Afroman is an LA emcee most known for his song ‘Because I Got High’. The humorous track, put out in 2000, hears the rapper speak about an unfulfilled life where he constantly makes mistakes due to his use of marihuana. The song was released as the lead single of his second studio album, Because I Got High, and is renowned as a comedic rap song.
The hit song hears Afroman (real name Joseph Foreman) rap lyrics such as, “Was gonna get up and find the broom but then I got high,” “I was gonna go to work, but then I got high,” and “I was gonna pay my child support, but then I got high.“
Foreman has released 19 albums across his 26-year career. However, in 2022, he released a song for his eighteenth project that detailed a near-death incident he had with the police in Ohio. Entitled ‘Lemon Pound Cake,’ the lyricist speaks about a raid on his home by law enforcement.
Two years ago, Ohio police acquired a warrant to raid Foreman’s home after it was determined that there was a high chance he was guilty of multiple crimes, including drug possession, drug trafficking, and kidnapping.
The cops didn’t find any evidence of what they were looking for. However, they did stumble across a tasty-looking Lemon Pound Cake in the kitchen, and after the incident, Foreman made a song speculating that the officers weren’t really looking for drugs but just fancied a nice slice of cake.
The emcee wasn’t present when the police kicked down the door. However, it has been revealed that the officers caused about $20,000 worth of damage to his property and did not offer any money to him for the damages.
In a 2022 interview with NPR, Foreman spoke about the effect the raid had on him, stating, “I asked myself, as a powerless Black man in America, what can I do to the cops that kicked my door in, tried to kill me in front of my kids, stole my money and disconnected my cameras?”
He continued, “The only thing I could come up with was make a funny rap song about them and make some money, use the money to pay for the damages they did and move on.”
The track ‘Lemon Pound Cake’ is an interpolation of the 1964 classic song ‘Under The Boardwalk’ by The Drifters. The album features other tracks about the raid, including, ‘Why You Disconnecting My Video Camera’ and ‘Will You Help Me Repair My Door.’
You can listen to ‘Lemon Pound Cake’ below.
