Pure Puma: From Black Ink To Green Flower

By Brian Garrido

Puma Robinson, Founder and CEO of Art2Ink, a Harlem-based tattoo shop and art studio, is widely recognized as one of the talented artists from VH1’s hit reality television series Black Ink Crew. Known for his philanthropy in the local and artistic communities and presence in the cannabis community, Puma has decided to dig up his Legacy roots and plant his feet in the legal market. His collaboration with licensed cultivator/processor Honest Pharm Co has already a variety of products exclusively to the New York Market, with some of the first drops having started on 4/20 at Gotham Buds in Harlem and continuing to numerous licensed retailers including Dazed in Union Square and Cannabis Realm in White Plains.

Puma and the BLACK INK CREW cast at the Honeysuckle x Cookies FOMO Party, February 2023 (C) Honeysuckle Media, Inc.

What Is Puma Robinson's P Rollz? A Puma x Honest Pharm Co Collaboration

“We're going to do drops all over the city, all over the state,” Puma had stated weeks before the brand launch. “They're going to be called P Rollz. The first two renditions of P Rollz are going to be PR 13 and Super Awesome Express. These are all based on my life, my name and the things that I see. When people see the artwork, they're going to be like, ‘Yeah, this is totally some Puma shit.’”

Puma Robinson And Black Ink: New York Icons

I remember meeting Puma for the first time in the summer of 2009, when I went to get tattooed at Black Ink Gallery located at 55 Malcolm X Boulevard. The ambience was A1, the walls painted red and covered in artwork. Puma, sitting at the front desk, quickly and enthusiastically got up to introduce himself and answered any question I had regarding this exciting, yet permanent decision I was about to make. He then introduced me to Andre Malcolm, who specializes in Japanese folklore art. I knew I was at the right place for the work I was looking to get done. I went through with the decision that same day to get my first tattoo, which turned out to be an entire sleeve. The ambiance of the shop, the talented artists and the energy from that first interaction the second I walked through those doors was something I’ll never forget.

Puma Robinson (C) James Lowrie

How Has Cannabis Influenced Puma's Journey?

Outside of the realm of tattooing, early on in Puma’s life, cannabis went from being fun and recreational, to being a form of survival that helped him feed himself and keep a roof over his head.

“It's funny to me now how we're able to talk about selling weed when we were younger and stuff and being arrested for selling weed and different things like that. I was doing it for survival reasons,” says Puma, as he aims to set an example for others in his position to aspire and take advantage of a young, flourishing market and do things the right way. “I saw everybody creating bags and just throwing whatever light deps [setups for the ‘light deprivation’ growing technique] they could find for the low, or whatever high grade shit they could find and just repackage it from wherever they found it.”

It’s no secret that things have changed over the years; we’ve come a long way from the 1515’s and 1520’s dime baggies of the days in the streets to endless strains and elaborate packaging. Yet, there is very little authenticity and very few from the legacy market doing it the right way like the Certz and the Gumbos of the industry.

(C) James Lowrie

Puma Speaks On Supporting New York's Cannabis Community

It’s time we stand up and reclaim our culture, making it equitable for those impacted by the War on Drugs, as many of us come from these communities. Puma is just one of the many who are on a mission to make that transition.

“We try our best to provide for the community, especially since we're there and we're making money in the community,” Puma states. “I try to give back to the people.” It’s not just about selling weed, but also about creating an outlet to set an example that this is bigger than us, an industry greater than we can imagine. He goes on to share his personal experience with his peers in the legacy market: “I've seen mad people start cannabis companies, big-time cannabis companies, they know what the fuck they're doing. Like yo, you could be a big CEO right now. You started your own cannabis company, but you're local.”

What's Next For Puma And Honest Pharm Co?

We can expect to see more from the Puma x Honest Pharm Co collaboration in the following year as he plans to enter the Florida market next. The artist tells me to keep an eye out for his exclusive strain. “We have the Pure Flower, which is going to be called Puma Piss. We flipped Cheetah and we added White Runtz; this is a shout-out to the legacy of cannabis. We had Cat Piss [a sativa descended from the Trainwreck cultivar] in the beginning of time, then we had Cheetah Piss [a Cookies-created cross of Gelato 42, Lemonade, and London Pound Cake 97] which is [the] present, but the future is Puma Piss,” he says.

Though the rollout of New York State licensed dispensaries was slow all through 2023 due to legal hurdles, with fewer than 30 dispensaries opening their doors, as of August 2024 we now have 164 stores open across various regions, with more to come. We can expect to see the same progress with New York cannabis brands hitting the shelves.

For more about Puma, follow @puma213 on Instagram. To learn more about P Rollz and upcoming Puma x Honest Pharm Co drops, follow @prollzny on Instagram.

*A version of this article originally appeared in Honeysuckle's 18th print edition. Click here to order and choose your element - Fire with Bun B or Ice with Queen P!

Written By:

Brian Garrido is a photographer, writer, filmmaker and documentarian with a long history of leading teams and working in various roles in the entertainment industry. He is the founder and CEO of Garrido Enterprises Worldwide, and a New York Conditional Adult Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) licensee.

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