Afroman Arrested For Punching Female Fan On Stage

The rapper was performing in Biloxi, Mississippi Tuesday night when witnesses say the woman got on stage and approached Afroman -- and then suddenly, without warning ... he turned and landed a right-handed haymaker to her face.

The woman went down hard -- and even though she was bleeding and crying ... we're told Afroman kept on performing until the house lights came on and the music stopped.

Afroman's rep says the rapper had no idea if the fan was a man or a woman -- he just reacted to someone being on stage. The rep claims there was also a lack of security at the venue to keep fans off the stage.

The rep added this is totally out of character for Afroman.

Security helped the woman off the stage -- while cops took Afroman. Witnesses say he was handcuffed outside the venue.

TMZ