Watch BTS from our Cover Shoot with Erykah Video here!
Erykah Badu. Spiritual. Music. Cannabis. Goddess. Like the plant, Badu is a full-spectrum artist and entrepreneur who recently launched her premier and premium cannabis line, “That Badu,” a collaboration between international cannabis brand Cookies and Badu’s cannabis accessory brand, Apple Trees. To me, Erykah Badu embodies so many of the core elements that Honeysuckle represents. Individuality, beauty, freedom, natural talent and grace. Watching footage of her past performances before our photo shoot with her at the Cookies’ Maywood store and grow facility in Los Angeles, I was transported to another place, another dimension, really. Not only is she brilliantly talented, but she also takes the time to truly connect with her audiences in irreplaceable and one-of-a-kind ways. Every performance is unique; she is in it, she is there, she is present.
The fact that Badu and rapper Berner, the founder and CEO of Cookies, insisted on meeting every single individual in the queue that wrapped around the block at Cookies Maywood for her "That Badu" release, didn't come as a surprise to us. We were excited to patiently wait for the subject of our cover photo shot.
It was worth the wait. In addition to our one-on-one time with Badu, Berner and Edwin Movagharian, the owner of Cookies Maywood, invited us to tag along on the tour they gave the Badu team. With a focus on women's health, wellness, and empowerment, the images we took and the spread's ensuing designs reflect the sentiments that Badu portrays as well as that of her new cannabis company.
Award-winning journalist Candace McDuffie, who interviewed the singer for this story, is the author of the book 50 Rappers Who Changed the World. She said that Badu was her bucket list interview. Badu is a bucket list cover for us too and the perfect artist to symbolize the new emerging energies of the cannabis industry. Feminine, Powerful, Bold and Beautiful. B is for Beautiful. That Badu.