ICE T x BROTHERS GRIMM SEEDS

“A Legacy Grown from the Streets to the Soil”

Interviewed by Aaron Robinson, Editor & Tocarra Eldridge-Robinson

@iamcomprehend | @TocarraMusikWorld

The Drop Heard Around the Culture

The cannabis world just got louder. Brothers Grimm Seeds has partnered with cultural titan Ice T - actor, artist, and cannabis advocate to unveil BodyCount, a powerful new strain bred from Purple Urkle × Rosetta Stone.

Rosetta Stone, one of Brothers Grimm Seeds crown-jewel genetics and a High Times “Top 10 Strain of 2018,” bred in-house by Brothers Grimm’s founder and breeding director Rick Campanella also known as “MrSoul”. Rosetta Stone is celebrated for its cerebral clarity and euphoric lift. This new creation fuses that legacy with Ice T’s own raw and unapologetic attitude and is built to last.

“Ice T has always been more than an entertainer, he’s a truth-teller, a justice warrior, a cultural force,” says Laura ‘MrsSoul’ Campanella, Brothers Grimm’s CEO and collaboration director. “Launching BodyCount with him just made sense. He walks the walk.”

Seeds of Change

Though Ice T has never been a cannabis smoker himself, he’s long championed legalization, social equity, and reform. His 10,000 square foot New Jersey dispensary, The Medicine Woman located in Jersey City was founded to bring access and opportunity to communities harmed by prohibition. This dispensary creates an opportunity for real jobs and real healing where injustice once grew.

Consciousness Magazine recently had the opportunity to interview the cultural force Ice T himself about his partnership with Brothers Grimm Seeds. Here is what he has to share.

ICE T: UNFILTERED

Tocarra Eldridge-Robinson: Body Count began as your metal band you co-founded back in the early 90s, also self-titled as one of the bands albums that you released at that time, and now it’s an exclusive cannabis strain honoring your legacy. What does that feel like?

Ice T: The Brothers Grimm crew came up with the name. I know now with cannabis a lot of strains have cool names. I should have had the OG, but that was taken a long time ago.

Brothers Grimm decided to name the seed BodyCount, I guess it’s gonna lay you down [laughs].

Aaron Robinson: How did this collaboration with Brothers Grimm Seeds come into existence?

Ice T: I’ve always been straight edge. I may have a gummie every now and then, I’ve never smoked, never drank. But when cannabis went legal, I saw the business side. I opened The Medicine Woman in NJ with my partners Luke and Charis who own the Medicine Woman in LA who’d been doing it right for years.

At this point I’m thinking I should continue to diversify, I mean how long am I going to be an actor? So next I do a partnership with Don, who made a vape pen. I think it’s cool. So, I got into it.

Then my boy John Boy who I’d been friends with from LA since we were hustlers on the streets, and Jeffrey Peterson the 420Comic linked me with the Brothers Grimm fam. Their vibe was solid, their energy real. That’s how I do business. I work with people I like and trust.

Tocarra: The launch date is set for Oct 1, what’s the plan?

Ice T: September 28 in New York City. Me and Montel Williams are pulling up at my dispensary for a collaborative interview and later that night for the launch event at Room52. Brothers Grimm will handle the rollout. My hope? That Body Count becomes one of the best strains ever grown and the people get the medicine they need.

Aaron: You making gangster music and being in the hip-hop industry and you have never smoked marijuana? How were you able to surpass that?

ICE T: With discipline, focus & hustle. “In the streets, the shot-callers don’t get high. The leaders stay sharp,” Ice T says. “I grew up an orphan with no safety net, no parents, no backup. I had to be my own bodyguard. I don’t care what kind of gangsterism you get into, when you get the top, those guys are straight. I mean everybody else can get high, but the person making the decisions must be on point.”

He laughs, remembering the moment he set his tone for life:

“One of the big homies was like, ‘If you don’t hit this weed, you’re a bitch.’ I said, ‘Then I’m a bitch. Make me hit it’ That’s power - standing on your own square. I don’t follow trends; I set ’em.” Since I’ve been an adult, I may occasionally sip some champagne or little cranberry and vodka or have an edible, you know what I’m saying? Because I’m not living in that zone anymore. It was more about being clear-headed for staying safe back then. I tried some ecstasy at one point before fentanyl hit the streets but now, I’m scared to take any pills. So honestly, I think right now marijuana is the safest choice. Being able to obtain it legally from a licensed dispensary and not getting it off the streets is also the safest way for those that want to do it.”

Aaron: You were just talking about your dispensary that’s in Jersey City. I respect the way you work for the community and advocate for justice & equity. The Medicine Woman dispensary creates jobs and is helping to reform and educate and heal the people. I love that.

ICE T: “I’m community minded and the people need support. There are still people locked up for weed and that’s insane. If it’s legal now, free ’em. Clear the records. Every marijuana offense should be decriminalized. Period.” People need opportunities and I want to help create those when I can.”

Game from a Legend:

Tocarra: So, being a cannabis justice advocate and having a voice, why is this so important to you?

ICE T: “I just think that right now so many people are still in jail for marijuana offenses and it's ridiculous. It’s kind of like, if it’s legal now, let them out. Okay, you broke the law then because it was illegal, but now it’s not. Clear their records, help to reform them, create opportunity for them and lift them towards success.” In my opinion all marijuana offenses should be decriminalized.

Aaron: For sure. For those individuals looking up to you as an icon and figured they would never cross paths with you or that may even have similar backgrounds to you. What words of encouragement would you share with them so that they can be encouraged towards a brighter and more successful future?

ICE T: “You got a suck a duck. You gotta stay away from the suckers. For every one person who helps you, five will hold you back. Knowing how to pick the right people to roll with is the key to it. Our circle is tight, and we protect our circle. Don’t share your dreams, just show the results and only take advice from people you admire.

People always ask me, they say, “Well, you’ve been married 25 years. I’m like, I know how to be married to my wife. That’s all I know. I don’t really know how to be married to your wife. Most people that are successful are very delicate with advice. I just say, have the confidence to be you, whatever that may be.

Be yourself. Set trends. Hold your position. That’s how you earn respect, not by talking, but by standing firm when it counts. I don’t follow nobody’s shit, and it takes courage. Stay in your lane, follow your own dreams. And don’t pay attention to other side betters that have nothing to do. Somebody said, well, Ice, how do you do it? I say, I don’t pay attention to people that haven’t done it. Like you show me you did it, you got my full attention.”

Aaron: We’ve been publishing for 20 years. We have a non-profit called Still I Rise where we give back to the youth, underserved people in the community, and we feed and clothe the homeless. We’ve been doing that for 11 years. Also, my wife, she's a recording artist who has had some records with significant individuals. But like you said, we notice when we grow in the levels, we lose friends.

ICE T: “The thing is, when you give back, that’s for you. That’s your moral compass. That makes you feel good. That makes that person you see in the mirror look back at you correctly. We all have our charities, and we all give, sometimes to a fault. Sometimes you’re nice to a fault where the people you give didn’t respect it or don’t appreciate it. But there’s nothing wrong with that. Most friends are only in it for benefit. They’re really in it because they see there’s something that they can get. A real friend only wants your friendship, that’s it. And here’s a good one, ‘you won’t really know somebody until you tell them no. There’s a saying, ‘Don’t feel bad cutting people off. They didn’t feel bad when they were f*ckin’ you over.’

Tocarra: That’s True.

Aaron: Absolutely. Before we conclude, is there anything else you would like to add that we didn’t discuss?

ICE T: “No, just thank you for supporting us. As I said, this is a community-based endeavor, and we are advocating for the people and the plant. Beyond the Brand, “This partnership is business, sure,” Ice T adds, “but it’s also about direction. I want to steer people toward this industry to something safe, smart, and forward-moving. Cannabis is the new lane.”