EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Xzibit On Cannabis Branding And Emerging East Coast Markets, 'It's Not Like Alcohol'

Article by Nicolás José Rodríguez. Interview by Javier Hasse.

Xzibit, acclaimed rapper, actor, television presenter, and cannabis entrepreneur stopped by MJBiz Conference and talked to Benzinga exclusively about Napalm Brands, his cannabis company, and his future plans in the cannabis space.

Cultural Branding And Community-Building

"X" explained the team behind the brand is expanding Napalm. We're doing what we can to give back to the community. We've been working with a lot of people, working with expanding, and making a lot of great relationships happen.

In terms of how he sees the future of the industry, X said cannabis is nothing like mainstream industries such as alcohol or clothing. As a cultural enterprise, cannabis does not function on the sole basis of capital injection. According to this industry visionary, culture and knowledge are vital for community-building, solidifying brand recognition, and customer loyalty.

“It doesn't mean that it's going to be (...) a magic solution to all of our things that we're trying to build with this industry. So we're making a lot of leeways and a lot of headway when it comes to figuring out where cannabis lands. It's not like alcohol, it's not like clothing. It is based on a culture and you can't just throw money at it. And a lot of the people that are coming in from Big Pharma are going to learn that the hard way,” Xzibit said.

Excited About The East Coast

According to the rapper, by working in cannabis his team has been able to acquire “real insight” into what a cultural industry means.

“We remain willing to work with people who want to stabilize this, but is overtaxed. There are a lot of things that are happening in California that shouldn't be duplicated across the country, but everybody's kind of coming into their own,” Xzibit said.

“I'm excited about the emerging East Coast market. I'm excited about New York coming online. Some people are there already, but until they fix it and come up with a standardized regulation for cannabis, the legacy market is going to continue to thrive. It's not going to be a stable market for anyone and it's going to continue. But as you can see, this doesn't stop it from growing. You know, we're still here,” concluded the artist.