George Clinton, the visionary bandleader behind Parliament-Funkadelic and a pioneer of psychedelic funk, has spent six decades reshaping the boundaries of music, culture and consciousness. At 83, he entered an industry he’s long championed from the sidelines: cannabis.
Clinton recently launched The Funk, a new cannabis brand created in partnership with Wiz Khalifa’s Khalifa Kush, at a time when the U.S. market is projected to generate over $35.3 billion in legal sales in 2025. The product debuted at Planet 13, the 112,000-square-foot Las Vegas dispensary that has become a launchpad for celebrity brands and immersive cannabis experiences.
And while dozens of entertainers have entered the space in recent years, Clinton arrives with a different kind of credibility. His relationship with cannabis dates back to the early 1960s–long before legalization–and has been inseparable from his music, worldview and public identity.
“When you sit down, put on something funky and get your head right, you should think of The Funk.”
— George Clinton
A Lifetime With The Plant
Clinton’s history with cannabis began in the days of Acapulco Gold and unregulated Northern California grows. He said that in the 1960s it was about getting whatever you wanted. It was always about the mind. That part never changed.”
From doo-wop and Motown to the cosmic theatrics of Funkadelic, cannabis was a constant presence–not just a social lubricant but creative fuel. He said, “We were able to complete all of those albums because we stayed high.” It was part of the process. “It was part of the whole process.”
For Clinton it wasn’t an escape, but alignment. Musicians intuitively knew the power of the plant long before formal medical research. I heard about the medical aspect in the 1960s. “We knew about stress, anxiety and chilling out,” he said. “But America made much more money pretending that it was illegal than it did selling it.” He said, “They give you a drug to help you quit the first and then sell you more drugs.” “Cannabis could’ve handled a lot of it, if they’d just let it.”
The Funk: From Studio To Shelf
Building on that personal legacy, Clinton’s new line is more than a co-brand; it’s an extension of his artistic universe. “I wanted uncut Funk,” Clinton said. “The kind of stuff you light up and it tells you a story.”
The name nods to his lifelong mythology and to a track by his granddaughter–“Something Stank (And I Want Some)”–a generational echo tying scent and sound together. The packaging is based on his
John Flevog
shoe collection. Clinton credits his wife with pushing the project to completion: “She ensured we got it done.”Planet 13 where The Funk made its debut, struck him more than just a storefront. He said that it felt like the perfect place to launch. It’s almost like being on another planet, and being able to launch from there. According to , in California, infused joints account for over 66% of pre-roll sales. Jeeter, STIIIZY and other market leaders have turned infused prerolls into high volume, high margin products. Jeeter generated $26.7 million of California sales alone in one quarter. Clinton and Khalifa are betting that authenticity–and funk–can carve out space in a category that’s now the main event.
How The Collab Happened
Clinton and Wiz Khalifa already shared creative orbit–Khalifa even played Clinton in a Mothership-era film cameo. Clinton said that after tasting Khalifa kush, the taste and feeling brought him back to the ’60s and ’70s. He remembers thinking, “This is exactly what I am looking for.” From there, the families connected, the wives kept momentum, and RollPros and BDSA dataThe Funk
took shape with Clinton’s fingerprints on how it should hit–“bodywise, mentally and just for fun.”
Industry, Equity And American ContradictionsClinton isn’t trying to be a policy advocate–but he’s seen the contradictions up close. “I don’t want to try and convince anyone in Congress,” he said. They’ll know I like the product.”For Mr. Smith, legalization in America has always been more about economics than justice. Institutions which once penalized cannabis culture are now profiting from it, and the communities who built it continue to pursue equity. The
shows that Black Americans are nearly four times as likely to be arrested than white Americans for cannabis offenses, despite the fact that both groups use the drug at similar rates. The legal industry
is disproportionately male and white. “Cannabis is good,” he said. “They just finally figured out how to profit off of it without getting in trouble.”
Music, Memory And A Multi-Generational LegacyACLUClinton’s move into cannabis isn’t a pivot; it’s a continuation of the world he built. The weed was not a sidenote in Parliament’s space age funk or Funkadelic’s sermons of psychedelics. It was woven into the music. Clinton is touring with his grandchildren and children to celebrate 50 years of landmark records and pass the torch. The Funk reflects that handoff–its name inspired in part by his granddaughter’s song, its visuals echoing the cosmic mythos he minted.remainsMeanwhile, an Eddie Murphy-directed biopic is in the works. Clinton isn’t sure which scenes will be included in the film, but he has faith in the writer. “We were building characters people would want to talk about later.” First heard of “medical” marijuana:
In the 1960s, jazz musicians spoke about stress and anxiety. They talked about chilling out. We’d seen it.”
Joint anyone, dead or live?
Jimi Hendrix. It’s easier to make money by pretending to stop it than to sell it. “
Advice to young artists:
“Love what you’re working on and put in the work.”
Brand promise:
- It shows in the end.”Brand promise:
- “Uncut funk.”Built On Legacy, Not Hype
- Celebrity weed is everywhere; The Funk is rooted somewhere else. Clinton did not enter the market to gain trend points. He’s already been here. He’s not after politics or influence. He’s doing what he’s always done: building worlds you can step into.“Something’s stankin’–and they want some.”
- — George ClintonWith The Funk, he’s adding one more chapter to the mythology. This time, in smoke.
- This article originally appeared on in May, 2025, and was adapted and expanded for High Times based on the original interview.
Photo: Shutterstock
