From Trappers to Tech: What is Cannabis Culture Today?

What Is Cannabis Culture?

“I’m the culture.” “You're the culture.” “We're the culture!”

How many times have you heard it?

Many claim it, but culture isn’t just one thing—it’s many. Culture is movement, survival and celebration. Rituals we share and risks we’ve taken. The style, slang, soundtrack, and strain. Culture is how we hold each other up—and how we pass the plant down.

Cannabis culture is lineage and legacy. Indigenous wisdom, Black resilience, queer resistance. Knowledge passed in backyards, basements, rooftops, road trips, and rolling trays. It lives in music videos, mixtapes, memes, dispensaries, and underground grow ops. It’s felt in the first hit after a long day and in the thousandth joint with your day-ones.

The heat of a blunt cypher in a smoky room. What we create when we have nothing else—and everything to give.

It’s not about gatekeeping. It’s about storytelling. And who gets to tell it.

When it comes to communities, I resonate most with the trappers. As a business owner, I appreciate the hustle, branding, marketing, the passion. These people don't quit - NO MATTER WHAT. I am fascinated have deep respect for the growers and the scientists too. They are the wizards, to me.

Here is a breakdown of some of the different tribes that make up one big cannabis ecosystem. Where do you fit?

Trappers: The ones who built the foundation. They stayed in the game when the game had no spotlight. Driven by survival, passion, creativity or all of the above. trappers never left the plant—and in many ways, the plant never left them. They are the trendsetters: What they smoke, wear, say, and do eventually becomes the wave. Long before legalization or marketing budgets, trappers were defining the culture as hustlers, innovators, and curators all at once. Their blueprint is still being copied, and their influence is baked into every layer of this space legal or not!

The Growers: Deep in the soil or high in high-tech labs, growers are the hands behind the harvest. They’re part farmer, part alchemist—blending nature and science to perfect the plant. Some have decades under their belt, preserving genetics that tell the story of regions, movements, and flavors. Others are new-wave cultivators, experimenting with lighting spectrums and microclimates. What unites them is devotion. For growers, this isn’t just agriculture—it’s art. And the good ones always know how to communicate with the plant.

Hip Hop : Since the beginning, hip hop and the plant have shared airwaves. Lyrics immortalized strains, videos set the tone, and artists carried the culture on their backs. From West Coast legends to underground East Coast poets, hip hop gave cannabis swagger, visibility, and sound. These artists weren’t just consumers—they were entrepreneurs, storytellers, and style icons who turned weed into something you could hear and feel. Their legacy is as much about entrepreneurship as it is about aesthetics.

The Latin and Hispanic Influence: In neighborhoods from Washington Heights to Medellín and throughout Latin America, cannabis culture is woven into daily life. In Latinx communities across the U.S. and abroad, the plant is tied to tradition, music, healing, resistance, and joy. Despite disproportionate criminalization, these communities have carried the culture forward—through stories passed down, home remedies, and now, through entrepreneurship. The energy is global, rhythmic, and resilient.

The Corporate Guys : They showed up with pitch decks, capital, and sleek branding. Some came to learn, others to take. Either way, they’ve influenced how the industry functions today. And when you're looking for an exit – go there. You’ll find them at investor meetings and industry expos, bringing scale and structure to a space that didn’t grow that way. They’re part of the ecosystem—sometimes harmoniously, and other times not.

Community and Advocates: Dedicated real ones who never stopped showing up. The policy nerds, the public speakers, the nonprofit founders. They laid the groundwork for legalization and kept calling out inequity long after the cameras stopped rolling. At seshes large and small, they do the hard work of turning culture into law and pushing systems to honor the people it once punished. Their culture is education, accountability, and unshakeable integrity.

Athletes: Once penalized for even trace amounts, athletes are now some of the strongest voices for change. They’re reframing the narrative—showing how cannabis supports recovery, focus, and mental clarity. From NFL stars to UFC fighters, they’re using their platforms to normalize, destigmatize, and advocate for safer, plant-based alternatives.

The Gen Z'ers and Club Kids: To them, cannabis is part of the aesthetic. It’s not separate from nightlife, fashion, or identity—it’s woven in. You’ll find them at underground events, rolling up with vintage fits, curating playlists with terpene notes in mind. They’re digital-first, fast-moving, and style-forward. They may not remember the fight for legalization, but they’re shaping where the culture goes next.

Researchers and Scientists: For patients, cannabis was never a trend—it was survival. Veterans, cancer survivors, chronic pain sufferers, mental health advocates—all of them brought the movement forward by speaking truth to power through lived experience. At the same time, researchers and scientists worked behind the scenes to validate those truths with data. Studying cannabinoids, terpenes, and delivery systems, they helped translate folklore into fact, turning healing stories into clinical studies. Together, patients and scientists built the bridge that carried cannabis from the margins into medicine—and onto the global stage.

Hash Heads and Concentrate Crowd: If you know, you know. This crew is about texture, temperature, and technique. They chase the cleanest rosin, the frostiest diamonds, the most flavorful cold cure. Dab culture is precise and proud—bridging legacy knowledge with cutting-edge refinement. It’s ritual. It’s craftsmanship.

The Influencers: Content creators are now front row in the culture. Through reels, streams, and skits, they shape how new consumers meet the plant. Some educate, others entertain, but all contribute. It’s a different kind of hustle—fast, flashy, and community-driven.

The Legal Retail Market: Dispensaries and delivery services are how most people now engage with the plant. This layer of the culture is built on design, curation, and service. It’s reshaping expectations—from how weed looks, to how it’s stored, to who’s selling it. Retail is culture in real time.

Global Markets: Europe and Asia: The movement is global. In Germany, cannabis is becoming part of national healthcare. In Thailand, reform is accelerating (and evolving). Japan is inching toward wellness conversations. Each region brings distinct history, regulation, and ritual. Together, they’re widening the lens.

The Origins: Women, LGBTQIA+

Some of the most vital voices in cannabis don’t always get the loudest spotlight—but they’ve always been leading. We’ll explore these culture-keepers more deeply next: the femme founders, queer creatives, and content hustlers who continue to expand the possibilities of what cannabis can mean. Women and LGBTQIA+ advocates have been at the forefront since the beginning, from fighting for medical access during the AIDS crisis to creating safer, more inclusive spaces today. Their impact is woven into policy, branding, education, and community care. Add to that a new wave of digital influencers—educators, creators, connectors—who help shape how people discover and experience the plant. They bridge gaps between underground and mainstream, old-school and new-gen. Together, they’re not just part of the culture—they’re curating its future.

So, What Is Cannabis Culture?

It’s not one group. Not one story. It’s a wild, gorgeous intersection of passions, traditions, and perspectives. From lab coats to late-nights, trends and terpene tests, it’s all part of a bigger, living story.

Cannabis culture is an array of tribes—and vibes!