Racialized Examples Of "I Like Coffee I Like Tea" Rhymes That Include The Words "I Like A Black Boy And He Likes Me"

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part II of a three part pancocojams series on examples of contemporary (1970s and later)  "I Like Coffee I Like Tea" children's recreational rhymes that include racial referents. These children's recreational rhymes are also known as "I Love Coffee I Love Teat" or "Down Down Baby".

Part II presents a representative sample of the versions of  "I Like Coffee, I Like Tea" that I have come across mostly online which include the words "I like a Black boy and he likes me". One example of these rhymes is presented under the date that I directly collected it. The other examples are presented in chronological order based on their online publishing dates. 

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/03/racialized-examples-of-i-like-coffee-i.html for Part I of this pancocojams series That pancocojams compilation presents all of the examples of  "I Like Coffee, I Like Tea"  ("I Love Coffee I Love Tea") rhymes that I have come across with demographic information (geographic location and year or decade first remembered) which include the words "I like a Colored boy" (or "Color boy" and he likes me" and continues with the lines "So step back White boy you don't shine/I'mma get a Black boy to beat your behind" (or similar wording.) 

That post also includes an overview of these confrontational racialized rhymes, and some other information about these recreational rhymes.

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/03/racialized-examples-of-i-like-coffee-i_49.html for Part III of this pancocojams series. That post presents some examples of "I Like Coffee, I Like Tea"  ("I Love Coffee I Love Tea") rhymes that I have come across with the racial referent "White" or other racial/ethnic referents besides "Black" or "Colored" ("Color"). These examples are presented in chronological order and are given with or without demographic information such as the contributor's geographic location and the year/decade the contributor's is first chanted or heard this rhyme. . 

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, socio-cultural, and recreational purposes. 

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who contributed examples of rhymes to this compilation.

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REQUEST FOR ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES
Please add to the folkloric record by sharing any examples in the discussion thread below of any confrontational racialized “I Like Coffee I Like Tea” rhymes that you know. Remember to include  demographic information (where- the city/state or country if outside of the United States where you lived when you first chanted or became aware of these rhymes), when (the year or decade when you first chanted or became aware of these rhymes) and who (your gender/race or ethnicity and/or the genders, race and/or ethnicity of those who chanted that example.

I’m also interested in how those rhymes where performed (such as single jump rope, Double Dutch jump rope, partner hand clap rhymes etc.  Thanks in advance!  

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A COMPILATION OF EXAMPLES OF CONFRONTATIONAL RACIALIZED EXAMPLES OF "I LIKE COFFEE I LIKE TEA" THAT INCLUDE THE WORDS "I LIKE A BLACK BOY AND HE LIKES ME"

Except for the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania examples that I directly collected, these examples are from the internet and presented in chronological order after their online publishing date.with the earliest online publishing date given first.

Unlike the examples of the "I Like Coffe I Like Tea" that include the racial referent "Colored" (and its folk processed form "Color"), I was unable to compile these examples based on geographic location or the year/decade that the contributors first remembered chanting them because that demographic information was seldom given for these rhymes. 

Numbers are added for referencing purposes only


Pittsburgh Pennsylvania examples of these rhymes that I directly collected 

1. I like coffee i like tea
I like a black boy
and he likes me
So step back white boy
You don't shine
I'mma get a black boy
to beat your behind.
Jump up shimmy shimmy shimmy
Jump back shimmy shimmy shimmy
Turn around shimmy shimmy shimmy
Touch the ground shimmy shimmy shimmy
-Tazi Powell (childhood memories, first or second grade in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), collected by Azizi Powell
-snip-
This may have been a portion of a longer hand clapping rhyme.
 
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2. I love coffee
I love tea
I love a Black boy and he loves me
so step back White boy
you don't shine
I'mma get a Black boy to beat your behind
I met my boyfriend at the candy store.
He bought me ice-cream, he bought me cake,
He brought me home with a belly-ache.
Mamma, Mamma, I feel sick.
Call the doctor - quick, quick, quick.
Doctor, Doctor, will I die?
Count to five and you'll be alive.
1-2-3-4-5. I'm alive.*
-African American girls (6-12 years old), various neighborhoods of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and various neighborhoods in surrounding communities of Pittsburgh; collected by Azizi Powell, 1980s-2006; posted on cocojams.com, 2/26/2006 [Cocojams.com was my cultural website. That website is no longer active. Click https://cocojams2.blogspot.com/2014/10/hand-clap-jump-rope-rhymes-examples-i-j.html for a post on my cocojams2 children's rhyme blog that features "I Love Coffee I Love Tea" and some other rhymes that begin with letters I-J.

"I Met My Boyfriend At The Candy Store" is an independent recreational rhyme (a rhyme that can be chanted by itself or combined- in whole or in part- with other recreational rhymes.

*Sometimes "and on channel 5" is added to the end of this rhyme. Prior to cable television, there was no channel 5 in Pittsburgh. That number is used for its rhyming effect.

This version appears to be widely recited among African American girls in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area from about the late 1980s-early 1990s to at least 2010.

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3. Zing, Zing, Zing,
and ah 1-2-3.
I like coffee, I like tea.
I like a black boy and he likes me.
So step back, white boy, you don't shine.
I'll get the black boy to beat your behind.
Last night and the night before.
I met my boyfriend at the candy store.
He bought me ice cream he bought me cake.
He brought me home with a belly ache.
Mama, mama, I feel sick
Call the doctor, quick, quick, quick
Doctor, doctor, will I die?
Close your eyes and count to five
1-2-3-4-5
I'm Alive!
See that house up on the hill.
That's where me and my baby live.
Eat a piece of meat
Eat a piece of bread.
Come on baby. let's go to bed
-Kayla. (African American girl, age 5; recited for Alafia Children's Ensemble, Fort Pitt Elementary School chapter, (Pittsburgh, PA), 2000; collected by Azizi Powell, 2000
-snip-
Click https://cocojams2.blogspot.com/2014/10/hand-clap-jump-rope-rhymes-examples-i-j.html for my other blog post to read my comments about this rhyme.  

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Examples With No Demographic Information (given in chronological order)

1. "Down down baby
Down by the roller coaster
Sweet sweet baby
I'll never let you go
Shimmey Shimmey Cocoa Pop
Shimmey I
I like coffee
I like tea
I like a black boy
and he likes me
Step back white boy
you done shine
I got a black boy to beat your behind
Went upstairs to beat my drum
beat it so hard til the police come
please Mr. Police don't arrest me
arrest that white boy behind that tree:D "
-SWEETAKA, 03-25-2003, http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/archive/index.php/t-31403.html, "Old School Chants"
-snip-
The participants in that discussion thread are members of historically Black Greek letter sororities.

The contributor of this example's screen name "SWEETAKA" identifies her as a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. (which is informally known as AKA).

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2. "down down baby down by the roller coaster sweet sweet baby mama never let you go if you wanna kiss me just say you love me shimmy shummy coa coa puff shimmy shimmy rah, shimmy shimmy coa coa puff shimmy shimmy rah. I like coffee I like tea. I like a black boy and he likes me so step back black boy you ain't shy I bet you 5 dollars I could beat your behind. Last night and the night before I met my boyfriend at the candy store. He bought me ice cream he bought me cake. He brought me home with a belly ache. I said momma momma I'm so sick. Call the doctor quick quick quick I said doctor doctor shall I die. He said close your eyes and count to 5 I said a12345 I'm alive on a channel 5 I said a678910 I'm dead on a channel 10 with a scooby dooby doo on channel 2. Frankenstein on channel 9. .....

that's how me and my friends do it. I'm 14 so...I guess it's sort of there..."
-By Alana on Saturday, July 3, 2004 http://www.streetplay.com/discus/cgi-discus/show.cgi?75/77.html [This website is no longer available]

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3. "Does anyone remeber the one that has I like coffee i like tea i like a black boy and he likes me so stand back white boys i know your shy I'll get a black boy to beat your behind he'll beat it rough he'll be it tough he'll beat it till you almost had enough.
do you remeber what was first i remember it had have a peach have a plum have a stick of bubble gum bot peach no plum no stick of bubble gum. But something comes before that"
-GUEST,kerry ; 26 Aug 05 , https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=4300, "Children's Street Songs", 

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4.  "Down down baby down by the rollercoaster sweet sweet baby mama never let you go if you wanna kiss me just say you love me

Shimmy shimmy coco pop shimmy shimmy pow shimmy shimmy coco pop shiimmy shimmy pow

I like a black boy and he likes me so step back white boy I aint shy I bet you 5 dollars ill beat yo behind

Last night and the night before I met my boyfriend at the candy store he brought me ice cream he brought me cake he brought me home with a belly ache

I said momma momma im so sick call the doctor quick quick quick! I said doctor doctor shall i die he said close your eyes and count to 5

I said ah 1 ah 2 ah 3 ah 4 ah 5... im alive on channel 5 scooby dooby doo on channel 2 big fat lady on channel 80 and all the rest on channel 8"
-GUEST,Meme http://http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=100653 Down Down Baby-Race in Children's Rhymes, 3 July, 2014
-snip-
I started that Mudcat discussion thread in April 2007. Comments may still be added to that thread.

This is the first example that I've read in which the girl chanting the rhyme says that she will beat the boy's behind rather than finding a boy to do it for her.

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4. "Wow crazy! I was born during the early 2000’s and heard it way differently

I like coffee
I like tea
I like a black boy and he likes me,
So step back white boy you don’t shine
I’ll get a black boy to beat yo behind
Last night, night before my boyfriend met
Me at the candy store he bought me ice cream
He bought me cake he brought me home with a stomach ache I said momma, momma I feel sick
Call the doctor and quick quick quick!
Doctor Doctor will I die
Close your eyes and count to 5
1 2 3 4 5
I’m alive to the Fourth of July
See that house on tipo of that hill that’s where me
And my baby gon live
Oh ah I wanna piece of pie, pie to sweet I wanna piece of meat , meat to rough wanna ride the bus

From there I forgot but I’m amazed to see the variations through the states and the crazy thing is we would play this all the time on th play ground and now that I look back we really had no idea what we were saying."
-Southern bee, February 15, 2019 at 12:38 PM,
 https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/01/racialized-versions-of-i-like-coffee-i.html

**
"Yo" in this example means "your".

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5. "uno dos sierra
I like coffee i like tea
I like the black boy looking at me
so step back while boy
you don't shine
I'll get the black boy
to kick yo' behind
-prettybougie, 2023-4-13, 
 https://www.tiktok.com/@prettybougie1/video/7221535532528979243
-snip-
These words were given as a caption in this Tik Tok clip.

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This concludes Part II of this pancocojams series.

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