The trend of celebrities owning cannabis businesses is a recent phenomenon, sparked by the decriminalization of non-medical cannabis in the United States. [1] [2]
Below is a partial listing of celebrities who own commercial cannabis farms or other cannabis-related brands or businesses.
| Celebrity | Business | Notes | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Belushi | Belushi's Farm | American Actor Jim Belushi grows and farms his own weed. One of his signature brands is named Blues Brothers, in reference to his brothers famous movie role. | [3] |
| Snoop Dogg | Snoop Dogg G-Pen | Rapper Snoop Dogg released the electrical weed vaporizer G-Pen in a collaboration with Grenco Science in 2013. | [1] [4] |
| Creagen Dow | Poke A Bowl | The Big Bang Theory and Zoey 101 actor Creagen Dow owns a company that sells ashtrays that remove both ash and resin, designed by himself. | [5] |
| Melissa Etheridge | Etheridge Botanicals | Melissa Etheridge co-founded Etheridge Botanicals in 2021 to advocate and represent "wellness as a human right." | [6] |
| The Game | Trees by Game | Rapper The Game started his own cannabis company called Trees By Game after purchasing a cannabis dispensary called The Reserve in Santa Ana, California. | [7] |
| Jason Gann | Wilfred | Jason Gann launched Wilfred Cannabis in 2020. | [8] |
| Whoopi Goldberg | Whoopi & Maya | Actress Whoopi Goldberg started selling medical marijuana in 2016. The company shut down in 2020. | [9] |
| Rob Gronkowski | CBDMEDIC | Former NFL player Rob Gronkowski became a spokesperson for CBDMEDIC in 2019. | [10] |
| Woody Harrelson | The Woods | Woody Harrelson opened The Woods dispensary in West Hollywood in 2022. | [11] |
| Al Harrington | Viola Brands | NBA star Al Harrington was ahead of the curve with legal weed, founding Viola in 2011. | [12] |
| Mickey Hart | Mind Your Head | Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart started selling pre-rolls in 2019. | [13] |
| Jay-Z | Caliva | Rapper Jay-Z entered a partnership with California-based cannabis company Caliva in 2019. | [14] |
| Kourtney Kardashian | Hora x Poosh | Reality star Kourtney Kardashian started selling CBD-based face serum as an anti-aging solution in 2019. | [15] |
| Wiz Khalifa | Khalifa Kush | Khalifa launched Khalifa Kush in 2014. | [16] |
| John Legend | Plus Products Inc. | Singer John Legend started investing in a company that produces CBD products such as edible gummies in 2019. | [17] |
| Method Man | Tical | Method Man launched Tical to support black business. | [18] |
| Cheech Marin | Cheech's Stash | Marin got into the cannabis industry in 2018 with Cheech's Stash, introducing both marijuana and CBD products. | [19] |
| Shavo Odadjian | 22Red | In 2016, the bass player launched his licensed marijuana operation, 22Red. | [20] |
| Gwyneth Paltrow | Cann | Actress Gwyneth Paltrow's company Goop started investing in Cann, a cannabis-infused beverage maker, in 2020. | [2] |
| B-Real | Dr. Green thumb's | Dr. Greenthumb's is a cannabis retailer owned and founded by Cypress Hill rapper B-Real. The original location opened in August 2018 in Sylmar, California. | [21] |
| Carlos Santana | Mirayo | Carlos Santana joined the Cannabis industry in 2020, heavily linking his Mirayo by Santana brand to spirituality practices. | [22] |
| Martha Stewart | Martha Stewart CBD | Stewart released her line of CBD-products in collaboration with Canopy Growth Corporation and Marquee Brands in 2020. | [23] |
| Bella Thorne | Forbidden Flowers | Actress Bella Thorne launched her consumer cannabis and CBD brand in 2019. | [24] |
| Mike Tyson | Tyson Ranch | Heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson opened his 400-acre cannabis resort 2019. | [25] |
| David Crosby | Mighty Croz | David Crosby announces 'MIGHTY CROZ' Cannabis Is Coming! | [26] |
| Willie Nelson | Willie's Reserve | Willie Nelson endorses his own brand of Cannabis-based products sold in Colorado and Arizona. | [27] |
| Seth Rogen | Houseplant | Seth co-founded the company with Canadian screenwriter Evan Goldberg in 2021. | [28] |
| Lil Wayne | GKUA | In December 2019, Carter announced his own cannabis brand under the name of GKUA Ultra Premium. | [29] |
| Jaleel White | itsPurpl | Jaleel White launched the brand in collaboration with 710 Labs in 2021. | [30] |
| Ricky Williams | Highsman | Ricky Williams launched his sports-themed weed brand, Highsman, in late 2021. | [31] |
The legality of cannabis for medical and recreational use varies by country, in terms of its possession, distribution, and cultivation, and how it can be consumed and what medical conditions it can be used for. These policies in most countries are regulated by three United Nations treaties: the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and the 1988 Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. Cannabis was reclassified in 2020 to a Schedule I-only drug under the Single Convention treaty, with the schedules from strictest to least being IV, I, II, and III. As a Schedule I drug under the treaty, countries can allow the medical use of cannabis but it is considered to be an addictive drug with a serious risk of abuse.
Albert Harrington is an American former professional basketball player. Selected with the 25th overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft, Harrington played 16 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Indiana Pacers, Atlanta Hawks, Golden State Warriors, New York Knicks, Denver Nuggets, Orlando Magic and Washington Wizards. He also spent a short stint with the Fujian Sturgeons of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA).
Cannabis strains is a popular name to refer to plant varieties of the monospecific genus Cannabis sativa L.. They are either pure or hybrid varieties of the plant, which encompasses various sub-species C. sativa, C. indica, and C. ruderalis.
In the United States, cannabis is legal in 39 of 50 states for medical use and 24 states for recreational use. At the federal level, cannabis is classified as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, determined to have a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use, prohibiting its use for any purpose. Despite this prohibition, federal law is generally not enforced against the possession, cultivation, or intrastate distribution of cannabis in states where such activity has been legalized. Beginning in 2024, the Drug Enforcement Administration has initiated a review to potentially move cannabis to the less-restrictive Schedule III.
The legal history of cannabis in the United States began with state-level prohibition in the early 20th century, with the first major federal limitations occurring in 1937. Starting with Oregon in 1973, individual states began to liberalize cannabis laws through decriminalization. In 1996, California became the first state to legalize medical cannabis, sparking a trend that spread to a majority of states by 2016. In 2012, Washington and Colorado became the first states to legalize cannabis for recreational use.
Cannabis in Georgia is illegal for recreational use, but decriminalized in the cities of Atlanta, Savannah, Macon, Athens, and others. Limited medical use is allowed in the form of cannabis oil containing less than 5% THC.
Cannabis in Wisconsin is illegal for recreational use. Possession of any amount is punishable by up to 6 months in prison and a $1000 fine for a first offense. A second offense is punished as a felony with up to 3.5 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine. At the local level, however, numerous municipalities and counties have decriminalized cannabis or lessened penalties for minor possession offenses. Medical use is legal only in the form of low-THC cannabis oil.
Cannabis in Iowa is illegal for recreational use if classified as marijuana but consumable hemp products including CBD products are legal for consumers to possess and registered retailers to sell. Possession of even small amounts of marijuana is a misdemeanor crime. The state has a medical program for patients with qualifying debilitating medical conditions that allows for the legal sale and possession of no more than 4.5g of THC per patient every 90-day period. Allowed modes of consumption are oral and topical forms including, but not limited to; tablets and tinctures, nebulizable inhalable forms, suppositories, and vaporization.
Cannabis in Virginia is legal for medical use and recreational use. The first medical marijuana dispensary opened in August 2020, and adult recreational use became legalized in July 2021.
Cannabis in Texas is illegal for recreational use. Possession of up to two ounces is a class B misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days in prison and a fine of up to $2000. Several of the state's major municipalities have enacted reforms to apply lesser penalties or limit enforcement, however.
Cannabis in Missouri is legal for recreational use. A ballot initiative to legalize recreational use, Amendment 3, passed by a 53–47 margin on November 8, 2022. Possession for adults 21 and over became legal on December 8, 2022, with the first licensed sales occurring on February 3, 2023.
Cannabis in Mississippi is legal for medical use and illegal for non-medical use. Possession of small amounts was decriminalized in 1978.
Cannabis in New Jersey is legal for both medical use and recreational use. An amendment to the state constitution legalizing cannabis became effective on January 1, 2021, and enabling legislation and related bills were signed into law by governor Phil Murphy on February 22, 2021.
The possession, use, and distribution of cannabis without a license in the State of Israel are violations under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance. A decade ago, despite these regulations, enforcement was relatively lax, partially influenced by a political movement advocating tolerance. Over the years, the enforcement approach has progressively become more lenient. As of 2021, cannabis use has been fully decriminalized, with it being treated as an administrative infraction primarily when used in highly visible public places. There is a possibility that cannabis may be legalized for recreational use by adults aged 21 and older in the future, with regulations akin to those for alcohol. Public and cross-party political support for the complete decriminalization of cannabis increased in the 2010s with increasing usage for both medical and recreational purposes, and the establishment of a political party primarily devoted to this cause; on July 19, 2018, the Knesset approved a bill for decriminalization, although the supporters of recreational cannabis use insisted that this did not represent complete decriminalization. The law came into effect on April 1, 2019. On June 25, 2020, further legislation designed to decriminalize possession of up to 50 grams of cannabis began its passage through the Knesset.
Cannabis in Argentina is regulated by the Penal Code of Argentina, which prohibits its possession, cultivation, and supply, except for authorized medical purposes. Official statistics estimate that cannabis is used by 7.8% of Argentina's population.
The list includes and details significant events that occurred in the global history of national-level implementations of, or changes made to, laws surrounding the use, sale, or production of the psychoactive drug cannabis.
Leafs By Snoop is a cannabis brand owned and promoted by the rapper Snoop Dogg and produced by Canopy Growth Corporation.
Jane West is an American cannabis activist and CEO of the cannabis lifestyle brand Jane West. She is best known as the founder of cannabis networking organization Women Grow. In 2016, Inc. magazine named her “the most widely recognized female personality in cannabis,” and in 2019, InStyle magazine included her in its 2019 Badass 50 list highlighting women who are “changing the world.”
The use of cannabis by athletes has been banned by many sports commissions. However, some have relaxed their policies as societal attitudes towards its use have shifted. The prohibition "is one of the most controversial issues in anti-doping".
