keep it a buck

What does keep it a buck mean?

Keep it a buck means to be honest, real, or truthful. It can be likened to the phrase keep it real. The variant form keep it a buck fifty (“to be completely honest or blunt”) is a more emphatic phrase, with fifty acting as an intensifier.

Examples of keep it a buck

… “We all need that person that could help us get back to the humility in us, to doing the right things. Nobody’s perfect, but I’m very fortunate to have real people around me who keep it a buck with me.” — Queen Latifah, quoted in People, 22 Feb. 2021

Miguel [singer] has felt the ways in which his sound has been marginalized or not given space to expand in the popular imagination. “I’m not even going to mince words. I’m gonna keep it a buck,” he says. “I came up in a time where the industry was very different. And the promo department at the label was very antiquated. What I was doing and the artist that I knew that I was, there was no real space for that at the time.” — Julissa James, Los Angeles Times, 9 Aug. 2023

“I’ve gotten a lot of DMs, a lot of questions about my belt,” Kyle [Fraser] said in the TikTok. “Why I’m wearing it so much, why I’m wearing it in the challenges. There’s been a lot of commentary on it so I just thought I’d come in here and address some things real quick. I’m gonna keep it a buck with you — I lost 28 pounds playing Survivor.” — Grace Galante, Parade, 5 June 2025

Where does keep it a buck come from?

Keep it a buck originated in African American English slang and is still frequently used in African American English. The phrase’s usage in rap and hip-hop lyrics may have contributed to its increasing popularity and widespread usage. Keep it a buck is synonymous with similar African American English phrases, such as keep it real and keep it 100.

The buck in keep it a buck may come from the informal sense of _buck__, which either refers to a dollar or money, or the slang sense, which is used in place of “hundred” in combination with other numbers.

How is keep it a buck used?

Keep it a buck is often used to introduce or express an honest opinion or statement or to call for a moment of authenticity.

The phrase can often be found in informal speech or writing on various social media platforms; however, it also appears in formal writing:

But if we’re gonna keep it a buck here, I’d be remiss if I didn’t admit that on many occasions I’ve seen my friends glued to their phones long after posting a sponsored ad or content, just to see how many likes and how much engagement they’re receiving. Low key, it has nothing to do with their paychecks. — Blue Telusma, The Grio, 4 Oct. 2021

When we talk about retirement, we usually focus on money-savings, investments, pensions and Social Security. But let’s keep it a buck. All the money in the world won’t mean a thing if your health is in shambles. “Health is wealth” isn’t just a catchy phrase; it’s the truth … — Damon Carr, New Pittsburgh Courier, 22 Jan. 2025

… Lectures were critical to my project because, to keep it a buck, even with the summaries forerunning each play, I was often lost in the content, to say nothing of the historicalculturalpolitical context of what I read. — Mitchell S. Jackson, Esquire, 24 April 2025