Edited by Azizi Powell
Latest revisions-July 23, 2025
This pancocojams post focuses on "complete" examples and fragments of examples of "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies that mention Black American soul food, and/or other food, desserts, and/or beverages.
This post also includes my editorial notes about "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies, including my general textual analysis of examples and my recollections of my direct experiences with these parodies in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania during the late 1990s and the early 2000s.
The content of this post is presented for folkloric, historical, socio-cultural, and recreational purposes.
The soul foods (chicken wings, collard greens, cornbread, fried rice, beans and rice, and black eye peas etc.) provide information about the kinds of food the commenters are familiar with. The contributors' comments about the spread of these parodies among people in the pre-internet age also provide socio-cultural information that is worth archiving.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
****
PANCOCOJAMS EDITORS NOTE REGARDING R. KELLY
Read my comment in
https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/07/i-believe-i-can-fly-parodies about R.
Kelly. Here's part of that comment:
"This post and other pancocojams posts on parodies of
R. Kelly's inspirational Rhythm & Blues song "I Believe I Can
Fly" should not be taken as disregarding or condoning R. Kelly's actions
apart from his musical compositions and musical performances."
****
INFORMATION ABOUT "I BELIEVE I CAN FLY" CHILDREN'S PARODIES
"I Believe I Can Fly" is the title for a large number of English language parodies of R Kelly's hit 1996 inspirational song with that title.
Based on studying examples of these parodies and reading comments from their contributors, my conclusion is that "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies originated in African American communities any and spread widely within those communities, in part, because of the role of Black American radio deejays.
Although there's no documentation, anecdotal evidence (such as some of the comments that are included in this pancocojams post) suggest that a Black American deejay may have been the original composer of the "I Believe I Can Fly" parody and that Black American radio deejays included versions of "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies as part of their on-air comedic, witty, and sometimes politically or socially incorrect chatter.
The involvement of Black radio deejays partly explains the spread of "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies throughout Black communities across the United States, and the spread of those parodies eventually to non-Black Americans and to people outside of the United States.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/07/archived-links-for-pancocojams-posts.html for a hyperlinked archive of pancocojams posts on "I Believe I Can Fly" children's parodies.
* Several commenters in the Tik Tok discussion thread about "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies that they remember used the word "remix" to refer to those examples. Read the quote below in this post's comment thread about why "remix" is actually an incorrect term for those "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies.
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SOUL FOOD AND OTHER FOOD, DESSERTS, AND DRINKS THAT ARE MENTIONED IN SOME EXAMPLES OF "I BELIEVE I CAN FLY CHILDREN'S PARODIES
These examples were gleaned from my online search for "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies.
These examples are given in no particular order and are numbered for referencing purposes only.
The food, dessert, and/or beverages that are mentioned in each example are given in italics for highlighting purposes only the first time that they are mentioned in that example.
Online Source #1
https://www.reddit.com/r/CasualConversation/comments/fxdnq7/i_believe_i_can_fly_i_got_shot_by_th
1. "I believe I can fly, I got shot by the FBI. All I
wanted was some chicken wings, and a whopper from the Burger King"
As a kid, we all sang this version of the song but I've
recently heard it as "all I wanted was a chicken wing and some collard
greens". So reddit, what version did you grow up with? Are there any other
renditions of other songs you grew up singing like this one?"
-Saymynamebastien, 2019,
**
2. "Love ya
Our version was "I believe I can fly, I believe I can
touch the sky, all I wanted was some chicken wings from burger king"
Also, I didn't realize so many kids knew this song haha I
thought it was like a regional thing
-Lookinshreddedbro, 2019,
**
3. "I believe I can fly, I got shot by the FBI. And then I went
to Burger King, but all they gave me was an onion ring. I believe I can fly
(*higher pitch fly*)."
-FettyAWPCSGO, 2019
**
Online Source #2
https://www.facebook.com/rezzybop/posts/remember-in-elementary-when-kids-would-sing-i-believe-i-can-fly-i-just-got-shot-/10171582782720504/
1. "All I wanted was a chicken wing but all
I got was fried beans!
-. Keela Vaughn, June 2025
**
2. "Mashed potatoes and some collard greennnns 🎶😩"
-
**
3. Some mashed potatoes and some pinto beans🎤🎶
-Amber, June 2025,
**
4. "Cornbread and collard greens"
-Sig Nogerelli June 2025
**
5. All I gotted was some rice and beans
-Marett Hanes, June 2025
**
6. Some red beans rice and some collard greens. I believe I can
soar, seem running through that KFC DOOR!
-Lia Holliday Jones, June 2025
**
7.. "All i wanted was some chicken wings Some baked beans and
some collards greens my class used to kill this😂😂"
-Candice Gartman, June 2025
**
8. "I made one up and it'll still pop into my head randomly
" I believe I need fries. With some ketchup on the side. I think about it
every night and day. Saturday through Friday. I believe I need more, see me
running through that arched door. 🤣"
-Jen Martinez, June 2025
**
9. “Cornbread and some collard greens. I believe I can soar, I
got my whooping at the grocery store. I believe I can die. My mama punched me
in my left eye”
-
**
10. "And a little bit of collard greens 😂
I believe I can soar, see me running through the grocery storeeeeeee"
-
11. "
-Jay Barnes, June 2025
**
12. "With a soda and some onion rings 😁🤣"
-Wright Eb, June 2025
**
13. "Ours was... all I wanted was a bag of chips 🍟
instead they shot me in my private bits "
-
**
14." All I wanted was collard greens, and some of them pinto
beans"
-Ashley Lemmons Arnold, June 2025
**
15. "Ours was “all I wanted was a popcicle” “but I ended up in
the hospital” 🤣"
-Briannah DeVries, June 2025
**
16. "All I wanted was some chicken wings some mashed potatoes and
some collard greens I believe I can soar see me running through that open
doooorrr"
-Katrina Kirean Mason-Johnson, July 2025
**
17. "All I wanted was a chicken wing, but all i got was
pork n beans"
-Tamara Graham,July 2025
**
18. 🎵FRIED RICE&SOME
COLLARD GREENS🎵🤣🤣🤣
-Neeri NevaGaf, June 2025
**
19. "I know this. I believe i can fly I believe i can touch
the sky i been shot by an fbi but the fbi never had a gun so he shot me with a
easter bun but easter bun never had no cheese so he shot me with a gung peas
gung peas never have no seed so he shot me with a mango seed mango seed never
have no hair so he shot me with beer but beer never have cork so he shot me a
bobocloth"
-Tyrone Sings13, 2015,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArMTpyrncak
-snip-
Here's some information about Jamaica's Easter buns from
https://jamdownfoodie.com/jamaican-easter-bun/
"Jamaica is a primarily Christian nation and all
Christian holidays are held sacred there. Easter is no exception and the
observance of Easter starts as early as Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday is the
start of Lent and generally, people decide to give up one indulgence during
this time. Many people choose to give up eating red meat and chicken and stick
with eating fish and seafood. At the end of Lent, which is marked by Good
Friday, people begin the feast of Easter with a spiced bread dubbed Easter Bun
and fried fish. The bread is a sweet bread that is studded with dried fruit and
heavily spiced with nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves and allspice. It is traditionally
eaten with Jamaican processed cheese but it is also very delicious with mild
aged cheddar cheese."...
20.
-Faith, 2013,
https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090624005743AAxbczS
****
Online Source For Examples #3
from https://www.tiktok.com/@xennialdee/video/7521518343812025631
published by XennialDee,June 2025 @richiegattztv "90s Kids’ Anthems: Parodying 'I Believe I Can Fly'"
summary comment: " we could turn any song into a chaotic anthem — including the inspirational “I Believe I Can Fly."
1. "all
i wanted was some chicken wings, from KFC or Burger King". is what i grew
up on lol"
-DOPELEFIRE,
6-29, 2025
**
2. "Chicken wings, French fries and onion rings"
-Devaney Jimenez, 6-29-2025
**
3. "Ummm....."All I wanted was some Chicken Wing from
McDonald's or Burger King"...is how we sung it"
-Frecklesisme, 6-30-2025
**
4. "I learned it as "all I wanted was some chicken wings,
mashed potatoes and onion rings" looking at the comments, there are so
many versions. this is great 🤣"
-K
Whatsherface, 6-30-2025
**
5. "I swear it was all I wanted was some collard greens to go
with my chicken wings. Both ways sound good though lol"
-Courtney Whigham, 6-30-2025
**
6. "ours was all I wanted was some chicken wings and some fries
from burger king"
-letticia church, v-30-2025
**
7. "All I wanted was some chicken wings. They cost 1.99 at
Burger King." was a variation me and one of my friends sang when we were
in middle school. 😅"
-
**
8. "All I wanted was some chicken wings, mashed potatoes
and turnip greens!"
-K.P, 6-30-2025
**
9. "I believe I can fly. I got shot by the FBI. All I
wanted was some chicken wings, mashed potatoes and collard greens. I believe I
can soar, I see me running through that kitchen door" is what I sang 🤣
Yes, we're old.
-💙🏳️🌈✊🏽✨Joei✨,
6-30-2025
**
10. "no no no no all I wanted was some chicken wings from the
downtown Burger King some extra fries and a shake as well"
-Raymond
Church, 6-30-2025
-snip-
"Extra fries= a large order of French fries
"a shake" = a milk shake
**
11. “all i wanted was some chicken wings and a little bit of
collard greens, I believe I can SSSSOOOOOOAAARRRRRR, I see them RUNNING through
that open DDDOOOORRRRRRRR! I believe i can FLY I believe fffllyyyy I believe i
can FFFFFLLLLYYYYYYY!”
- Sunshine 🤍🌻6-30-2025
**
12. "Me
and my friend said I believe I can fly. I got shot by the FBI. All I wanted was
some chicken wings and I flew by Burger King. I believe I can soar my mom
slapped me in the store. All I wanted was some ice cream and I told my mom she
will die mean. but this was our made up version"
-💙🩵𝒮𝓉𝒾𝓉𝒸𝒽
𝓁ℴ𝓋ℯ𝓇🩵💙6-30-2025
**
13. "mine was "all I wanted was some chicken wings, mashed
potatoes and collard greens" 😂"
-Takia Stamps425, 6-30-2025
**
14. "We used to sing “all I wanted was chicken wings from
McDonald’s or Burger King” 😂 even though they didn’t
have chicken wings ☠️"
-lala loopsy, 6-30-2025
**
15. "we definitely had different verions.......all I wanted was
some chicken wings mash potatoes and some collard greens. I believe I can soar
my mama beat me with a two by four."
-Shelby💜, 7-1-2025
**
16. " I feel like what I grew up with strays from yalls. "...
Got shot by the FBI. All I wanted was some collard greens. My mama slapped me
with a chicken wing..."
-eooo,7-1-2025
**
17.
-Niesha, 7-1-2025
18. "
-Thegirlytrapchef, 7-1-2025
19."…All I wanted was some collard greens got hit with a chicken wing"
-
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
I mentioned in this pancocojam post that several Black commenters referred to examples of "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies that they remember singing after R. Kelly recorded that inspirational R&B song in 1996 as "remixes" instead of "parodies". However, I got this result when I asked Google "What is the difference between a parody and a remix? (July 23, 2025),
ReplyDelete"AI Overview
“A remix is a new version of a song created by altering the original recording, often by adding new elements, samples, or changing the arrangement. A parody, on the other hand, is a humorous imitation of an original work, often intended to mock or satirize it. The key difference lies in their purpose: remixes aim to create a new sonic experience, while parodies aim to create a humorous commentary on the original.”
Here's a more detailed breakdown:
Remix:
Involves alteration:
Remixes take the original recording and manipulate it, often by adding new instruments, beats, or samples, or by rearranging the existing elements.
Can be authorized or unauthorized:
A remix can be created with the permission of the original artist (authorized) or without it (unauthorized, also known as a bootleg).
Focuses on sound:
The primary goal of a remix is to create a new sonic experience, often with a different vibe or energy than the original.
[...]
Parody:
Involves imitation with a humorous intent:
Parodies mimic the original work, but they do so in a way that is intended to be funny, satirical, or critical.
Can be a standalone work:
While a parody might use elements of the original, it is often a complete, self-contained work.
Focuses on commentary:
The purpose of a parody is not just to create a new sound, but to offer a humorous commentary on the original work, its subject matter, or its style. "...
It should be emphasized that in the United States NONE of the fast food chains-Burger King, McDonalds, and KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken )-sell any of the soul food items mentioned in "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies. Although KFC sells chicken tenders and other chicken pieces, it doesn't sell chicken wings. Burger King, McDonalds, and other large fast food chains like Wendys and Rally's, also sell chicken sandwiches, not chicken wings. And none of those fast food restaurants sell the soul food that is mentioned in some of these parodies i.e. collard greens or any other type of greens, fried rice, beans and rice, cornbread etc.
ReplyDeleteThe fast food chain Burger Kings is mentioned in most of "I Believe I Can Fly" parodies because the word "king" rhymes with the word "wings". "Collard greens " and not "kale" (another type of greens that a number of African Americans such as me prefer instead of collard greens) doesn't appear in these parodies because it doesn't have the rhythmic flow that the words collard greens has).
To answer the question (which probably few people besides me have asked)"Why do these these parodies include soul food items from fast food chains if those restaurants don't even sell those items?, it's because singing about picturing someone flying (or running) from the FBI (a higher level of police) who are shooting at him or her because they stole or attempted to seal soul food that is sold at a fast food restaurant adds to the ridiculousness and fun of these parodies of that unctuous inspirational R. Kelly song.
Notice that some commenters recall that R. Kelly's "I believe I Can Fly" was being used as an elementary school graduation song and other commenters wrote ) that they disliked that sugary sweet, fake inspirational song (not using those words though.)
Furthermore, if you want to go deeper into the thinking of Black Americans during that time about the recorded "I Believe I Can Fly" song, those parodies may have been made up to mock and otherwise make fun of that R. Kelly song partly because that inspirational song didn't match the real life R. Kelly (which was later revealed by the heinous sexual charges against that composer/singer.)
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2022/02/the-origins-of-stereotype-about-black.html for the related 2022 pancocojams post "The Origins Of The Stereotype About Black People And Fried Chicken (featuring two article excerpts and a YouTube video)".
ReplyDelete