These lyrics speak explicitly to black women—strength and perseverance are major themes on LEMONADE. Just as Beyoncé isn’t quitting on her marriage and surrendering to her partner’s infidelity, the women of the Black Lives Matter movement won’t give up the fight for justice and equality because that would be quitting on themselves.

As Hilton Als writes for The New Yorker:

As Beyoncé sings, we see various shots of black mothers holding photographs of their sons—boys and men who have lost their lives to “accidental” police shootings. It’s in those moments that Beyoncé displays, most profoundly, what [novelist Octavia] Butler called “hyper empathy”—the ability to identify with and feel the pain of others. Which, of course, has always been at the heart of black music, black style.

Kendrick’s references to his mother embody the song’s overall theme about empowering black women. Like Beyonce said in the pre-chorus:

I’m telling these tears, “Go and fall away, fall away”
May the last one burn into flames

His cries are eerily similar to “Sing About Me, I’m Dying Of Thirst,” and may allude to 2Pac songs “Dear Mama” and “Ride 4 Me.”

This set of lines uses syllables with accents in groups of threes, continuing his lyrical countdown in his verse.

Kendrick gives a visceral and physical representation of the desperate stress many African-Americans feel when confronted by police in America.

Fire hydrants and smoke alarms are common methods of riot control used to control protestors. This is reminiscent of civil rights era protests where powerful water hoses and smoke bombs were used to disperse crowds.

Someone with a God complex is so confident in themselves they feel infallible (and someone who calls himself “Hova” would probably qualify).

“Motivate your ass” could be a reference to the 1965 book The Autobiography of Malcolm X, where he stated:

In fact, once he is motivated no one can change more completely than the man who has been at the bottom. I call myself the best example of that.

Beyoncé wants to change her man for the better and empowers other women in similar situations to do the same.

Shortly before Lemonade was released, Beyoncé (with her performers) formed an ‘X’ on the field during their Super Bowl 50 performance,) paying homage to Malcolm X, a man who advocated the use of violence to overcome oppression. Beyoncé declares the subversive potential for herself.

The visual album video of Lemonade includes an excerpt right after this line from a speech Malcolm X gave on May 5, 1962 at the funeral service of Ronald Stokes in Los Angeles, who was killed by the LAPD:

The most disrespected woman in America, is the black woman. The most un-protected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America, is the black woman.

While Biggie was never charged of any violent crimes, he did keep firearms on his person and was open about his anxiety as a drug dealer.

A 1994 New York Times profile of Biggie reads:

Every time the front door of the apartment building opened, he leaped up to see who was climbing the stairs. On this day, there were a pair of black 9-millimeter Rugers under the mattress in his bedroom. “I’m not paranoid to the point where—” He paused. “Yes, I am. I’m scared to death. Scared of getting my brains blown out.”

“Brick” is another term for a kilo of cocaine.