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Joseph Edgar Foreman still going up. In a green dining room made out of curtains at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas, Afroman, as he’s known, takes a steady breath with his videographer, who’s wearing a tight cocktail dress and sky-high heels. The 51-year-old rapper seems unfazed by the fact that several thousand people are waiting for him, in a room much bigger than the pool he’s been playing in for the past two decades.
Foreman is wearing the same American Flag he wore in his recent court appearance (and now he wears everywhere). In 2022, police raided his home in Winchester, Ohio, on suspicion of drug possession and theft. They found nothing but a jar full of “green plants,” THC wax, pipes, and more than $5,000 in cash. After the crime, Foreman released several songs mocking the police, singing about having sex with their wives and losing their hair, among other scandals. Seven of the officers sued him for $4 million for defamation and invasion of privacy. Foreman won, both the lawsuit and the internet, as the rapper’s tools on the scene spread like wildfire.
Being viral is Foreman’s privilege, after all. He says his biggest hit, Kegger’s 2000 college hit “Because I Got to the Top,” sparked the idea; it’s questionable, but he has a knack for getting attention. As his lawsuit against the police spilled over, Foreman’s positive attitude and advocacy for free speech brought millions of listeners to his music. It didn’t hurt that the footage featured security cameras located at his home. The most famous cake, “Lemon Pound Cake,” ignited someone who, during the disaster, looked longingly at the cakes in the kitchen. It has been viewed nearly 10 million times on YouTube, and the officer, now known as “Officer Pound Cake,” said he was sent hundreds of pound cakes as a form of torture.
The rapper’s success has also turned him into an activist, which is why he’s in Vegas about to host a libertarian-lite crypto-themed event. The program manager of the event, Craig Deutsch, says that “Foreman’s recent success in defending his right to sing about the police officers who unjustly destroyed his house is perfectly compatible with the work of Bitcoin.” The annual Bitcoin conference attracts corporate members and African American families who bought bitcoin when it was cheap and QAnon followers who don’t believe in anything connected to the government. Recently, it has become a popular social media site for politicians who want to reach out to voters. President Trump said during his 2024 presidential campaign; JD Vance spoke the following year. Now in its second year in Vegas, the event seems more popular than ever, despite the fact that the price of bitcoin is down about $33,000 from a year ago.
The manager of the show, Gregg Davis, entered the green room, which was now filled with smoke, and found Foreman surrounded by his humble entourage: former Bishop Don “Magic” Juan, Foreman’s assistant in an emerald suit, several other men passing by in good looks, and two girls in tight, shiny clothes.
“Is there anything you want me to tell you?” asked Davis.
“Say what’s on your mind,” replies Foreman, “and you know, the starving American dream—if you remember that—from Afroman.”
The emcee thanks Foreman for “making this room sweet.” Soon after, Foreman’s boss comes in and sweetly announces that the hotel staff has smelled it, and is threatening to call the police.
