Redman: Cannabis Advocacy, Unity, and Music Legacy on the Mobile Sessions 8/16/25

In this dynamic Virtual Session of The DJ Sessions, host Darran Bruce sits down with iconic rapper, entrepreneur, and cannabis advocate Redman at Cantana Fest 2025. Known worldwide for his groundbreaking contributions to hip hop, Redman dives into an equally impactful mission—fighting for cannabis reform through the United Empowerment Party (UEP), the first federally approved cannabis political party.

Redman discusses the importance of unity within the cannabis industry, emphasizing that collaboration and shared goals are the key to real progress. He outlines UEP’s mission to de-schedule cannabis, arguing that simply moving it to Schedule III is insufficient. By fully removing it from federal scheduling, opportunities would open for research, transportation, fair business practices, and most importantly, freeing incarcerated individuals still serving time for cannabis-related charges.

The conversation touches on the role of misinformation and outdated perceptions, with Redman highlighting cannabis as a medicine with over 400 beneficial components—many yet to be discovered. He shares his belief that education is crucial for lawmakers and the public alike, while stressing the need to keep large corporations from monopolizing the industry once federal approval arrives.

Beyond advocacy, Redman reflects on community, culture, and the power of numbers in creating systemic change. He encourages grassroots participation, inviting supporters to join UEP’s movement and get involved in shaping policies that work for the people, not just profit.

The episode also highlights Redman’s creative pursuits, including his new album Muddy Waters Too and ventures in merchandise and fashion, reinforcing his influence as both a cultural icon and social leader.

 

About Redman -

Gruff and animated with bare-knuckled punchlines no matter how blunted, Redman is one of the most distinctive voices in hip-hop, representing Newark and flying the funk flag throughout an enduring career that boasts seven gold and platinum albums. Reggie Noble was featured on a pair of EPMD tracks before broke through on his own in 1992 with Whut? Thee Album, a highly anticipated solo debut containing "Blow Your Mind" and "Time 4 Sum Aksion," boisterous singles that topped Billboard's rap chart. The unsettling Dare Iz a Darkside, relatively lucid Muddy Waters, and platinum triumph Doc's da Name 2000 all reinforced the rapper/producer's high standing, as did El Niño and Blackout! -- recorded respectively with Def Squad and Method Man -- throughout the '90s. Redman was even more visible during the early 2000s, hitting the upper reaches of the Billboard 200 again with Malpractice, taking his partnership with Method Man to the big screen with How High, and earning Grammy nominations as a featured artist on De La Soul's "Oooh." and Christina Aguilera's "Dirrty." Red launched his Gilla House label in 2007 with Red Gone Wild: Thee Album, and has followed it with three more LPs, including the alternately stern and celebratory Muddy Waters Too (2024).

Redman, born Reginald Noble in Newark, started spinning records at parties and fashion shows at the age of 12, and a few years later began rhyming. He befriended , who became a mentor and took him along to parks and clubs, enabling him to develop and sharpen his skills as an imposing battle rapper. Later urged by  to share the mike onstage at an EPMD concert in Newark, Noble -- who was then DJ'ing for  -- gave in and essentially became Redman that night, shocking a crowd of familiar faces. Months later, a day after his father kicked him out for selling weed, Redman moved into 's Long Island apartment. He became fully embedded with EPMD and therefore the larger  collective, touring with the group whose pioneering funky and relaxed sound had inspired him to fully pursue hip-hop.  and Bobbito had showcased a live recording of Redman on their WKCR radio show, but it was EPMD's third album, 1990's Business as Usual, where Redman made his commercial debut, featured on the tracks "Hardcore" and "Brothers on My Jock."

A five-track solo demo resulted in a solo deal with Def Jam. Redman was at the forefront of a crop of young, brash, and hungry signees that included  and , bolstering a roster of mostly established acts such as , , EPMD, and . In September 1992, Whut? Thee Album made instant impact as one of the era's most powerful rap debuts -- a mischievous, hard-hitting, set produced primarily by Redman and . First two singles "Blow Your Mind" and "Time 4 Some Aksion" both topped Billboard's rap chart (the latter unseated 's "Throw Ya Gunz") and pushed the album, marketed heavily to the streets and college campuses, to gold status within nine months. Meanwhile, Redman was highly sought for guest verses, production, and turntable w

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Welcome back to another episode of the DJ Sessions where we feature the best DJs, producers, and industry professionals from around the world.

(00:06):
I'm your host Darran and right now we're sitting in the mobile studio at Cantana Fest 2025 with none other than Redman in the studio.
How's it going today, Redman?
Hello, hello.
How are you doing today?
What's going on?
I'm doing good.
How are you doing in the games over there?
Oh yeah, I was just the kind of the host of the games over there and the games were fun.
At the end of the day, the Cantana Fest is about galvanizing everyone that come together to build, to talk.

(00:29):
You know, I always say there's healing in communion.
So this cannabis industry needs a lot of unity and I figure and Scott McKinley figured that we gather these brands together to compete with one another, you know, to gain some respect, you know, to conversate, to have some fun.
So you're not just looking as a brand as a an enemy in the industry, if you will.

(00:53):
So it was lit.
The games were fun.
I know they had a good time.
We were able to give away some trophies, some prizes for the brands and they had a good time at the end of the day.
Yeah, you know, I've been in the cannabis around it since 2013.
I started working with some local organizations here, you know, looking at ways people can advertise, get the brands out there and stuff.

(01:14):
And, you know, I know this is kind of interesting on what happens to the industry and is it going to become federally legal one day?
You know, what are your thoughts on that?
Obviously, one has become federally legal.
Can you keep your head on the ground on stuff like that?
Well, here's the thing.
I'm a part of the first federally approved cannabis party, meaning we're no different from the Republican Party, the Democratic Party.

(01:38):
We're the first of its kind cannabis party called UEP, the United Empowerment Party.
And what we want to do is empower the people, especially in the cannabis industries.
Now, our main goal is, of course, we want cannabis to be legal.
Of course, all the people want that.
But to get there, we must take steps.

(01:59):
And our first goal and mission is to decriminalize and de-schedule cannabis across the world.
That's what we want to do.
We want to de-schedule.
It's already moving to a schedule three.
People think that's a little better.
Yeah, it is a little better from being on schedule one next to cocaine and heroin all these years.

(02:22):
But schedule three don't make it no better.
And you can research why at our website, www.unitedempowermentparty.org.
And you can see the benefits and the non-benefits.
Really, there's no benefits of it being schedule three.
So our main goal is to de-schedule.

(02:43):
Imagine if we take it off the schedule list, how many prisoners we could get out of jail because of this plant.
There are people still being incarcerated and still incarcerated for this plant.
But if we de-schedule, it will open a door to so many things, especially transportation.
So that is our main goal, is to de-schedule cannabis.

(03:04):
Yeah, absolutely.
I think a lot of the universities, a lot of the research facilities were scared to even have it on their campuses because of losing federal grants and all that fun stuff.
It's like, you can't get the testing, you can't get it proven that it's good or healthy or any benefits because nobody wants to touch it and lose their federal funding.
Well, that's because they're not knowledge on what the cannabis plant really is.

(03:28):
Cannabis plant is medicine.
After taking some crash courses, if you will, on a plant, and where was that I went to?
In the Bay Area.
I got brain fog, but I went to school to learn about the plant, to learn about some properties of the plant.

(03:48):
And what I found was very interesting to me that this plant has over 400 components of elements that can benefit us, which still hasn't been discovered.
And I don't think it'll be discovered in our lifetime because of so many.
So that's why we need to de-schedule cannabis so they can get educated.
And the people who are making the rules and laws on this cannabis plant, I don't think they're educated.

(04:11):
I don't think they look at it as a medicine.
I think they still looking at it like it's in the sixties as a recreational medicine.
That is a gateway.
That is bullshit that can harm your life.
That is bullshit.
Not if you ingest it, digest it the right way.
So let's look at it as for what it really is.
It is a medicine.
And we all know that FDA, the big farmers, they're waiting in the wing to make a move and just buy out the industry and control it.

(04:43):
And we don't want that.
So that's why we must not only galvanize as cannabis users, because it's over 150 or 60 million cannabis voters in the entire world, especially in the US.
And why couldn't we galvanize under one umbrella where we can regulate our own rules and laws about the cannabis plant and what's better for our state?

(05:10):
Like Washington state has one of the most worst laws I have ever heard.
Like it's ridiculous.
And it costs over a hundred dispensaries to close down, lose their businesses.
That's not right.
That's not right.
So the main thing is to de-schedule cannabis.
That's why it opened doors for everyone to have an opportunity to benefit off this plant.

(05:34):
And it also opened the doors to transportation routes.
Think of how many things and how influenced this plant can be on your financial system in your state, in your city, if it's done the right way.
Yeah, absolutely.
I was there in 2013 with both Washington and Colorado legalized at the same time.
And I realized the barrier to entry in Colorado was pay 2,500 bucks.

(05:59):
I think it was, you got a license.
It was free enterprise.
In Washington, they did a lottery system and then regulated like they did liquor stores and they put the liquor control board in charge of it.
They didn't hire a cannabis board or anyone that was knowledgeable in the industry.
That still is happening around the nation with these states legalizing it, you know?
A lot.
Well, from my temperature of what I feel and know and through my sister, who's the president of the UDP party, United Empowerment Party, shout out to Safita Mills and Keeley Weedy.

(06:32):
Yes, that's the team.
And shout out to my team, the United Empowerment Party.
Here's the thing.
Every state has their own law.
Do I know all of them?
No.
I'm still educated myself.
But say for a state like Texas, they're not even decriminalizing it yet.
Like some parts, they're not decriminalized.

(06:52):
You could still get locked up in Texas for a joint at the end of the state of Texas.
Certain parts of Texas, you can get locked up for incarcerated for a joint.
And that's ridiculous because everyone has some type of experience with cannabis.

(07:14):
And then again, you might have a lot of people in Texas that might need it medically.
So why short them of an opportunity to be natural, to heal naturally through the cannabis plant because of your laws?
That's why we need to galvanize and stop looking at this cannabis plant as just recreational because that's the outlook that they're getting.

(07:36):
They're like, you know what?
We're going to have everybody around America getting high.
And it's not about that.
It's about treating your symptoms with this plant and actually opening more centers that can do more experiments on what this plant can do.
Absolutely.
That's the only way.
And I know that states are actually looking at states that have legalized it and looking at the millions, if not billions of dollars they're bringing in the revenue.

(08:02):
And it adds another revenue funding source at the bottom line of these things.
So federal legalization on the roadmap isn't one of the hot topics that's in the United States government right now.
I'm not sure, but hopefully that changes here in the near future.
What was the website again that people can find out more information about what you do?
Unitedempowermentparty.org, www.unitedempowermentparty.org.

(08:27):
And see the work we do or follow us on IG, United Empowerment Party.
Just see the work we do.
We also got a petition that we did for people who want to reschedule cannabis, who believe in that movement.
And like I always tell people, don't just take my word for it, yo.
Go out and research.
Our team researches.
We've got very knowledgeable people on our team that have their ear to the streets of the cannabis industry, if you will, to know what's going on.

(08:59):
We've regulated laws in New York.
We help regulate laws in New York.
We hold petitions.
We are at the events that matter.
For example, these cannabis events, like even in Las Vegas.

(09:19):
What is it again that cannabis?
I'm sorry.
And then my people too.
I love y'all.
Y'all have- I know you're going to be down there next week, right?
Are you going to be down there next week with CantanaFest?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
But that's for our CantanaFest NUWU.
Shout out to NUWU.
Oh, NUWU.
Yeah.
Yeah.
But I'm talking about the event that they have in Vegas every year for the cannabis.
I got brain fart and they had me there.

(09:41):
I'm sorry.
No, I know what your idea is.
Is it similar to the one they do in Colorado?
I think so.
I think so.
But sorry for the brain fart.
Everyone knows what I'm talking about.
I got brain fart.
I just got off a nine-hour flight, so it's good.
Here's the thing.
Like I say, we go to these cannabis events, whether it's in Vegas, whether it's in Colorado, whether it's in New York, we go to these events and we are displaying our product.

(10:06):
We're shaking hands.
Wow, this is my product.
We get a gang of cards from people.
I know you got a gang of cards from people and you still have them and you haven't looked at them yet.
We all been there.
So these events need to be like not just open to brands and people who've got things going on in the cannabis industry.

(10:29):
We need to open them up to people that's right off the street because at the end of the day, there are people who supported cannabis too and they can tell their story from their point of view.
We're just hearing from a politically event point of view of everybody that got something going on.
We need to open the doors and have more ear to the streets of what's really going on with this plant.

(10:53):
And this way we get both ends of what we can learn about the industry and learn about each other.
Because I'm going to tell you, just like you said earlier, once it's federally approved, it's over.
You don't think they're waiting in a wing right now.
Like I met a lady and I'm going to cut it short.
I'm sorry I'm talking too much.
I met a lady on a plane like maybe like 17 years ago, right?

(11:17):
17 years ago.
And she in first class, I'm in first class and she noticed how everyone was speaking to me.
So she was inquiring who the fuck I was.
And I told her who I was.
I said, I'm going out here to do a cannabis event.
She said, wow, you know, I'm a, I forgot what's an attorney or a lawyer, but she say, I close, you know, million dollar deals for compliments.

(11:37):
And she said, it's interesting that you mentioned cannabis because I'm going to close a deal for, who was it?
A tobacco company, I think.
No, it was actually, it was actually like a drug store, like Walgreens or something like that.
And she was like, yeah, I was like, well, that's what I'm going out to California because that's where we've gone.

(12:03):
I'm going out to California.
We're going to speak on a little bit about the politics of the cannabis industry and just tell them how I support it or whatever.
And she said, that's cool.
She said, you know, she said Walgreens, they're buying up all land in like North Carolina, different States.
She was telling me, and I asked her for this information, she gave it to me.

(12:25):
So she was like, yeah, they just buying up a lot of land just to grow marijuana because they said, once it's federally approved, you know, they're going in, they want to be the Coca-Cola of cannabis.
And this was like 17 or 18 years ago, like facts, like facts.
So I say that to say, we must unify.

(12:47):
That is the main goal.
I appreciate all, like a lot of activists, if you will, that's fighting for the plant.
Like we appreciate y'all.
I know y'all appreciate us.
We appreciate us.
We're all in a fight together, but the main goal, getting back to these events, like these cannabis events, instead of just having us as brands in there, showing off our brand, let's tap in to the people that's on the street that's telling their story.

(13:14):
Also, let's have some good panels where we can come up with solutions instead of a lot of, you know, how I got here.
We appreciate that.
We appreciate how you got here in your story, but let's drop the story sometime and let's just come up with some solutions.
Like how can we galvanize everyone?
What, how can we start building?

(13:35):
Because we know there's powers in numbers.
How can we, you know, get under one umbrella and actually get someone in the seats in Washington that understands cannabis?
You know, why can't we do that?
So these are the things that we need to like really attack and really build on.
We're still moving separately.

(13:57):
We need to think of more solutions and we're doing that as well, but we can't do it alone.
We definitely need your help.
So tune in to www.unitedempowermentparty.org and let's build something, you know, just like any political party, we need representatives in each state.
So feel free to join in and chime in to what we're doing.

(14:20):
We don't know it all, but the bigger the numbers, the more power we have as a people and as Cannamites.
Cannamites.
I like that.
I like that.
And what's that website one more time?
That's www.unitedempowermentparty.org.
There you go.
You can check us out on the IG, the United Empowerment Party, at United Empowerment Party.

(14:42):
Awesome.
Redman, thank you so much for coming on the show today.
Pleasure having you here.
Good to let you get back out to the festivities.
I got a new album out, Money For This Too.
Check me for my merch at www.crazyreggie.com and get your merch.
Check out my store with my partner, Tariq, at www.richmondhood.com.

(15:02):
That's tagged, that's linked in with the store as well.
Come get some goodies from us.
Check my IG, RedmanGilla, G-I-L-L-A.
On the Twitter is the real Redman.
I'm there.
And check out the work we're doing.
But I dropped the album around Christmas.
It's called Muddy Waters Too.
It is extremely fire.
If you're a fan of the 90s sound, then my album is for you.

(15:27):
That's the Muddy Waters Too album.
Check me out.
Muddy Waters Too.
I'll be checking that out now.
Redman, thank you so much for coming on the show today.
Come on, man.
Pleasure having you here.
Awesome.
Awesome.
On that note, don't forget to go to our website, thedjsessions.com.
Over 700 news stories a month, 2,600 past episodes and more.
New music section coming.
Maybe we'll get some Redman music in that music section.

(15:48):
Hey, how couldn't you, bro?
How couldn't we?
And our site-wide player, and maybe even our virtual reality nightclub.
We'll have you do something in there.
But all that and more at thedjsessions.com.
This is Redman and Darran coming to you from Cantanapis in the Mobile DJ Sessions Studio.
You know what?
And you know what happens on the music, never stops on the DJ sessions.
That's right.
Let's go.
Let's go.