Decades after Bob's passing in 1981, his family announces they are debuting the first global cannabis brand with marijuana products under the name of Marley Natural in late 2015.
- Nov 19, 2014
AceShowbiz - Bob Marley will be the face of what's being called "first global brand of marijuana." His family and a Seattle-based private equity firm announced on Tuesday, November 18 on NBC's "Today" the creation of Marley Natural, "a premium cannabis brand rooted in the life and legacy of one of marijuana's most devoted sons."
Marley Natural will include pot-infused creams, accessories (like vaporizers in the style of e-cigarettes) and strains of "heirloom Jamaican cannabis," inspired by the herb that Bob liked to smoke. The line is designed to be sold like "a modern consumer product, cleanly packaged and marketed with the help of the same agency that branded New Balance and Starbucks Coffee."
The cannabis itself will be sold as "loose packed" buds, oils or concentrate, so the consumer will have to roll the joints themselves. Sales of Marley Natural won't start until late 2015.
CEO of Privateer Holdings Brendan Kennedy, who owns Marley Natural, said, "This is what the end of prohibition looks like. Bob Marley started to push for legalization more than 50 years ago. We're going to help him finish it."
This is Bob's family first move into marijuana. They previously have licensed brands of coffee, audio equipment and other goods, including "king-sized" rolling papers and shirts which say "Smoke Like a Marley."
Bob's daughter Cedella said, "It just seems natural that Daddy should be part of this conversation. As Daddy would say, 'make way for the positive day.' " Her brother Rohan added, "Herb is for the healing of the nation; herb is for the meditation; herb is for the higher vibrations."
Bob's wife Rita said her late husband would have been happy to see the launch of Marley Natural. "You can depend on Bob, too. He's 100 percent behind what is happening. He's happy because this is what we dreamed of," she said, referring to a legal regulated market for marijuana. "It was unruly for them to call it weed or drugs. We saw it as a spiritual thing, given to us by God."
