G-Eazy Talks Cannabis, Smoking With His Mom, 'Conceptual Wellness' And His New Brand, FlowerShop*

“My relationship with cannabis has changed a lot over the years, as has the flower itself, as well as its perception in pop culture and in society as a whole. The industry has also changed a lot, same as the science behind the plant,” declares rapper G-Eazy (born Gerald Earl Gillum) during an exclusive interview.

As a teen, Gerald conceived cannabis as a drug, a fun, rebellious thing to do and nothing else. Still, he loved the “alien, wonderful” feeling he got from consuming it since day one.

Notwithstanding, G would remain in the proverbial cannabis closet for years. He didn’t want his mother to find out he was smoking weed as a youngster.

“The irony was my mom had also been hiding it for me,” he quickly adds, laughing. “Obviously, later, I hit a point with my mom where we finally came clean to each other and we had a ceremonious smoking experience together, which was pretty awkward at the time. But now it's something we share; it’s a really positive thing. Cannabis can be a connector that brings people together.”

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Nowadays, G, who leads an extremely active lifestyle, uses cannabis to help him decompress and sleep. At the same time, he consumes marijuana to stimulate creativity in the studio.

Hitting Home

Isaac Muwaswes is the CEO of FlowerShop*, a cannabis and lifestyle brand he co-founded with G-Eazy and Gabriel García, after almost a decade of collaborating on other very successful projects in fashion and music.

FlowerShop's Co-Founders- Courtesy Photo

Chiming in on G’s story, Isaac explains the brand was born from a desire to help people connect with each other and their feelings.

“When it comes to certain scents and aromas, a lot of what we're trying to find relates to that connectivity. Whether it's music, whether it's cannabis, whether it's food, whether it's how things smell,” he voices.

“It's similar to breaking bread. It's similar to sharing any positive experience that becomes enhanced when experienced with other people,” G adds.

FlowerShop* is a “conceptual wellness” brand created to help the world feel better through something they call “Sensory~Care: a mood-and-sensory-based approach to self-care, care for others, and caring for the planet.” The brand includes a line of cannabis, botanical “air-care” – an all-natural 100% botanical version of aromatherapy, home goods and lifestyle products.

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“We're calling FlowerShop* a conceptual wellness brand,” explicates Isaac. “Wellness means something different to everyone. It's a very non-singular thing. So, for us, this idea of conceptual wellness really means finding your own definition of what wellness means to you… We want FlowerShop* to be a part of this journey, and how we get there by creating products and experiences (in a very kind of deliberate, intentional manner) that ultimately cater to your senses and optimize and inspire your mood.

“Wellness in itself is not just about dieting or restricting yourself. Sometimes wellness is going out and letting loose, being exuberant and over-the-top… Finding that balance within it all.

“We very much so wanted to build this from the start as an international brand that really spoke to a global audience… But you have to do that in a way that is not tone deaf and that is respectful of the culture that it's come from.”

Co-founder Gabriel García unsurprisingly agrees, despite growing up in a context where cannabis was demonized. For him, FlowerShop* is about creating products that people can integrate into their routines to make them better.

In his view, small details in life are very important to wellness, because one can’t spend every day on vacation: “From the things that you sleep on, to brushing your teeth… You could bring joy into your life by picking a better toothpaste or picking a cozier blanket or whatever it might be. All that makes a difference.”

Of course, music will also play a leading role in this project.

But, for G, it has to come from an authentic, organic place. Only that way is the message believable, the rapper argues.

“The music will naturally have opportunities to talk about FlowerShop*. However, when I can go back to touring all over the world, I will leverage this and use my free time to go do events at dispensaries or to meet different partners,” he assures.

See also: New Cannabis Products From Jay-Z's MONOGRAM, Caliva And Curaleaf's Select

Finally, there’s a retail component to it all. And it’s key.

The FlowerShop* team really wants to control the retail environment, creating a space “where you can inspire all five senses in one place,” Gabe declares. “So, thinking about retail and what it smells like, the visual of how we design it, the spacing and the experience there, what music is playing when you step into the shop, all the way through to how things feel and how you interact with them once you're in there. That is a lot of how our mind works.”

FlowerShop* and Halo Collective are working on three locations in Los Angeles, California, and the first dispensary will open by the end of 2021. In the meantime, the company will be doing pop-ups across local retailers they love as well as big chains; including Cookies, High Times, Barbary Coast, Harborside, and Sherbinskis — in addition to non cannabis retailers like Bodega in LA and UNKWN in Miami.

The brand's initial DTC delivery of their BOUQUETPACK sold out quickly on their own website - but fresh deliveries are dropping regularly across key retail partners in CA and their own site.

FlowerShop* products are now available in-stores at High Times and Barbary Coast in the San Francisco Bay Area and at the FlowerShop* online gift shop.

Horsin’ Around

Taking a detour from business topics, G-Eazy agreed to answer some pretty random questions relating to weed. 

- If you could share the first pre-roll out of a FlowerShop* with anyone in the world, dead or alive, who would that be?

G: My mom.

When she first opened up to me about how often and for how long she'd been smoking… Past the initial shock, I thought that was really a beautiful statement because she said it with such confidence that that was one of the initial things that helped me alter my perception of marijuana.

See also: This AirBnB-Type Company For Weed Lovers Focuses On Cannabis-Friendly Accommodations

She's an incredible woman, extremely intelligent. She's educated; she's our professor. Somebody who really understands high art and progressive thinking. And if somebody like this, who I hold in such high regard, has this perspective on flower…. That shifted my whole perception of it. My mom is one of my biggest heroes.

- And, defying all stereotypes about stoners being lazy, about stoners mothers being bad mothers, she raised you by herself too.

G: I had an incredible super mom who raised two boys pretty much on her own. She smoked daily and taught at two different schools; she would commute all the way down to Santa Cruz [from Oakland] to teach at one school and then commute into San Francisco to teach at another.

This article was originally published on Forbes and appears here with permission.

Encuentra nuestro contenido en Español en El Planteo:

• G-Eazy Habla de Marihuana, Fumar Porro con Mamá, Bienestar Conceptual y su Marca FlowerShop*
• HEMPresarios: México se Destacará en el Nuevo Modelo de Negocios de la Industria del Cannabis a Nivel Global