At the same time, the world of cannabis celebrity endorsements can seem like a season of Celebrity Big Brother – some big names, some faces you remember, and a lot of people who probably didn’t need to ask for time off from work to shoot the episodes.
Cannabis celebrity brands more or less fall into two main categories.
Then there are cannabis brands that are much more like simple endorsements.
News of a celebrity’s involvement in a cannabis company results in instant headlines and in some cases, the first national media coverage of a cannabis brand.
This is no small thing considering the advertising restrictions in place for cannabis across the United States.
A celebrity endorsement or partnership can potentially open doors to consumers who may not be familiar with the cannabis world.
A high profile celebrity partnership can be a way to capture some of the celebrity’s image and public persona in a bottle , helping instantly forge an identity for the brand.
When it comes to Seth Rogen’s cannabis company, you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who doubts that the comedian, actor, and eternal weed champion is fully invested in the company on a strategic, personal, and emotional level.
Tell your friends, Jim Belushi has the gas! If you didn’t already know that actor Jim Belushi was in the cannabis business, one tweet of some frosty cannabis flower in February, 2021 made it clear that he’s all in on weed.
The farm also appears to be part of Belushi’s support for cannabis as an alternative to harder drugs like those that killed his big brother, comedy legend John Belusi.
Snoop’s first legal venture in cannabis was the 2015 launch of Leafs by Snoop in collaboration with Canopy Growth.
Like Snoop, Willie Nelson already deserved a lifetime cannabis achievement award without ever having to enter the legal weed industry.
Cannabis has been a way of life for Willie for decades.
Berner, aka Gilbert Milam Jr., has performed and recorded with fellow Bay Area big names like Larry June and G Eazy, as well as rappers like Wiz Khalifa, Cam’ron, Young Dolph, and A$AP Rocky.
Cookies have become a force of nature because of the quality of the iconic strains they gave the world – like Girl Scout Cookies and Gelato – but also because of the image and vibe that the brand puts forward.
For decades, cannabis was strictly banned by every major North American sports league.
In keeping with this forward thinking approach, a number of current and future hall of fame NBA players have announced that they are joining the legal cannabis industry.
Two-time finals MVP, 4 time scoring champion and future first ballot hall of famer KD brings to the world of cannabis the clout of arguably the NBA’s greatest current player, and one who will someday retire as one of the greatest to ever play the game – or to use Twitter.
KD told ESPN, “I think it’s far past time to address the stigmas around cannabis that still exist in the sports world as well as globally,” Durant told ESPN.
NBA hall of fame, Detroit native, and “Fab Five ” legend Chris Webber announced in late September his plans to open a $175 million “cannabis compound” in the Motor City, to be known as the Webber Wellness Compound.
The move came less than two years after Drake and Canopy Growth announced that they had joined forces to sell recreational cannabis and accessories in Canada and overseas, as part of a joint venture called More Life Growth Company.
But this admiration for the plant did not spell success for “Whoopi & Maya,” a company that makes wellness products for women, specifically THC and CBD topicals and tinctures.
But while Drizzy and Whoopis’ hearts may have been in the right place, celebrity cannabis brands can rub a lot of people the wrong way.