{"id":10136,"date":"2024-04-17T12:53:39","date_gmt":"2024-04-17T12:53:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/?p=6018876"},"modified":"2024-04-17T12:53:39","modified_gmt":"2024-04-17T12:53:39","slug":"before-420-fest-afroman-talks-cannabis-legalization-and-why-coloradans-make-him-uncomfortable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/before-420-fest-afroman-talks-cannabis-legalization-and-why-coloradans-make-him-uncomfortable\/","title":{"rendered":"Before 420 Fest, Afroman talks cannabis legalization and why Coloradans make him uncomfortable"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"wp_fb_like_button\" style=\"margin:5px 0 5px 5px;float:right;height:100px;\"><script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/before-420-fest-afroman-talks-cannabis-legalization-and-why-coloradans-make-him-uncomfortable\/\" send=\"true\" layout=\"standard\" width=\"450\" show_faces=\"false\" font=\"arial\" action=\"like\" colorscheme=\"light\"><\/fb:like><\/div><div class=\"media_block\"><\/div>\n<div><img src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/before-420-fest-afroman-talks-cannabis-legalization-and-why-coloradans-make-him-uncomfortable.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" \/><\/div>\n<p>Rapper Afroman has performed many shows in Colorado and each time he visits, the people here always seem to make him uncomfortable with how nice they are.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne time I was looking for an address and three strangers came from out of nowhere trying to help me find it. I didn\u2019t know if someone was trying to steal my wallet,\u201d he said with a laugh. \u201cI never been uncomfortable with people being nice \u2019til I got to Colorado. It was giving me the goosebumps.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Still, Afroman keeps coming back because of the vibe \u2013 \u201cI call it California in the deep freezer,\u201d he said, in large part because of the abundance of weed here.<\/p>\n<p>Fittingly, the \u201cBecause I Got High\u201d singer\u2019s next appearance will be at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.milehigh420fest.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Mile High 420 Fest<\/a> on Saturday at Denver\u2019s Civic Center park. Other artists slated to perform include <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2024\/03\/15\/gucci-mane-afroman-big-boss-vette-mile-high-420-fest\/\">Gucci Mane, Big Boss Vette, Tommy Genesis and more<\/a>.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"related right\"> <\/aside>\n<p>Afroman will undoubtedly perform his indomitable stoner sing-along and he\u2019s not sick of doing so after all these years. \u201cBecause I Got High\u201d came out in 2001, long before <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2023\/12\/31\/colorado-marijuana-10-years-history-legalization-industry-struggles\/\">the country\u2019s first legal weed sales took place in Colorado<\/a>. When he wrote the song, Afroman admits he never thought he\u2019d see cannabis legalized.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was thinking weed was like cocaine and heroin and every other drug that the police would take you to jail for. So it was just etched in this mind as this forever crime, you know what I mean. I started realizing that it had the possibility of being legal because it was too many smart people smoking it. It was people who had college degrees and doctors and lawyers, and they were smarter than police officers,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>In 2014, the rapper even <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=kyJfZ3qHduE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">remixed the lyrics to the song<\/a> to be less about smoking and slacking, and instead to highlight the positive benefits of consumption. Things like marijuana\u2019s medicinal benefits, its ability to help kick more addictive substances, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2024\/01\/11\/cannabis-weed-marijuana-running-study-cu-boulder-exercise-fitness\/\">its ability to motivate people to exercise<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>While Afroman generally considers legalization a good thing, he\u2019s witnessed cracks in the state-by-state model. In 2022, officers with the Adams County Sheriff\u2019s Office in Ohio raided Afroman\u2019s house on suspicion of drug trafficking and kidnapping. The rapper was never charged with any crimes, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wcpo.com\/news\/local-news\/adams-county\/my-rap-songs-are-more-intimidating-than-their-rifles-afroman-says-police-raid-lawsuit-are-boosting-fame\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">local media reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Last November \u2014 a year and change after the raid \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/com.ohio.gov\/divisions-and-programs\/liquor-control\/renewal-existing-permit-info\/guides-and-resources\/adult-use-of-marijuana-in-liquor-permit-premises#:~:text=On%20November%207%2C%202023%2C%20Ohio,into%20effect%20December%207%2C%202023.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">voters made Ohio the 24th state to legalize<\/a> recreational cannabis sales.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy it being legal now, another person doesn\u2019t have to experience that life-threatening episode,\u201d he said. \u201cIt takes a crime element out of what we do. I think it\u2019s beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Afroman, who was not home during the raid, turned the incident into an album called \u201cLemon Pound Cake,\u201d which came out last year. The video for one song, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=oponIfu5L3Y\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u201cWill You Help Me Repair My Door?\u201d<\/a> features security footage from Afroman\u2019s house as police raided it. <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/afroman-police-raid-lawsuit-254f3fe51d53b503a30416f0794fddc0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Deputies with the sheriff\u2019s department sued him<\/a> after its release, alleging invasion of privacy.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the events, Afroman believes he\u2019s won in the court of public opinion. He said his career has reached new heights after a lull in the decades since \u201cBecause I Got High.\u201d (Perhaps not totally unrelated was a 2015 incident in which he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2015\/02\/18\/afroman-assault-video-because-i-got-high-rapper-knocks-out-female-fan\/\">punched a female fan in the face<\/a> while on stage.)<\/p>\n<p>Ironically, Afroman credits the Adams County Sheriff\u2019s Department for its role in reviving his image.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey reinvented me. They brought me back, they made my story interesting again to the point where I\u2019m bigger now than I ever was in my life,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Afroman is riding that momentum by starring in a new movie, his first, called <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ZeP3GAjAj94\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u201cHappily Divorced,\u201d<\/a> which comes out on Saturday. That day, he\u2019ll also debut new music under the moniker Blunt Brothers, a project he\u2019s doing with rapper Daddy V.<\/p>\n<p>And apparently, Afroman is still running for president, even if his name won\u2019t appear on the November ballot. His campaign, which includes promises of federal cannabis legalization, was launched in 2022 and also inspired by the raid on his house.<\/p>\n<p>What does he think of the Biden Administration\u2019s moves to <a href=\"https:\/\/norml.org\/marijuana\/fact-sheets\/marijuana-pardons-and-expungements-by-the-numbers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pardon certain marijuana crimes<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.huffpost.com\/entry\/kamala-harris-marijuana-schedule_n_65f4b233e4b0651fa4a2c110\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">advocate for rescheduling<\/a> the substance?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m happy about anything anybody does good for the cannabis community.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/newsletter-signup\/in-the-know\">Subscribe to our weekly newsletter, In The Know, to get entertainment news sent straight to your inbox.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"media_block\"><\/div>\n<p>Rapper Afroman has performed many shows in Colorado and each time he visits, the people here always seem to make him uncomfortable with how nice they are. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[52,7189,7089,6811,376,7143,2435,10621,7938,77,7816,9,1495,5019,6228,1,3,7072,6923,61,1736],"tags":[2632,7190,7090,6816,2954,7144,2436,10622,7939,2655,7818,33,5022,6235,7073,6924],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10136"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10136"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10136\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}