Everybody Hates Chris is a hilarious story loosely based on the childhood experiences of actor/comedian Chris Rock (who also serves as the narrator). The show centers on a teenager growing up in the eighties as the oldest of three kids in Brooklyn, New York. Filled with expectations and dreams that being a teenager would be really cool, Chris' entry into his teen years is less than easy. His parents uproot him from the housing projects, where he is comfortable, to a house in tough Bed-Stuy, a Brooklyn neighborhood.

As the family's "emergency adult," Chris is responsible for taking care of his younger brother, Drew, and his younger sister, Tonya, while their parents work. Drew is taller, more popular and confident than Chris, while Tonya, the baby of the family and gets all the attention. Chris’ father, Julius, works several jobs to support his family, and Rochelle, Chris’ strict and sassy mother runs the house on a tight budget. At his new school, Chris is an immediate target for bullies. Luckily, his natural charm and wit enable him to make friends and think, talk and run his way out of one comical situation after another!