By Chris McGuinness

By Chris McGuinness

Palmdale has very few legitimate claims to fame. Yes, the space shuttle lands here…sometimes. Let’s not forget the newest addition of the meat thermometer stabbing heard round the world.  But no matter how many times the shuttle lands here, or how many people get stabbed, as Palmdale natives we often found ourselves having to answer the familiar question.

Where the hell is Palmdale?

Now we hear that question a lot less thanks to one man, whose ballad to our dear city put Palmdale on the map. Mr. Joseph Foreman, better known as Afroman penned the “Palmdale” as a tribute to the city he spent some of his early years in. Released  in 2000 as a track on his album “Because I got high”, the song is not only a source of local pride among young Palmdailiens but served as evidence to their friends in Los Angeles and all over the world that Palmdale does in fact exist.

The song itself offers us the biggest glimpse into Afroman’s life in the Antelope Valley. While offering few specific locals, we learn that he came to the city as a young man with his family to escape the rampant gang violence in the city of Los Angeles.  We learn he lived in a “two- story house in East Palmdale”, but again are not told specifically were it is.

“Palmdale” offer us other clues as to the whereabouts and haunts of the young Afroman during this period of his life. We know he attended Palmdale High School where he played football until a shoulder I injury sideline him and he fail out of school. Here, Afroman claims he began to sell drugs and focus on his ambitions to become a famous rapper.

This is where the trail goes cold. Aside from a few small “shout outs” to his home city, there are few clues as to where he spent his time while living in Palmdale. As a (sort of) proud Palmdale citizen, I thought it would be interesting to locate and visit the places Mr. Foreman would “hang”. I wanted to see how the City shaped him and his music. I wanted to stand in the shadow of Afroman.

When calls to Afroman's agent went unanswered, and even the all-powerful Google search engine failed to give me any specific locations, I considered scrapping this article. That was until I found a music video by Afroman a local rapper called “Fatsoe”.  Titled “Palmdale is the City” the video is shot entirely in East Palmdale and features several locations that both rappers clearly had affection for.

Once we had the locations I took my photographer Jon out on a journey to see if these places still existed and if anyone remembered anything about the man who put Palmdale’s name on the map.



B-1 Liquor

Located on 30th St East and Palmdale Boulevard, this small liquor store is sort of a landmark for fans of snack foods and malt liquor. The store is featured prominently in the video and rumor has it that the young Afroman spent plenty of time either hanging out in front of it or going inside to buy his favorite beverage, Colt 45.

When we arrived and got shots of the outside of the store easily. When we asked permission to take photo’s inside B-1, the clerks told us we to speak with the owner. Instead of a simple phone conversation, the owner decided to come to the store to speak to us in person. For a man who let Afroman shoot almost an entire music video inside his store, we were not permitted to take any photos. Instead we were forced to weather a barrage of questions regarding if the article we intended to write would make B-1 liquor “look good or look bad”. For a place that sells 40oz bottles of King Cobra and copies of Juggs, it was odd to see someone so worried about upholding B-1’s integrity and reputation.

We were told that the owner would “think about it” and call us back with an answer. So far, over two weeks later as I am writing this, I have received no answer despite making two follow up calls to B-1.

Gee’s Barbershop

The barbershop in the video is called “Gee’s” and although the address is still active, the shop itself is no longer there. Supposedly it was located just down the street from B-1 on the boulevard in an old shopping center, but without a suite number, there’s no way to tell specifically where it was.


The Palmdale International Shopping Mall

The second location featured the most in the video is a large indoor swap meet located on 25th Street East. The Mall offers residents of East Palmdale everything they could ever want. From bootleg Spanish language DVD’s to Airsoft guns to prom dresses and bongs, this place has it all.

We entered the mall looking for one stall specifically. Called “Goodz in the Hood”, it is the only recognizable store in the music video. A thorough search of the mall turns up no sign of the place. We speak with a security guard who tells us that the store is no longer there.

“Vendors come and go pretty quickly.” He says. When I ask him about Afroman he tells me that the budding rapper had a stall in the mall where he used to sell his demos.

“I didn’t work here. I don’t know where it was exactly. But someone told me it was near the back.” He stated. After asking around to no avail, we pick a spot near a beauty salon in the back of the building. It’s not the precise location, but we can feel the spirit of Afroman with us…and that will have to do.

Conclusion

Our next destination is Palmdale High, but school is in and authorities generally frown upon strange men taking pictures of high school students exiting class. Two days later, I will be back in this same parking lot to cover a bomb threat.  When I ask two women who work in the attendance office about Afroman, they tell me they weren’t around when he was a student. In the end, I feel we’ve come a little closer to understanding the life and times of Afroman. By standing where he stood, and seeing what he saw, I hoped to shed a little light on what shaped him as an artist. I don’t know if I have done that, but after standing in his shoes for just a short while I can say that the next time I hear the words “Palmdale, come back to me”, I have a little more insight into what they mean.

Justifications for Secession

Some theories of secession emphasize a general right of secession for any reason ("Choice Theory") while others emphasize that secession should be considered only to rectify grave injustices ("Just Cause Theory"). Some theories do both. A list of justifications may be presented supporting the right to secede, as described by Allen Buchanan, Robert McGee, Anthony Birch, Walter Williams, Jane Jacobs, Frances Kendall and Leon Louw, Leopold Kohr, Kirkpatrick Sale, and various authors in David Gordon's "Secession, State and Liberty," includes:

The Legend of Palmdale's Bottomless Lake

I wrote about this sometime ago on my blog about meth. Why is this video relevant to a meth blog? Well, my readers may just be interested in reading about my old stomping grounds - Palmdale.

I can't help but laugh while watching this video. The beat is kind of catchy, but the funny parts are really related to the nasty looking women, the Palmdale indoor swapmeet shots (could they not get any place else to film?) and good ol' B-2 liquor on 35th Street East. Oh - many a drug deal has gone down around that place.