Jay-Z has always been open about his past life as a drug dealer. Now he is legally doing business in the growing Cannabis market.
The billionaire music mogul known for being business savvy has made another power move, this time into the cannabis industry. Caliva, a cannabis consumer products company based out of California, announced its partnership with Shawn “JAY-Z” Carter on Tuesday, saying Hov will be joining their team as the Chief Brand Strategist.
The multiyear partnership calls for Jay-Z to “play a crucial role in driving creation, outreach efforts, and strategy for the brand,” according to a press release on Caliva’s website. Somehow, Jay-Z found a way to tie this latest venture into his ongoing prison reform efforts.
“In this position, Mr. Carter will focus on and work to increase the economic participation of citizens returning from incarceration – many of who are not seeing the monetary benefits of legalization – through advocacy, job training, and overall employee and workforce development,” the release said.
In April, Jay-Z and Philadelphia rapper Meek Mill announced the launch of REFORM Alliance, an organization that works towards reducing the amount of people serving unjust parole and probation sentences.
“Anything I do, I want to do correctly and at the highest level,” Jay-Z said in a statement. “With all the potential in the cannabis industry, Caliva’s expertise and ethos makes them the best partner for this endeavor. We want to create something amazing, have fun in the process, do good and bring people along the way.”
In June, Forbes announced that Jay-Z became the first billionaire rapper, and it’s business endeavors like this is the reason why the rap mogul is so hugely successful.
“We hope to shape the conversation surrounding cannabis, foster equality and fairness in the development of the industry, promote awareness for the many uses and benefits of cannabis and empower consumers to feel free to use cannabis how, when, and where they want,” Caliva’s release said.
Caliva’s main facility is in San Jose, CA.
