Green Rush Podcast: Jim Belushi Digs Deep As a Budding Cannabis Entrepreneur

Jim Belushi, actor, musician, comedian, all around entertainer as well as cannabis entrepreneur and the founder of Belushi’s Farms is this week’s special guest on the Green Rush!

Jim has long been a household name due to his distinguished acting career but he’s also incredibly active in the cannabis community with a nearly 100 acre farm in the heart of Oregon’s beautiful banana belt, he is out there getting his hands dirty and producing some of the most-talked about cannabis in the state. With brands like Captain Jack, The Blues Brothers and Good Ugly Weed and Belushi’s Secret Stash, Jim Belushi’s cannabis products are quickly becoming the most talked about product line across the state.

Jim was gracious enough to sit down with our host Anne Donohoe and guest host Phil Carlson to talk about his cannabis journey and venture into becoming a cannpreneur. In the discussion, Jim dishes on the role cannabis plays in his life, his work with important advocacy organizations like the Last Prisoner Project and why he loves getting into the dirt and actually taking part in the growing of his own plants.

This episode was a real treat and something that we hope all of our listeners can enjoy - we sure did!

So don’t sit back, lean forward and enjoy! 

Jim Belushi, Hollywood Star and Cannabis Entrepreneur

It’s been 12 years since Jim first came to Oregon’s Rogue Valley where his dear friend John has a sprawling property along the Rogue River, one town over in Shady Cove. Their children are the same age and attended classes together in California, so the families gathered for many activities over the years. With Jim’s own family’s experience and numerous others marred by opioids and the stigmatization of cannabis, Jim was incredibly grateful to have been led to the Rogue River where he first envisioned Belushi’s Farm and his own part in the agricultural and healing gift of cannabis.

A proud Chicagoan, Jim graduated from Southern Illinois University with a degree in Speech, Education and Theatre before moving on to become a resident member of Chicago's famed Second City for three years. In 1979, he left for Los Angeles, where he was cast on TV, launching his career as a performer. In addition to starring in a diverse and remarkable list of television and film— movies from Trading Places to Wonder Wheel, working with famed directors like Oliver Stone, Roman Polanski, David Lynch and Michael Mann—Jim wrote and appeared in Saturday Night Live for two seasons. He’s also served as an executive producer, music composer, director, book author, and Broadway star. His own television show According to Jim aired for 182 episodes during eight seasons before the family favorite launched into off-net syndication in 2007.

Locally, Jim is actively engaged in several projects benefiting the communities surrounding Belushi’s Farm in Jackson County, Oregon. In Medford, Jim is helping reconstruct the historic Holly Theater to bring the 1930s Spanish Colonial movie palace back to life as Southern Oregon's largest indoor concert venue. In Eagle Point, Jim’s assisting with the reconstruction of The Butte Creek Mill, destroyed in a 2016 electrical fire, to preserve its heritage, build community, and improve the environment. In Los Angeles, Jim’s a benefactor of the Greater Los Angeles Veterans Administration, and Stuart House, a program of the Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center Rape Treatment Center. Jim’s also a supporter of The Joyful Heart Foundation in New York City, whose mission is transforming society’s response to sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse, supporting survivors’ healing and ending the violence forever.