Merry Jane (stylized MERRY JANE) is a

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternatively ...

-focused digital media platform launched by rapper

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

in 2015, with media entrepreneur Ted Chung. The site features editorial content on the business and politics of the

industry, original video series as well as a database for identifying

strains and dispensaries.

History

Merry Jane is backed by

's own capital venture firm Casa Verde Capital which has a history of investing in marijuana-based enterprise such as medical marijuana delivery service Eaze. Prior to launch, Snoop and co-founder Ted Chung curated

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...

dispensaries to appear on the platform, which now functions as a searchable database. Merry Jane launched on September 21, 2015 in invite-only beta, but is now a public platform.

Launch

launched Merry Jane at

TechCrunch TechCrunch is an American online newspaper focusing on high tech and startup companies. It was founded in June 2005 by Archimedes Ventures, led by partners Michael Arrington and Keith Teare. In 2010, AOL acquired the company for approximately ...

's 2015 Disrupt Conference held in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, alongside co-founder Ted Chung. Snoop was quoted as saying, "After watching where the cannabis industry is headed, I wanted to create a platform that will take this movement further." He also suggested that Merry Jane was there to normalize the conversation around

: “There are so many people in the closet. We are giving them an opportunity to come out of the closet and just admit they like to smoke."

Headlines

In January 2018, to celebrate the passage of Proposition 64, Merry Jane teamed up with

Jack in the Box Jack in the Box is an American fast-food restaurant chain founded February 21, 1951, by Robert O. Peterson (1916–1994) in San Diego, California, where it is headquartered. The chain has over 2,200 locations, primarily serving the West Coast ...

to promote the "Merry Munchie Meal" which included multiple fast food items for $ 4.20, a symbolic number in the marijuana community.

Activism

Merry Jane and its founders take an active stance on the legalization of

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Snoop Dogg at the DNC

Prior to founding Merry Jane,

was active in Colorado in the legal era, getting involved with the 2014 gubernatorial campaign. He also recorded a video message for the Centennial State ahead of the one-day pot tax holiday. In the summer of 2016, Merry Jane sponsored The High Road Tour; a 33 date tour throughout the

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

headlined by

Wiz Khalifa Cameron Jibril Thomaz (born September 8, 1987), better known by his stage name Wiz Khalifa, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor. He released his debut album, ''Show and Prove'', in 2006 and signed to Warner Bros. Records in 200 ...

, with support from

Kevin Gates Kevin Jerome Gilyard (born February 5, 1986), better known by his stage name Kevin Gates, is an American rapper, singer, and entrepreneur. He is currently signed to Bread Winners' Association with a partnership with Atlantic Records. His debut ...

Jhené Aiko Jhené Aiko Efuru Chilombo (; born March 16, 1988) is an American singer who embarked on her music career contributing vocals and appearing in several music videos for R&B group B2K. In an effort to promote Aiko and cultivate a following for he ...

Casey Veggies Casey Joseph Jones (born July 18, 1993), better known by his stage name Casey Veggies, is an American rapper and songwriter from Los Angeles, California. Since 2007, he has released five independent mixtapes under LA clothing and management comp ...

and

DJ Drama Tyree Cinque Simmons (born April 22, 1978), professionally known as DJ Drama, is an American DJ, record executive and music promoter. He is the co-founder (with Don Cannon) of Generation Now, an Atlantic Records imprint with artists including ...

. As part of the tour, Snoop closed the

2016 Democratic National Convention The 2016 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention, held at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 25 to 28, 2016. The convention gathered delegates of the Democratic Party, the majo ...

following

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

’s closing speech.

Merry Jane Wellness Retreat

Alongside Revolt, Merry Jane hosts an annual weed wellness retreat in Colorado, one of the most accepting marijuana states in the

. The hip-hop music festival occurs around 4/20 in multiple cities and aims to celebrate the legalization of cannabis and raise awareness of its potential benefits. The 2018 420 Wellness Retreat Tour was promoted four concerts across two days, Denver and Las Vegas on 4/20 and then Seattle and Eugene on 4/21.

Video content

Merry Jane is responsible for producing a number of video properties for television and other networks, as well as for its own platform.

''GGN''

Merry Jane produces

's ''Double G News Network'', an online talk show hosted by the rapper which was launched in 2011. GGN has hosted several high-profile celebrity guests including

Khloe Kardashian Chloe (; ), also spelled Chloë, Chlöe, or Chloé, is a feminine name meaning "blooming" or "fertility" in Greek. The name ultimately derives, through Greek, from the Proto-Indo-European root ', which relates to the colors yellow and green. T ...

Larry King Larry King (born Lawrence Harvey Zeiger; November 19, 1933 – January 23, 2021) was an American television and radio host, whose awards included 2 Peabodys The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program ...

Jimmy Kimmel James Christian Kimmel (born November 13, 1967) is an American television host, comedian, writer, and producer. He is the host and executive producer of ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'', a late-night talk show that premiered on ABC on January 26, 2003, ...

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...

Tony Hawk Anthony Frank Hawk (born May 12, 1968), nicknamed Birdman, is an American professional skateboarder, entrepreneur, and the owner of the skateboard company Birdhouse. A pioneer of modern vertical skateboarding, Hawk completed the first documen ...

and

DJ Khaled Khaled Mohammed Khaled (born November 26, 1975), known professionally as DJ Khaled, is an American DJ, record executive, record producer and rapper. Khaled first gained recognition as a radio host in the 1990s on the radio station WEDR, 99 Ja ...

''Martha & Snoop's Dinner Party''

Merry Jane executive produced ''Martha & Snoop's Dinner Party'' for VH1, an unscripted cooking series with

Martha Stewart Martha Helen Stewart (, ; born August 3, 1941) is an American retail businesswoman, writer, and television personality. As founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, she gained success through a variety of business ventures, encompassing pub ...

and

as well as celebrity guests. Stewart said in a statement: "''Martha & Snoop's Dinner Party'' will redesign the traditional food competition shows in a new, different and very funny way." The 10-episode weekly series is set to debut in the fall.

''Mary + Jane''

Merry Jane executive produced the

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

comedy series "Mary + Jane" which follows the lives of two women trying to get their

weed A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, "a plant in the wrong place", or a plant growing where it is not wanted.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. ...

delivery service up-and-running. The theme song is provided by

who also stars in the first season.

''Planet Snoop''

''Planet Snoop'' is an online nature documentary spoof narrated by

that is produced and hosted by Merry Jane. The series was inspired by a handful of segments Snoop filmed for

Jimmy Kimmel Live ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, broadcast on ABC. The nightly hour-long show debuted on January 26, 2003, at Hollywood Masonic Temple in Hollywood, California, as part of ABC's lea ...

called, "Plizzanet Earth," in which he reacted to clips from the hit BBC nature documentary

Planet Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surface ...

. The videos were so popular, a petition to have Snoop narrate an entire season of the show garnered 75,000 signatures, leading to the creation of ''Planet Snoop''.

''Rolling with Rogen''

Actor

Seth Rogen Seth Aaron Rogen (; born April 15, 1982) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian and filmmaker. Originally a stand-up comedian in Vancouver, he moved to Los Angeles for a part in Judd Apatow's series ''Freaks and Geeks'', and then got a part on ...

is a content partner of Merry Jane and has his own series in which he explains the basics of smoking

and offers advice on getting stoned.

''Deflowered''

''Deflowered'' is a series of interviews which explores users' first experiences with marijuana. The series has featured celebrities such as

Rick Ross William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper. Prior to releasing his debut single, "Hustlin'", in 2006, Ross was the subject of a bidding war, receiving offers from Sean Combs, D ...

, MixedByAli and gained particular notoriety for an interview with former NFL lineman

Eben Britton Eben Britton (born October 14, 1987) is a former American football offensive tackle who played six seasons in the National Football League (NFL). Selected 39th overall in the 2009 NFL Draft, he spent four years with the Jacksonville Jaguars fo ...

who used the platform to challenge the stigma the drug faces within the NFL. “The health risks linked to pharmaceutical drugs are well documented and players should have the option to choose a natural alternative for pain management,” he said. “It’s time to consider cannabis a legitimate medicine and remove the negative stigma.”

''About That Time''

About That Time was a livestream talk show hosted by Merry Jane Creative Director Noah Rubin. The show's format covered the latest in cannabis news, visually-driven social media stories, and an astrology segment. The show was shared through

's platforms as well as on Merry Jane's Instagram and Facebook Live. Notable guests include

Cheech Marin :''The surname'' Marin ''is of Spanish language origin. In Spanish, it is spelled'' Marín'', with an acute accent on the'' í. Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin (born July 13, 1946) is an American actor, musician, comedian, and activist who gained ...

Peter Dante Peter Francis Dante (born December 16, 1968) is an American character actor and comedian. He frequently appears in films from Happy Madison Productions alongside his friend Adam Sandler. Career Dante's roles are usually alongside Jonathan Loughr ...

Dawn Richard Dawn Angeliqué Richard (born August 5, 1983) is an American singer-songwriter. She started her career after auditioning for ''Making the Band 3'' in 2004. During this time, Richard became a member of girl band Danity Kane, from 2005 to 2009, a ...

YFN Lucci Rayshawn Lamar Bennett (born February 16, 1991), known professionally as YFN Lucci, is an American rapper and singer from Atlanta, Georgia. In 2014, he signed a record deal with Think It's A Game Entertainment and released his debut mixtape, ''Wi ...

, Savage Realm,

Andrew WK Andrew Fetterly Wilkes-Krier (born May 9, 1979), known professionally as Andrew W.K., is an American conceptual performance artist, rock singer, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and actor. Raised in Michigan, Wilkes-Krier began his mus ...

Lil Debbie Jordan Mary Capozzi (born February 2, 1990), better known by her stage name Lil Debbie, is an American rapper, model and fashion designer. Debbie started her career in 2011 as part of the now-defunct group The White Girl Mob, with rappers Kreaysh ...

and more.

Others

*''Fresh Out the Box'' *''Fork With Me'' *''Highly Productive'' *''Smoke in the Kitchen'' *''Wide World of Cannabis''

References

External links

* {{Snoop Dogg Mass media companies of the United States Youth culture in the United States Internet properties established in 2015 Cannabis media in the United States Cannabis websites Snoop Dogg