"Because I Got High" is a song by American rapper Afroman from his eponymous album. The lyrics of the song describe how cannabis use is degrading the narrator's quality of life. The song, which was written in only a few minutes, rose from obscurity to popularity after it was circulated around the Internet and was featured on The Howard Stern Show.
Overview
The song explains how the narrator has forgotten to clean his room, failed his college class, sold kush, missed court dates, had his paycheck garnished due to missed child support payments, gambled away his car payment and became a paraplegic as the result of a police chase. The singer then reveals that he had "messed up entire life" because he was "high", lost his "kids and wife" and ended up "sleeping on the sidewalk". He ultimately decides to end the song, and admits that he is "singing the whole thing wrong, because high". After this, Afroman mentions his name and birthplace, describes the tumbleweed he smokes as "bomb as hell", says he does not believe in Hitler and ends the verse with "all of you skins...please give me more head". The music video was directed by Kevin Smith and featured Jay and Silent Bob smoking with Afroman, a cameo by 'Beer Man', as well as a glimpse of the Quick Stop where Clerks was filmed.
Reception
Afroman released his album Because I Got High in 2000; he distributed it mainly through concerts. The title track was soon posted on file-sharing service Napster and made it to The Howard Stern Show. This song was the theme song of the film Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and was later featured in the films Disturbia, A Thousand Words, and The Perfect Score. After the success of this single, Afroman was signed to Universal Records. On the albumMobilize by punk bandAnti-Flag, after several minutes of silence on the album's end track, a friend of the band called Spaz can be heard singing parts of the song with Anti-Flag.
Track listing
Alternate versions
Afroman re-recorded the song with new lyrics for his 2009 album Frobama Head of State. A second re-recording of the song, called the "Positive Remix," was released by Afroman through YouTube on October 15, 2014 as part of a collaboration with Weedmaps and NORML. In contrast to the original version, the lyrics of this version deal with the positive effects of marijuana legalization.
