‘No one buys albums’: why pop stars are selling cannabis
From Jenny Lewis to Margo Price, pot is music’s new money-spinner. And it’s targeting women
Bid farewell to the merch stand mainstays of T-shirts and tote bags and say hello to pop’s latest money-spinner: weed. Noted musical marijuana enthusiasts Snoop Dogg, Willie Nelson and the Bob Marley family estate have been in the game since 2015 when medical cannabis was made legal in 33 states, but now that recreational use is allowed in 10 states (and the entirety of Canada since last year’s C-45 bill), the green-fingered merch market is booming. And its sights are set firmly on women, the industry’s biggest growth area, with the number of female consumers almost doubling during 2017 to make up 38% of the market, according to a report by cannabis delivery platform Eaze.
To appeal to this new fanbase, it’s out with the stoner-dude stereotype of marijuana and in with a new take on getting baked, meaning the kind of musicians you’d see on Pitchfork rather than High Times are now getting involved. “Many artists sell clothes or shoes, some sell wine and beer, others advertise for fast-food companies,” explains Third Man-signed country singer Margo Price, who has a strain named after her last album All American Made. “Me, I’m into selling a plant that God grows,” she says. Currently, Price’s product is only available on her merch table in California, but it’s proving popular. “From what I understand, it’s selling very well!” she says, and she’s hoping it will soon be available in other states, not least because it makes good business sense. “I think there’s more money to be made in the weed industry than selling records. No one buys albums any more – most people just stream them for free – but lots of people buy weed!”