Rapper Boosie Badazz performed his 2006 hit “Set It Off” on a public brick walkway near the White House in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, drawing attention online with videos of the impromptu set.
Torrence Ivy Hatch Jr., known professionally as Boosie Badazz or Lil Boosie, stood with a small group of people in the pedestrian plaza area adjacent to the White House grounds. Clips circulating on social media show the 43-year-old Baton Rouge native gesturing, dancing and rapping the track’s lyrics while the White House appears in the background of some footage.
One widely shared version, posted by the hip-hop account @mymixtapez, pairs the sidewalk performance with a static image of President Donald Trump looking out a White House window. The accompanying caption joked that Boosie was the “first artist to perform on the White House lawn.”
Hatch was in the District for the Cash Money & No Limit Tour stop the previous night at Capital One Arena. The Oct. 8 show featured artists including Birdman, Master P, Juvenile and Mannie Fresh, with Boosie listed as a special guest.
The performance comes amid Hatch’s public efforts to obtain a presidential pardon related to his legal history. In 2025 he paid $600,000 to political operatives Jack Burkman and Jacob Wohl, who he said promised help securing clemency from Trump. No pardon was issued. Hatch has since sought a partial refund through legal action and discussed the matter in interviews, including on “60 Minutes.”
In January 2026, U.S. District Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo sentenced Hatch in San Diego federal court to three years of supervised release, 300 hours of community service and a $50,000 fine after he pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. The charge stemmed from a 2023 incident in which authorities recovered a loaded Glock 19 linked to him.
Hatch, born Nov. 14, 1982, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, rose in Southern hip-hop with albums including “Bad Azz.” “Set It Off,” produced by Mouse On Tha Track, remains one of his signature tracks. Online reactions to the White House sidewalk video mixed amusement at the stunt with references to his ongoing pardon-related disputes.
