Ever since Snoop Dogg blew up the hip hop/gangsta rap scene in the early 90s, he’s been well-known for being somewhat of a cannabis connoisseur. So it is no surprise that the world was shocked to see the rapper and entrepreneur’s statement last Thursday that he was giving up “smoke.” The statement read, “After much consideration & conversation with my family, I’ve decided to give up smoke. Please respect my privacy at this time.” This, of course, sent all of social media and the entertainment industry into a whirlwind.
Snoop neglected to clarify whether the smoke he was referencing meant cannabis or perhaps something else as he captioned the statement with a simple, “I’m giving up smoke.” Rumors swirled like smoke rings around the internet until now. Snoop has finally clarified the initial post with an announcement on Monday stating that he is partnering with the smokeless fire pit brand Solo Stove.
In a press release on Monday, Snoop said, “I love a good fire outside but the smoke was too much. Solo Stove fixed fire and took out the smoke. They changed the game and now I’m excited to spread the love and stay warm with my friends and family.” His latest partnership with Solo Stove makes the artist and business mogul the official “smokesman” for the brand. A collaboration available exclusively at solostove.com and goingsmokeless.com will be released at 4:20 p.m. EDT on Monday.
Referencing the original post, few users questioned the seriousness of Snoop’s statement. Under the Instagram post, actor Lamorne Morris wrote, “Define… smoke,” and user @ambie02 questioned Snoop, asking, “Is it April Fool’s Day?” In posts that followed, Snoop declined to clarify but referred to his vow to give up smoking. The rapper replied by posting a selfie a couple of hours after the original post. He captioned it with “Respect my privacy 💪🏾🙏🏾.” The post was followed by another selfie the next day in which the entrepreneur shared a gust of air emoji in the caption. The selfie the emoji accompanied was a rather blurry photo of the rapper looking off to the side.
Other commenters joined in on the buzz after the original post on Thursday. Notable names such as Maya Rudolph, Queen Latifah, and Jhene Aiko also chimed in. Aiko wrote, “You got this Unc!!” to voice his support. Venezuelan rapper and singer also commented on the original post, saying, “Not smoking is the new smoking.” Perhaps one aspect of the initial announcement that confused so many was that it came mere hours after launching “Best Buds Bags,” a product championed by Snoop in collaboration with Martha Stewart.
The limited “Best Buds Bags” have “got it all,” according to a statement by Snoop. The rapper says the bags contain everything: “my favorite lighter, favorite color, and dime-sized secret stash pockets to stash my favorite herbs.” The artist currently has multiple businesses in the cannabis industry and has long made heavy mentions of marijuana in his music. Snoop has his own branded line of flower called Leafs by Snoop and has joined Casa Verde, a cannabis investment fund. Under that partnership, Snoop worked in collaboration with TSUMo Snacks to create cannabis-infused onion ring chips, Snazzle Os, in 2022. Next, Snoop and Stewart plan to release a debut lighter collection next year.
