Advocacy in the cannabis world has helped progress the movement forward to what it is now. Thanks to advocates and activists, we’ve reached a point where cannabis is legal medically and recreationally in most of the U.S. As most may know, Willie Nelson is an American country musician. Additionally, he’s also an actor and an activist. For his fans, Nelson’s activism isn’t something surprising. In fact, Willie Nelson is often very vocal about issues he deems important. One of them happens to be the narrative around marijuana. Throughout the years, Willie Nelson has been an advocate for the benefits of marijuana. His efforts have not gone unnoticed. As a result, Willie Nelson receives Cannabis Award 2021.
Willie Nelson’s advocacy for marijuana and involvement in the cannabis industry earned him this award. Moreover, he’s not the only individual who received this award.
Willie Nelson Receives Cannabis Award 2021
This isn’t the first award Willie Nelson has ever received. He’s been awarded achievements from the Recording Academy and the Country Music Association. Additionally, he’s been added to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1993. That being said, Nelson is no stranger to high praise. It’s honestly not surprising that a talented artist like Nelson would have such achievements under his belt.
Now, to acknowledge his advocacy efforts in the name of cannabis, Nelson received the Clio Cannabis Lifetime Achievement Award in 2021. For years, Nelson argued that the dangers of marijuana were exaggerated to induce fear, while the benefits were rarely mentioned. These types of benefits are medicinal and aid people’s wellness. For example, cannabis and its anti-inflammatory properties can be extremely helpful to chronic pain patients and even veterans. Moreover, he’s recorded songs about his love for weed.
In 2012, he recorded “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die” with Snoop Dogg, Kris Kristofferson, and Jamey Johnson. In 2015, his song “It’s All Going to Pot” reached number 48 on the Hot Country Songs.
His decade-long reputation for advocating the healing properties of cannabis was a significant force in changing the narrative around weed. What was once seen as a dangerous gateway drug, slowly began entering mainstream conversations and wellness spaces. Eventually, Willie Nelson even created his own line of cannabis wellness products.
Willie’s Reserve and Willie’s Remedy is Willie Nelson’s own line of marijuana and hemp-based wellness products. Willie’s Remedy includes hemp-infused coffee, hemp oil tinctures, and hemp-infused tea, and soothing balm. Willie’s Reserve carries pre-rolls, live resin, flower, and vape products.
What’s the Clio Cannabis Lifetime Achievement Award?
The Clio Cannabis Awards comes from the Clio Awards. Founded in 1959, the Clio Awards is an esteem international awards competition for creative businesses. They’re dedicated to celebrating the bold work that propels the advertising industry forward. Similarly, Clio Awards hopes to inspire a competitive marketplace and foster connections within the creative community. They honor the work and talent of a variety of specialized industries. These include sports, fashion, music, entertainment, health, and cannabis.
As such, the Clio Cannabis Awards celebrates the creators at the forefront of cannabis marketing and communications. This branch was launched back in 2019. Clio Cannabis sets the standard for creative work in the rapidly growing cannabis industry.
Other Winners of Clio Cannabis Award 2021
Willie Nelson is not the only person being recognized for his advocacy work in the name of cannabis. Additional honorees include Ophelia Chong, Mary Pryor, and Fab 5 Freddy.
Ophelia Chong is the founder of Stock Pot Images and Asian Americans for Cannabis Education (AACE). Through these organizations, Chong is helping to shape the narrative around the legalization of cannabis and psilocybin, as well as the advocacy for it.
Mary Pryor is the co-founder of Cannaclusive. Pryor and Cannaclusive are focused on inclusive marketing, business advocacy, and facilitating fair representation of minority cannabis consumers. Both her and Chong will receive 2021 Clio Cannabis impact awards.
Fab 5 Freddy is an American filmmaker, visual artist, and hip-hop pioneer. Fab 5 Freddy will be recognized with the 2021 Clio Cannabis honorary award for his work on the 2019 Netflix documentary Grass is Greener. This documentary focuses on the United States’ complicated relationship with cannabis that is rooted in racial injustice. Fab 5 Freddy narrates this documentary and features stars like Snoop Dogg and Darryl “DMC” McDaniels and more.
It provided the public with insight on cannabis prohibition that they may have not had before. Similarly, Fab 5 Freddy has been committed to giving opportunities to those who have been imprisoned for cannabis the chance to thrive in the industry. Fab 5 Freddy will be recognized with the 2021 Clio Cannabis honorary award for his work.
