Berner (rapper)

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Berner
Gilbert Anthony (Berner) Milam Jr.jpg
Berner in 2019
Background information
Birth nameGilbert Anthony Milam Jr.
Born (1983-10-27) October 27, 1983 (age 41) [1] [2]
San Francisco, California, U.S. [3]
Genres Hip hop
Occupations
  • Rapper
  • songwriter
  • entrepreneur
Years active2007–present
Labels
Children2
Website cookies.co
cookiessf.com

Gilbert Anthony Milam Jr. (born October 27, 1983), better known by his stage name Berner, is an American rapper and entrepreneur. As of 2024, he has released 22 solo albums, beginning with Dirty Sneakers... Plenty Ways to Get It (2007), and 29 collaborative projects, beginning with Track Money & Pack Money (2007) with fellow California rapper Equipto. He signed with Wiz Khalifa's Taylor Gang Entertainment in March 2018.

Contents

Four of his solo releases—the extended play 20 Lights (2015), and the albums Hempire (2016), Gotti (2021), and From Seed to Sale (2022)—have entered the Billboard 200, the latter peaked at number 20. [4] As an entrepreneur, he founded the cannabis brand Cookies in 2015; initially based in San Francisco, it has since expanded to service cannabis and clothing products internationally. [5] [6]

Early life

A Sunset District native, Berner attended Galileo Academy of Science and Technology before dropping out. His mother was an office worker and his father was a chef at a Mexican restaurant on Fillmore Street. [7] When Berner was 13, the family moved to Arizona, where his father planned to open a restaurant. During high school, Berner began battle rapping and in 2006 he released his first mixtape, Dirty Sneakers...Plenty Ways to Get It. [7]

Musical career

After forming his own label, Bern One Entertainment in 2007, Berner released his debut album, Track Money & Pack Money, with Equipto. His first solo album, Weekend at Bernie's arrived in 2009, along with four other albums. [8]

In March 2012, Berner signed to Wiz Khalifa's Taylor Gang Records. Urban Farmer, Berner's first collection to be released on Taylor Gang Records, was released on October 2, 2012. In 2013, Berner performed on the "Under the Influence of Music Tour" alongside Khalifa, A$AP Rocky, Trinidad Jame$ and Joey Bada$$. In 2015, Berner released Contraband, a collaborative album with Cam'ron, as well as Drought Season 3 with deceased rapper The Jacka. In 2016, Berner released the solo album Hempire , also producing a 4/20 show at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium with a lineup that included Cypress Hill, Juicy J, Dizzy Wright, J Boog, Kool John, and Berner. [8] [9]

Urban Farmer, another of Berner's albums, features Iamsu! from The HBK Gang on two tracks; and the Jacka, Rydah J. Klyde and San Quinn on 21 Gunz. [10]

Berner's single, 20 Lights reached number 95 on the Billboard 200 chart. It was released on January 6, 2015. "Best Thang Smokin" is the lead single in Berner's album Hempire, released April 1, 2016. [11]

On May 4, 2019, he released the album El Chivo.

Cookies cannabis brand

Berner began working in the cannabis industry at age 18 at a San Francisco dispensary named The Hemp Center. [12] In the early 2000s he befriended a cultivator named Jai Chang (a.k.a. "Jigga"), who developed a strain of cannabis that he named "Girl Scout Cookies". [13] Berner and Chang began selling various strains that Chang developed to dispensaries, including Girl Scout Cookies. [13] After the Girl Scouts of the USA sent a cease and desist letter, they named their brand simply "Cookies". [13] Berner was also selling the strains to friends, including rapper Wiz Khalifa whom he met in 2010. [12] [13] Khalifa soon began mentioning Cookies in his rap songs, while Berner wore clothing bearing a Cookies logo in music videos that he appeared in. [12] [14] Berner went on to develop a line of Cookies clothing wear and opened the first Cookies clothing store in San Francisco in 2015. [15] He also began opening Cookies dispensaries, with the first appearing in Los Angeles in 2018, [16] followed by the first on the East Coast opening in 2021. [17] Using a business model similar to franchising, [16] Cookies expanded to a total of 49 dispensaries by June 2022 to go along with "Cookies SF" clothing stores in San Francisco and Los Angeles. [14] A third clothing store also serving as a "Cookies University" was opened in Manhattan in October 2022, but was later repurposed into a dispensary. [18] [19]

In August 2022, Berner was the first cannabis executive to be featured on the cover of Forbes magazine since it launched in 1917. [20] Forbes conservatively estimated the Cookies brand to be worth $150 million. [13]

By January 2024, Cookies had expanded to 70 dispensaries across the U.S., Canada, Israel, and Thailand, according to a profile of Berner in The New York Times Magazine . [16]

Personal life

Berner was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer in 2021, [6] but it went into remission after chemotherapy. [21]

He has a daughter and a son born in 2023. [6]

Discography

Solo albums

Collaboration albums

Compilations

Singles

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Hempire is the fourth solo full-length studio album by American rapper Berner. It was released on April 15, 2016 via Bern One Entertainment. Production was handled by several record producers, including Drumma Boy, Max Perry, Scoop DeVille and TM88. It features guest appearances from Wiz Khalifa, B-Real, Atmosphere, Mistah F.A.B., Cozmo, Freeze, Hollywood, Juicy J, K Camp, Lil' Kim, Maejor, Project Pat, Quez, Smiggz, Snoop Dogg, Strap and Young Dolph. The album peaked at number 54 on the Billboard 200.

<i>20 Lights</i> 2015 EP by Berner

20 Lights is the first solo extended play by American rapper Berner. It was released on January 6, 2015 via Bern One Entertainment. Production was handled by Cheeze, Cozmo, Ricky P, Sean T, Sledgren, The Elevaterz and Max Perry. It features guest appearances from Ampichino, Curren$y, Mac Dre, Migos, Smiggz, The Jacka and Wiz Khalifa. The album peaked at number 95 on the Billboard 200. Music video for "OT" was directed by David Camarena.

<i>From Seed to Sale</i> 2022 studio album by Berner

From Seed to $ale is a solo album by American rapper Berner. It was released on October 27, 2022, via Bern One Entertainment/Empire. It features guest appearances from Cozmo, Seddy Hendrinx, CJ Washington, Hollywood, JMSN, Mozzy, The Jacka and Wiz Khalifa. The album peaked at number 20 on the Billboard 200.

References

  1. ↑ "About Us". cookies.co. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  2. ↑ Bowers, Tom (February 1, 2022). "Berner the Business, Man". Leaf Nation. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  3. ↑ "The Birth Of Gilbert Milam". californiabirthindex.org. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  4. ↑ Chapman, Wilson (June 29, 2022). "Rapper Berner Joins Cast of Indie Thriller 'The Low End Theory,' Will Compose Soundtrack". Variety . Retrieved July 1, 2022.
  5. ↑ Hasse, Javier (October 16, 2018). "Rapper Berner Talks Cannabis Business Ventures, Shares Advice For Entrepreneurs". Yahoo Finance. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 Wong, Claudine (September 14, 2022). "Berner, Cookies founder, makes it big as Latino cannabis trailblazer". KTVU. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  7. 1 2 Harmon, Steve (June 17, 2016). "How Do You Spell Hip Hop Entrepreneur? Berner". Huffington Post. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
  8. 1 2 3 Berner at AllMusic . Retrieved March 18, 2016.
  9. ↑ Quitzon, Kimberly. "Recap: Berner Presents Hippie Hill 2016". LA Music Blog. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
  10. ↑ Meline, Gabe. "Berner, the Rapper King of Girl Scout Cookies, Plays Tonight". SFWeekly. Retrieved March 22, 2016.
  11. ↑ Mench, Chris. "Berner, Snoop Dogg, and Wiz Khalifa Burn One in Their Video for "Best Thang Smokin"". Complex. Retrieved March 22, 2016.
  12. 1 2 3 Roberts, Chris (February 2, 2016). "Million Dollar Cookie: How Berner Built a Business Empire on Marijuana". SF Weekly. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 Yakowicz, Will (August 2, 2022). "Weed vs. Greed: How America Botched Legalizing Pot". Forbes. Archived from the original on October 13, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  14. 1 2 Gilbert, Ben (June 8, 2022). "The story of Cookies: How a former Wendy's employee turned a popular weed strain with a controversial name into a $1 billion empire". Business Insider. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  15. ↑ Palmer, Tamara (May 18, 2015). "Bay Area Rapper and Weed Entrepreneur Berner Opens Haight Street Clothing Store". KNTV. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  16. 1 2 3 Marcus, Ezra (January 30, 2024). "How Do You Make a Weed Empire? Sell It Like Streetwear". The New York Times Magazine. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  17. ↑ Hanson, Melissa (August 26, 2021). "Massachusetts becoming home to first Cookies cannabis dispensary on East Coast at site of Worcester's New Dia retail store". MassLive. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  18. ↑ Wolfer, Macey (November 2, 2022). "Snapshots from historic Cookies SF opening in New York's Herald Square". MJBI. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  19. ↑ Roberts, Chris (February 2, 2024). "New York lawsuit claims Cookies broke exclusive marijuana licensing deal". MJBizDaily. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  20. ↑ Eustice, Kyle (August 3, 2022). "Berner Makes History As First Cannabis CEO To Cover 'Forbes': 'The Definition Of Life Goal Shit!'". HipHopDX. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
  21. ↑ Kudialis, Chris (December 24, 2022). "Berner on Fire: Cookies & Dough". Cannabis Now. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  22. 1 2 "Berner 20 Lights (EP) Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  23. ↑ "Berner - From Seed To Sale". Apple Music . Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  24. ↑ @billboardcharts (November 7, 2022). "Debuts on this week's #Billboard200 (1/3)..." (Tweet). Retrieved November 8, 2022– via Twitter.
  25. ↑ Berner discography at Discogs OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  26. ↑ "Berner & Cozmo – Respect the Connect". Itunes.apple.com. December 16, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  27. ↑ "Berner & Tunde – They Land Better In Manchester – EP". Itunes.apple.com. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
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