www.inverse.com
by: Ethan Jacobs
Willie’s Reserve by Willie Nelson
Although he is a total anomaly in comparison to the other artists on this list, Willie Nelson, the Texas-born, 82-year-old country star whose career has been colored by his strong advocacy for marijuana legalization and consumption, is in charge of his own brand of weed products called Willie’s Reserve. Marketed as a “connoisseur brand” with an emphasis on freedom and an all-encompassing love for music, Willie’s Reserve is a collection of Nelson’s favorite, most delectable strains of weed sold in “Colorado, Washington, and everywhere voters say yes.”
Artists in rap and hip-hop have been embarking on entrepreneurial endeavors to supplement their public images for a long time. Shoe brands, clothing lines, fragrances, books, alcoholic drinks and several other kinds of business partnerships have arisen out of these efforts to strengthen a personal brand and broaden an artist’s reach. For an artist, branching out into the business world, when their musical influence is already felt and burgeoning, can be an effective way to assert influence in any given cultural moment. Lately, we’ve been seeing a lot more of one specific kind of business venture, one that has to do with everyone’s favorite thing: weed.
As the social climate surrounding weed consumption becomes increasingly relaxed, more people seem to be consuming cannabis products in general. Some state governments have moved forward with weed legalization and others have introduced medical marijuana and decriminalized its use. As a result, people aren’t only indulging more freely but they’re also looking for new ways to get high. That’s why innovative cannabis products like weed-infused beverages, delicious new edibles, and luxurious vaporizers have been popping up all over. (For example, the state of Colorado made around $125 mil in tax revenues, triple the 2014 total). When you apply this gradual yet apparent change in attitudes surrounding the dankness to artists in the rap, hip-hop, and EDM industries — three genres of music that often glorify weed smoking —- it follows that artists within these genres are aiming their entrepreneurial endeavors at the people who are consuming that good good.
We’ve arrived at a special time in pop culture where there’s a plethora of artist-endorsed options flooding the market. To help you out a bit, we’ve rounded up all your favorite celebrity-curated weed products and brands.
On the official website for Leafs by Snoop, a brief note from the Dogg himself states: “Wherever my musical journey has taken me around the world, it’s beautiful to see how chronic leafs are a common source of peace, love, and soul that connects us all. Let’s medicate, elevate, and put it in the air!” Unfortunately, the Leafs by Snoop products are only available in Colorado, where recreational marijuana use is legal.