Skip to main content

Wiz Khalifa forced to ground, handcuffed at LAX for riding ‘hover board’

Rapper Wiz Khalifa may be a chart-topping recording artist but he can’t get away with riding a hover board wherever he wants. Wait a minute … what year is it again?

In an altercation with customs at Los Angeles International Airport over the weekend, Khalifa was handcuffed and forced to the ground by three officers after refusing to get off his gold-plated two-wheeled “hover board.” As per a video the rapper posted to his Instagram, officers told him to “stop resisting” once he was on the ground. In response, the rapper responded “I’m not resisting sir, I’m not resisting.”

https://instagram.com/p/6tLvg8ndp9/

Recommended Videos

As Wired notes (via The Verge), Khalifa wasn’t actually hovering above the ground on a board in the LAX airport. The vehicle is essentially a ‘self-balancing’ scooter without handlebars that has been popularized by celebs like Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj, and Kendall Jenner. Rapper Soulja Boy even sells branded versions of this new form of transportation, called Souljaboards, for $1,500 each.

All because I didn't want to ditch the technogy everyone will be using in the next 6 months. Do what you want kids. pic.twitter.com/7F0KIQgFrA

— Wizzlemania (@wizkhalifa) August 23, 2015

Regardless of what it’s called, Khalifa simply didn’t want to get off of the two-wheeled scooter. The rapper reportedly taunted customs officials after they asked him to get off of the device, resulting in the altercation that ended with the 27-year old on the ground.

I stand for our generation and our generation is gonna be riding hover boards so if you don't like it eat a dick!

— Wizzlemania (@wizkhalifa) August 23, 2015

Even afterwards, the rapper known for his 2015 smash hit See You Again remained defiant about the incident, using some choice words after exclaiming that “our generation is gonna be riding hover boards,” and telling the authorities what they can do if they don’t like it.

Khalifa didn’t end up in jail this time according to CNN. If he pulls the stunt again — say, this weekend when he’s traveling to perform in Monterrey, Mexico — he may not be so lucky.

Chris Leo Palermino
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Chris Leo Palermino is a music, tech, business, and culture journalist based between New York and Boston. He also contributes…
How to download music from SoundCloud on desktop and mobile
Soundcloud Interface on a Macbook.

If you're a die-hard music fan, you probably keep a curated library of playlists packed with your favorite artists and albums on Spotify, Apple Music, or whatever your favorite music streaming app is. But how do you discover the best indie artists today? Some music-streaming platforms are better than others at celebrating the ‘unsung gem’ acts, but one of the most reliable forums for new, off-the-grid tunes is SoundCloud.

Founded in 2007, SoundCloud has always prioritized music that’s a bit under the radar. With over 320 million tracks in its library, the platform will even let you download a majority of its songs and albums.

Read more
The best kids headphones of 2025: for fun, safety, and sound
Two kids using the Puro Sound PuroQuiet Plus to watch something on a tablet.

Kid-friendly consumer tech is all the rage these days, so it’s no surprise that there’s an entire market of headphones designed exclusively for young ones. But when we think “kid-friendly,” sometimes we imagine products that are built to be a bit more throwaway than their adult counterparts. That’s not the case with the products on our list of the best headphones for kids, though.

We want our child-tailored headphones to include parental-controlled volume limiters, to ensure our children aren’t harming their eardrums. Pretty much every entry on our list checks this vital box, but we also wanted to point you and yours toward products that offer exceptional noise-canceling, built-in mics for phone and video calls, and long-lasting batteries for schooldays or a long flight.

Read more
How to master your equalizer settings for the perfect sound
An equalizer from eqMac.

Casual listeners might boot up Spotify or turn on the radio to listen to music without giving the balance or sound stage much thought. Audiophiles on the other hand like to dig a bit deeper and customize their experience. One common way to tinker with how music sounds is adjustments to the equalizer, which offers the freedom to tweak every aspect of the sound booming out of headphones or speakers. Even some streaming services now have built-in EQs, giving you more ways than ever to play with your music and find something that best fits your ears.

Shaping the equalizer to your preferences can be daunting to newcomers, as there are tons of cryptic settings you can manipulate. And if you mess with the wrong one, your sound quality might take a nasty hit. Thankfully, learning the basics isn't too difficult.

Read more