Weed Isn’t Cool, But It Isn’t Not Cool, According to People at Coachella

We know many things about weed: that it is Good; that it makes music, and even your washing machine, sound good; and that Drake very likely has not smoked it. Also, it’s legal, baby! Some places, anyway. And with that has come a corporate, government-regulated sheen glaring through the haze, its “super chill vibes” hawked on billboards as everyone else gets on the bandwagon to cash in.

Which brings to mind something we no longer know about weed: Is it still cool, now that everyone from your mom to your boss can buy it? Is it still cool, now that recreational dispensaries in LA look and feel more like Apple stores than your gnarly, rasta-baked local head shop? After all, you can now buy your mom a flower vase bong for Mother’s Day; or maybe she’ll like this nice Magical Butter kitchenware from Amazon. Tech is all over it, naturallt, crafting nifty gadgets no one ever asked for, like this $249 weed Keurig, a Quartz watch that’s also a grinder (the calculator watch of our time), or this tokeable hoodie, which definitely will not make all your clothes smell like weed.

Weed is, officially, still not legally cool to bring into Coachella, but that didn’t stop fest-goers from lighting up, vaping, ingesting, or otherwise partaking in the devil’s lettuce last weekend to enhance that sweet, sweet live music. Since Coachella is nothing if not a place where people go to ***be cool***, we hit the polo field to investigate where weed’s clout stands at the dawn of 2018.

Riah and Courtney, 23, Utah

Is weed cool?
Riah: I don’t know! [ Takes long pull from vape pen]
Courtney: I don’t know, is it?
Riah: OK so, I brought a joint the other day, and I got it stolen by the security guard. He looked at it and he said—because I had it hidden in a tampon—“I knew you were gonna hide it in here!” And I was like “Shit, I should’ve hid it in my boobs!” But I had [my pen] hidden in my bra, so we’re OK.

Kerry, 26, LA

Is weed still cool?
I would say that it’s fun and enjoyable, and I enjoy smoking it.

Is it cool though?
I mean… it’s just like, accessible. I don’t know. There’s so many different people in it now…There’s like mega-stoner type people, underground weed scene people.

Does the fact that it’s legal now make it less cool?
I don’t know. I guess technically less cool because anyone can now—parents, like my friend’s mom goes to the weed store. So it’s definitely not like, 14-year-old cool anymore probably.

Is it cool to smoke weed at Coachella?
It’s necessary. Very needed.

What’s the best way to smoke weed at Coachella?
I got my vape pen.

Liana, 22, Southern California

In the dawn of 2018, is weed cool?
Hell yeah.

Why?
Why? Cuz it makes you feel goooood. Your body, your rules.

Sarah and Ricky, San Diego

Now that weed is legal, is weed still cool?
Sarah: We are very strong advocates of the pot.

Why?
Peter: It makes all your bad feelings into good ones.
Sarah: It gives me clarity more than anything.

Sean, 29, Santa Monica

Is weed still cool?

What made it cool before?
Inaccessibility. And the risk of you know, getting caught. You’re a bad boy. You know.

Do you think festivals should be allowing people to smoke in California, the same way they have beer gardens? Should there be a weed garden? Would that make the festival less cool?
I think it would be awesome, but I don’t think the law permits smoking in public places, I’m pretty sure. Hypothetically though, hell yeah. I mean, the cool people wouldn’t buy it there. They’d just bring their own stuff that’s better, I’m sure.