50 Cent Criticized For Posing With Rep. Lauren Boebert, Mistakenly Saying He’s At The White House Instead Of The Capitol

Rapper 50 Cent, whose real name is Curtis James Jackson III, shared a photo of himself with Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colorado) at the Capitol on X. He captioned it, “Lauren Boebert, Colorado Republican making the white house look good.” This post quickly drew attention, with some users mocking the rapper’s apparent confusion about the location.

Scripps News congressional correspondent Nathaniel Reed likened the gaffe to “summer tourists who think the U.S. Capitol is the White House.” Associated Press congressional reporter Farnoush Amiri joked that it was like her mom “not knowing where I work.”

50 Cent’s visit to the Capitol was a complex trip. The rapper was there to advocate for more black representation in the liquor and music industries, meeting with lawmakers from both sides of the aisle, including House Speaker Mike Johnson and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

50 Cent was accompanied by civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who said, “Mr. Jackson is one of the most successful black entrepreneurs in America… We’re here today to talk about how he’s trying to knock down barriers of equal access and opportunity to have a seat at the table in all industries.”

In response to the criticism, 50 Cent defended himself: “Wait, wait, guys. I took pictures with everyone, and all you seem to care about is Lauren. What did she do in a dark theater that hasn’t been done, my God!” This appears to be a reference to a previous controversy around Boebert, in which she was accused of groping her date in the theater.

Boebert, for her part, took the encounter in stride and posted a photo of the pair with the caption, “I’d still love you if you flipped burgers at Burger King. @50Cent, I used to do that myself! Thanks for the photo, great to meet you!”

After his visit, 50 Cent said, “My experience here has been great. I went to talk to them about economic opportunities for everybody, and it’s really exciting. The response I got makes me feel that there’s bright days ahead of us.”