence in the same song illustrates the danger that innocent Black children face when they are unfairly villainized by white authorities.
The Not-Timbs
The Not-Timbs symbolize the pressure Bri feels to present herself to the outside world in a certain way. Bri can’t afford real Timberlands, the expensive brand-name boots that she views as a status symbol, so instead she wears a pair of cheap knock-offs that she dubs “the Not-Timbs.” Bri’s Not-Timbs are a constant reminder of the material security she believes she can achieve by finding success as a rapper. As the Not-Timbs become increasingly worn, and the Jacksons increasingly poor, Bri colors the scratches on Not-Timbs with a Sharpie to hide her shame.
Bri has two opportunities to obtain real Timbs in the novel. Supreme urges her to take a free used pair of Timbs at the church giveaway, but she declines. Later he gifts Bri a pair of brand new Timbs, which she accepts reluctantly just before signing him as her manager. Bri’s acceptance of the real Timbs suggests that she is becoming famous like she wanted, but ironically, the price of the real Timbs is her authenticity. She is careful to hide the real Timbs from Jay, knowing she would not approve. On the day Aunt Pooh is arrested, Bri is wearing the Not-Timbs, which break as she runs away. The breaking of the Not-Timbs, replaced by the real Timbs, suggests that Bri has become what she wanted to be, but only by sacrificing who she really is.
Lawless’s Chain
Lawless's chain represents the complex legacy that Lawless has left for his family, and for Bri in particular. Bri refers to the chain as her family’s “safety net” for two reasons. Firstly, it’s worth thousands of dollars and could be pawned to pay the bills. And secondly, the crown on the chain represents her father’s place as a king of rap, a crown that she believes she has inherited. Bri believes she can follow in her father’s footsteps, claiming her birthright of rap superstardom and lifting her family out of poverty.
But the chain also comes to represent Lawless’s mistakes, particularly his decision to court fame by “rolling” with the Garden Disciples. Lawless’s gang affiliation literally put him in the crosshairs of the rival Crowns, just as wearing his chain puts makes Bri the Crowns’ target. When a Crowns gang member robs Bri of the chain at gunpoint, it reflects just how close she has come to suffering his fate.
