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Iman Crosson

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Iman Crosson
Crosson in 2014
Born (1982-03-27) March 27, 1982 (age 42)
Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.
Occupation(s)Actor, impressionist
Years active2005–present
WebsiteYouTube.com/Alphacat

Iman Crosson (born March 27, 1982), better known by his stage name Alphacat, is an American actor, impressionist, and YouTube personality known for his impersonations of former U.S. President Barack Obama and his starring role in independent film Along the Roadside.

YouTube and Barack Obama impressions

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On December 14, 2005, a 23-year-old Crosson opened a YouTube account with screen name Alphacat. In July 2008, at the urging of his fellow waiters, Crosson created spoof videos of then U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama.[1]

During the summer of the 2008 U.S. Presidential election campaign, Crosson's 30-second video won Denny's Restaurant's nationwide contest for the best impressionist of the then-candidate Barack Obama.[2] He said that he "went from unemployed to self-employed in literally a matter of a month." Crosson moved from New York to California, obtained an agent specializing in helping talent cross over from online to mainstream, and was invited to be on America's Got Talent.[1]

On YouTube, Crosson specialized in mashing up his Obama impersonations with hip-hop songs, his spoofs of Beyoncé's "Single Ladies" and T.I.'s "Whatever I Like" being viewed 20 million times each.[3]

After Obama's January 2009 inauguration, Crosson was featured on several entertainment and news television shows, blogs, and newspapers. Crosson was called a "YouTube sensation" by Fox News' Neil Cavuto.[4]

Crosson's post-inaugural work included voice-overs in Newsweek's The District, a video series in which Crosson narrated Obama's first months in Washington from the President's point of view.[5] Crosson impersonated Obama at the 66th Annual Radio and Television Correspondents' Association Dinner on March 17, 2010.[6]

Crosson was among YouTube content creators who met at the White House in February 2014 with U.S. President Obama to start a dialogue about health insurance awareness and enrollment, as well as anti-bullying, education, and economic opportunity.[7]

In October 2012, Crosson performed as Obama in the YouTube series Epic Rap Battles of History in the "Barack Obama vs. Mitt Romney" episode, the music single of which was certified gold by the RIAA.[8]

In December 2013, Crosson contributed to an Affordable Care Act social media campaign by releasing a video spoof of Snoop Dogg's "Drop It Like It's Hot."[9] In February 2014, YouTube content creators including Crosson met with U.S. President Obama at the White House to discuss ways in which government could connect with the content creators' viewers, concerning awareness of and enrollment in health insurance policies and other issues.[7][10]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes Refs.
2013 Along the Roadside Varnie Independent film [11]
2016 Tere Bin Laden: Dead or Alive Barack Obama Bollywood comedy [12][13]

Television

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Year Title Role Notes Refs.
2018 Our Cartoon President Barack Obama Voice [14]
2024 NCIS Lt. Elliot Greene [15]

Web series

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Year Title Role Notes Refs.
2011 "President Obama on Death of Osama bin Laden (SPOOF)" Barack Obama [16]
2012 Epic Rap Battles of History Barack Obama Episode: "Barack Obama vs. Mitt Romney" [8]
2012 Annoying Orange Broccoli Obama Episode: "Kitchen Decision 2012" [17]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Dziemianowicz, Joe, "Obama's YouTube impersonator is a changer to almost believe in", (includes interview) Politics section, nydailynews.com, January 15, 2009 (Archived 2010-06-19 at the Wayback Machine).
  2. ^ Denny's press release of August 28, 2008, entitled "Americans Select Best Presidential Posers, Denny's 'Vote For Real' Contest Names Best Impersonators" (archive).
  3. ^ Wan, William (July 1, 2016). "Hail to the chief impersonators: Obama's top doppelgangers reflect on playing POTUS". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 2, 2016.
  4. ^ "Hello, Mr. President? (Dancing Obama impersonator turning into huge YouTube hit)" Archived 2009-04-06 at the Wayback Machine video (archive) of Neil Cavuto interviewing Crosson on foxnews.com, February 2, 2009.
  5. ^ "The District Ep. 1 The Challenges We Face - Newsweek.com" video (archive) which aired on newsweek.com on February 2, 2009, and was posted on YouTube's "NewsweekVideo" channel (archive) on February 4, 2009. The word "District" refers to the District of Columbia (DC), the U.S. capital. The District season finale "'The District' | Ep. 9 | Season Finale -- video.newsweek.com" (archive) aired on March 30, 2009.
  6. ^ Broadcast live on C-SPAN2, recorded on cspan.org at "66th Annual Radio and Television Correspondents Dinner" Archived 2010-05-05 at the Wayback Machine, March 17, 2010 (Crosson's spot begins about 39 minutes into the video, after Vice President Joe Biden). Video embedded with program listing at: Velinska, Ellie, "Radio and Television Correspondents Dinner 2010 (Video)" Archived 2010-12-23 at the Wayback Machine(), March 18, 2010, publication of March 17, 2010, performance. Also, Gavin, Patrick, "Team '12: Obama Girl, Alphacat" Archived 2012-02-16 at the Wayback Machine (archive), Politico, February 14, 2012.
  7. ^ a b Jenkins, Brad L. (March 6, 2014). "YouTube Stars Talk Health Care (and Make History) at the White House". whitehouse.gov. Washington, D.C. Archived from the original on April 4, 2022 – via National Archives.
  8. ^ a b Pham, Alex (August 1, 2013). "Maker Studio's Epic Rap Battles Scores RIAA Gold". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 6, 2013.
  9. ^ Reston, Maeve (December 12, 2013). "Round 2: Obamacare and Hollywood open new social media campaign". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 29, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  10. ^ Cohen, Joshua (March 2, 2014). "Obama Meets With YouTube Advisors On How To Reach Online Audiences". Tubefilter. Archived from the original on March 6, 2014.
  11. ^ "Along the Roadside Summary, Latest News, Trailer, Cast, Where to Watch and More". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2025-01-02.
  12. ^ Izundu, Onyinye (October 19, 2023). "6 Actors Who Have Portrayed President Barack Obama In A Movie". TVovermind. Archived from the original on October 21, 2023.
  13. ^ Albaciete, Alvin (February 15, 2016). "'Tere bin Laden: Dead or Alive' update: Iman Crosson plays US President Barack Obama". Movie News Guide. Archived from the original on February 15, 2016.
  14. ^ Rosen, Christopher (September 14, 2020). "Our Cartoon President Won't Just Mock Trump Through Election Day". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on September 27, 2020.
  15. ^ Netzley, Sara (1 April 2024). "NCIS recap: The truth is out there... Maybe". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 4 April 2024.
  16. ^ Johnson, Bailey, "President's bin Laden speech could have gone differently" (archive), CBS News, May 5, 2011.
  17. ^ Gutelle, Sam (October 19, 2012). "Annoying Orange Gets Political With 'Kitchen Decision 2012'". Tubefilter. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved December 12, 2013.
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