Celebrities usually invest some of their wealth in some kind of venture. When a person sits on an excess of capital, like millions of dollars, it is hard not to explore one’s passion projects. For some, that’s weed. One cannot count how many celebrities also own boutiques, restaurants, or clothing lines. But with the rising trend of marijuana legalization, celebrities are joining the weed game, too.
From accessories and paraphernalia to actual cannabis flower products, numerous celebrities are now becoming legal weed kingpins and farmers. Some of them are the ones we might expect, like Seth Rogen or Snoop Dogg, but some fans might be surprised to learn that The View host Whoopi Goldberg and comic actor Jim Belushi are also in on the business.
This list doesn’t even represent a fraction of the big names cashing in on cannabis, but it does represent a good cross-section and gives one an idea of how celebrities are profiting off pot.
10 Seth Rogen
Rogen already made a career out of weed thanks to his roles in stoner comedies, and his film Pineapple Express inspired several growers to name their grass after the film. But now he and Pineapple Express co-writer Evan Goldberg have some actual strains to their name under their brand Houseplant. The company operates out of Rogen’s native Canada and is available in 17 dispensaries in California.
9 Tommy Chong
It should come as no surprise that the king of stoner stand-up and one-half of the Cheech and Chong duo has gotten in on the weed industry. Chong has already been in the business of selling stoner paraphernalia, things like pipes and grinders, and his bong business even got him into legal trouble in the early 2000s. Today, Chong loans his name to several products that he and Cheech endorse from their social media accounts as well as his own brand of pre-rolled joints, vape cartridges, and topicals called Tommy Chong’s Choice.
8 Whoopi Goldberg
The Emmy and Oscar-winning comedian launched a CBD company a few years ago but it was forced to close shop in 2020. However, in 2021, she is taking a second swing at the game with a company titled “Emma & Clyde”. Her previous business mostly focused on topicals for women, but now she is branching into flowers and edibles as well. Goldberg was also on the cover of the recently launched Black Cannabis Magazine.
7 Montel Williams
Former talk show host Montel Williams began using medical marijuana to treat his chronic pains and other illnesses years before the "green rush" began. Montel has been a vocal supporter of cannabis and its legalization since the conclusion of his talk show. He has since begun a cannabis company called Lentivlabs.
6 Jim Belushi
The former SNL star and comic actor is now operating “Belushi Farms” on a stretch of land he purchased in southern Oregon. His company's products are available in that state, Colorado, and Illinois. Apparently, Belushi is taking his new job very seriously, and he is working hands-on in his growing operation. He feels an attachment to the plant because it could have saved his brother, the late John Belushi’s life. Jim claims that had John Belushi used cannabis to lessen the symptoms of withdrawal, he could have weened himself off the hard drugs that ended up killing him so brutally.
5 Method Man
The Wu-Tang Clan alumni’s cannabis company is called Tical, which was also the title of his debut solo album. He debuted 4 strains in California dispensaries in 2020. It is now available across the whole state.
4 Carlos Santana
The guitarist's cannabis company Mirayo does things a little differently than most others. Instead of organizing their strains along with the traditional categories, which are Sativa, Indica, and hybrid, he orders them in a more metaphysical manner, Radiance, Centered, and Symmetry. The company sells pre-rolls and jars of flower cannabis. It is no surprise that a Woodstock survivor would be in on the business of altered states of consciousness.
3 The Game
The rapper’s Trees By Game not only produces high-grade cannabis flowers, but also clothes, trays, blunt wraps, and rolling equipment. His company apparently raked in $1 million in profits in 2020. Along with his top-shelf product, he also sells packages of lower grade pre-ground stuff that is meant for blunt rolling specifically.
2 Snoop Dogg
No one is shocked that Snoop Dogg, the world’s most famous pothead, is cashing in on cannabis. In many ways, he already has for his entire career. Leafs by Snoop is growing in popularity and the rapper's Media Firm, Merry Jane now has a CBD e-commerce platform. It seems the gangsta rapper of the 1990s is now quite the glassy-eyed businessman.
1 B-Real
The rapper and member of Cypress Hill is one who is synonymous with cannabis, along with Snoop and Seth Rogen. Most of Cypress Hill’s music was about toking up, and their most famous album Black Sunday is practically nothing but a call for legalization. Dr. Greenthumb, named after the Cypress Hill song of the same name and launched in 2018, is available in eight dispensaries in California. He has also begun to sell reusable glass tips for joint smoking, Phuncky Feel Tips.