Context

This line is from the poem "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes (1922).

Boys, listen to your mama, especially if she has advice as good as that found in Langston Hughes's poem "Mother to Son." In the poem, he imagines a mother talking to her child, and she begins by saying, "Life for me ain't been no crystal stair." In other words, her life hasn't been easy, but that hasn't stopped her from living it.

Where you've heard it

You've heard this if someone is telling you about their life, and giving you a bit of real talk while they're at it.

Pretentious Factor

If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.

We have to split this down the middle, because it really depends on your background. If you've actually experienced true hardship, this isn't pretentious. If your idea of hardship is Hillary Clinton's definition of broke, this quote would sound really pretentious.