What strains would these queer icons smoke?
Find a bouquet of strains beautifully paired with some of our favorite queer icons.
Divine walks into a dispensary… What do you think she’s picking up? Get ready for Pride weekend with us as we pair some of our favorite queer icons with the strains we think they’d smoke.
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Marsha P. Johnson – Northern Lights
For her decades of advocacy and invaluable contributions to the gay liberation movement, Marsha P. Johnson deserves the whole sky. We’d like to think she’d be smoking some Northern Lights, a suitably influential strain for the incomparable icon, and taking time to rest with its euphoric, relaxing effects.
James Baldwin – Fire OG
The author of iconic works like Giovanni’s Room and The Fire Next Time, James Baldwin never hesitated to speak truth to power. We think Baldwin would be smoking something as bold and uncompromising as he was—Fire OG is one of the strongest OG strains, with potent, long-lasting effects, a perfect match for the legendary writer.
RuPaul – Headband
The iconic producer and host of RuPaul’s Drag Race, the drag competition show that’s catipulated hundreds of queens into international stardom, RuPaul has made an indelible mark on queer culture.
Mama Ru’s been sober since 1999, but if she were to recommend a strain, we think it’d be Headband. The love-child of cannabis’ power couple, OG Kush and Sour Diesel, Headband is a smooth, lemon-diesel, stress-relieving smoke. It’s a potent strain, so you’ll have to stay on your toes when Ru asks, “How’s your head?”
Harvey Milk – Acapulco Gold
“The Mayor of Castro Street,” Harvey Milk’s impact on the gay rights movement reaches far past the eleven months he spent in public office before his tragic assassination. A man of the people and the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California, Milk reportedly quit personal cannabis consumption in the mid-70s, but remained a proponent of cannabis legalization.
In the early 70s, we think he would have been smoking one of the classic strains of the day, Acapulco Gold, with its motivating and energizing effects being well-suited to campaigning and advocacy work.
Laverne Cox – Lavender
Laverne Cox has a whole bevy of “firsts” under her belt—the first transgender person to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in the acting category, the first trans person to appear on the cover of Time magazine—and we stan her advocacy and representation.
We think she’d be kicking back with some Lavender, enjoying the complexity of its floral, spicy aroma, and getting some recharge time thanks to its indica-leaning effects.
Rob Halford – Lilac Diesel
The Metal God himself, Rob Halford, has one of the most iconic voices of all time, and left his unmistakable leather, chains, and motorcycles mark on heavy metal culture.
Halford needs a strain that’s as dynamic as he is, and Lilac Diesel is up to the task. A complex terpene profile brings earthy pine and chem before giving way to notes of citrus and berry. The uplifting hybrid will ground you through Halford’s growled tones all the way through the highest highs of his banshee wail.
Divine – Cheetah Piss
The queen of camp, the fabulous forebearer of filth, the “Godzilla of drag queens,” Divine is forever a queer cult icon. As John Waters’ muse, she delighted and horrified, and we can’t imagine a better strain send up for her than Cheetah Piss. Funky like the old school strain, Cat Piss, from which it gets its name, Cheetah Piss has a flair for the dramatic with its giggly, aroused effects and skunky, menthol flavors.
Sue Bird – Gary Payton
WNBA Hall of Famer and five-time Olympic Gold Medalist, Sue Bird, is a legend on and off the court. A proponent of CBD for sports recovery, Bird is also one-half of one of the most prominent queer couples in sports with her wife, soccer star Megan Rapinoe.
With Bird bringing four WNBA championships home to Seattle with the Storm, there’s only one strain worthy of the star, and that’s Gary Payton. The highly coveted hybrid strain is a champ just like its namesake NBA Hall of Famer, with multiple cannabis cup awards. Flavorful and potent, run don’t walk to find this slam-dunk strain near you.
Cher – Moonbow
The Goddess of Pop needs no introduction, but here goes. While not gay herself, Cher, for her supreme divadom, music, style, and vocal advocacy of LGBTQIA+ rights and HIV/AIDS awareness, is a queer icon. A strain as unique and undeniable as she is hard to come by, but Archive Seed Bank’s Moonbow fits the bill.
Deliciously fruity and floral, Moonbow is a potent and powerful candy-flavored strain. Like Cher’s constant reinvention, the Moonbow line is being continuously refined, so look out for its constellation of crosses.
The Babadook – Bubble Bath
We hope queer icon, The Babadook, with its fab little hat and homemade pop-up book, is having a wonderful Pride. Haunting is hard work, and that’s why we think The Babadook deserves a Bubble Bath. The indica hybrid has notes of sage and lavender with relaxing effects perfect for recharging after a big night of flashing your claws, door knocking, and stalking the dark recesses of houses and minds.
While these pairings are rather unserious, the contributions these icons have made to queer history and progress certainly are not. We hope you enjoyed our loving salute to these legends and found a new strain to help elevate your Pride!