Josh Kesselman and the Elemental Art of Rolling: RAW Founder on Legacy, Innovation, and Zushi Collaboration
When you speak with Josh Kesselman, founder of RAW Rolling Papers, you don’t just get an industry titan—you get a storyteller, an inventor, a philosopher, and an unfiltered believer in the magic of paper. Whether he’s enthusiastic out about burn engineering, recalling Grateful Dead concerts, or demoing a seven-joint smoking flute, Kesselman brings the same wide-eyed energy to it all.
“I believe rolling papers are magic,” he says. “They release energy into your material, and that material releases energy into you. That’s not just chemistry—that’s connection.” And connection is exactly what birthed his latest endeavor: a special-edition collaboration between Elements, Kesselman’s tribute brand to his father’s favorite paper, and elite cultivators Zushi.
We caught up with Josh for an exclusive Honeysuckle just ahead of 4/20, the official Elements drop, and his birthday on 4/19, Kesselman opened up about his lifelong relationship with rolling papers, the story behind RAW and Elements, and his latest collab with cult-favorite Zushi.
Check out our video interview with Gerry and Stacks of Tenco here!
A Rolling Legacy: The Origins of Elements
Before RAW, there was Elements—Josh Kesselman’s tribute to his father’s favorite Spanish rolling paper, Marfil. Inspired by childhood memories and his dad’s magic trick of making paper disappear in a flash of flame, Kesselman set out to recreate that spark. “I named it Elements after the elements that are used to make the paper.”
The turning point came when he met José Emilio, a legendary artisan whose family had made Marfil for generations. Introduced by a network of paper collectors, the two quickly connected over shared values and legacy. “We decided right then and there we were going to bring it back,” Kesselman says.
Emilio’s factory in Spain was a blend of old-world craftsmanship and innovation—a place where 100-year-old machines stood beside modern tech, and Emilio could fix equipment just by touch. He protected the place fiercely, only agreeing to sell to Kesselman’s family upon retirement, ensuring the legacy stayed in the right hands.
With Elements, Kesselman helped revive a lost art, channeling tradition, invention, and soul into every sheet.
RAW Is Born: From Elements to a Movement
Elements laid the groundwork. It was Kesselman’s tribute to tradition, a revival of legacy, and a love letter to paper itself. But RAW? That was the revolution.
“You don’t go from caveman to car,” Kesselman says. “First you invent the wheel, then the axle. RAW is my opus.”
Launched in 2005, RAW was the first of its kind—a translucent, unbleached rolling paper that flipped the script on everything smokers thought they knew. It wasn’t just a product; it was a statement. A paper that looked and felt completely different from the standard white sheets dominating the market for centuries.
But RAW was never just about aesthetics. “My goal was to give you the experience of sitting around a campfire, where you’re just enjoying the smoke,” Kesselman explains. “Something that feels natural. Feels right.”
Drawing on years of experimentation with Elements, and his obsession with burn dynamics, airflow, and flavor purity, Kesselman engineered RAW to enhance—not mask—the plant. It was about reintroducing the ritual, reconnecting with nature, and stripping away the excess.
The response was electric. RAW became a cultural icon, embraced by artists, cultivators, and connoisseurs alike. For Kesselman, it was never about scale—it was about soul. RAW didn’t just elevate rolling papers; it redefined them.
Collaboration with Zushi: Elements Goes Cult
One of the latest breakthroughs in the RAW-verse is Kesselman’s Elements collaboration with Zushi, from leading brand Tenco, known for its boutique genetics and exclusivity. “Gerry, Staks and the Zushi team had been using boxes and boxes of Elements king size wide. Finally, I was like, ‘I have to meet these guys.’”
The result is one of the most anticipated paper drops of 4/20. Elements x Zushi combines Kesselman’s ultra-thin Elements paper with custom Zushi artwork. “Gerry’s extremely talented. I gave him the ball and he ran with it. I really believe he beat me. His is much more eye-catching.”
Zushi released a small amount of the papers at Zalympics, where they were resold online for up to $200 a pack. “People were fighting for it. We sent the rest out to stores for 4/20 and asked them not to drop it until then. Each store got just a couple of boxes.”
The Science of the Burn
Kesselman speaks of rolling like a chemist, an engineer, and a philosopher all rolled into one. “There's literal joint engineering,” he said, describing how he learned to “plumb” giant joints with internal air tubes to make them smokable. “There’s a certain way to roll a 7-pounder… You have to understand fluid dynamics.”
He’s also obsessed with how papers impact flavor and terpene expression. “The less paper you have, the less masking effect. You taste the terpenes even more. When I made RAW Ethereal, I tasted things I’d never tasted before. That was another level.”
RAW, Ethics, and the Future of the Industry
Despite RAW’s size, Kesselman remains committed to the values he started with: creativity, community, and pushing the culture forward. “My job is to work for the smoker. If they want a pink paper, I’ll make the best pink paper I can. It’s not about me—it’s about them.”
He envisions a future where the plant is grown under the sun, not in sterile labs. “Every plant should see the sun. It's alive. It wants to live. Let it live.”
Kesselman also warns against monopolization and overregulation in the industry. “I believe in complete legalization—but no one should be allowed more than two shops. That way everyone gets a chance. We’d have competition, culture, and community.”
Artistry and Alchemy
In the RAW founder’s world, even a rolling paper is a vehicle for transformation. “You can’t control an ember. You can only guide it. It's like connecting with an animal. It’s not math—it’s feeling.”
And that’s really what Josh Kesselman brings to the game: not just innovation, but heart. Whether it’s designing windproof lighters, cones with plantable seed tips, or skateboard-shaped rolling trays, everything he creates is “for Timmy”—his imaginary consumer in Iowa who just wants to have a great sesh with friends.
“Make Timmy happy, and he’ll make me happy.”
It’s a philosophy that’s carried RAW from Gainesville to global domination. But for Kesselman, the goal was never domination—it was elevation.
And on that, he’s still rolling strong.
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For more on RAW, Elements, and the Zushi collaboration, visit website and Instagram. For Josh personal.
For more on Tenco visit here.
