Drake teams up with Canopy Growth

The Canadian rapper has announced a joint venture with the world leader in cannabis Canopy Growth. Drake joins a long list of celebrities working with the North American legal cannabis industry.

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A partnership between big names

Last Thursday, the two partners announced in a press release the launch of More Life Growth in Toronto. The company, which will grow cannabis and sell cannabis wellness products, has already obtained the necessary licenses from Health Canada. Under the terms of the agreement, Drake will own 60% shares and Canopy 40%, as well as the right «to exclusively exploit certain intellectual property».

«Drake's eclectic career gives him experience in a wide variety of industries including music, television, film, fashion, sports, brand development, content creation and strategies on social networks and digital media. Having launched many successful brands in recent decades, he is ideally positioned to bring his innovative eye to the recreational cannabis industry,» reads the release.

«The opportunity to team up with a world-class company like Canopy Growth and on a global scale is really exciting,» said Drake. «The idea of being able to build something special in a constantly growing industry is inspiring.».

Celebrities and the cannabusiness

Drake joins other big names in pop culture who have also partnered with legal cannabis businesses or created their own. These include many rappers including Snoop Dog, Wiz Khalifa, 2 Chainz, Cypress Hill, Action Bronson and Post Malone, but also actors like Seth Rogen and comedians like Whoopi Goldberg.

«Celebrity endorsements and partnerships are a way of giving credibility and trust to a business. For an emerging industry - and one with a reputation for illegality - this can be very important.», explains Ryan McConnel, vice-president of Kantar, a market research consulting firm. branding.

Canopy Growth is already working with Snoop Dog and Seth Rogen but this last partnership stands out from the others because, here, it's clearly a joint venture and Drake is the majority player. For the Canadian leader, these partnerships are a way of circumventing the ban on promoting cannabis by associating its products with well-known names in the popular imagination.

Despite these prestigious associations, the company is currently recording disappointing results.

Drake wants to use the Health Canada symbol

According to a trademark registration filled via his company Dream Crew, It seems that Drake is looking to use Health Canada's warning symbol as a logo for his brand. This is a red stop sign containing a cannabis leaf and the letters THC :

This bold branding is not to the liking of the federal agency: «This standardized symbol is copyrighted by the Canadian Crown and is used for public health and safety purposes. Reproducing this symbol for private commercial purposes without permission from the owner may constitute a violation of proprietary rights», warned Eric Morrissette, Director of Media Relations for Health Canada.