Rap stars host pot-friendly comedy show in KC, as attitudes toward marijuana shift | Opinion
From the stage inside a smoke-filled room at the Legends Event Space and Lounge on Longview Road in south Kansas City, hip hop artist Kyjuan grabbed the microphone and made a strong declaration about cannabis.
“Smoking weed is OK,” Kyjuan, a member of the multi platinum-album selling rap group the St. Lunatics, said to the audience after the first of two comedy shows Saturday at the venue. He wasn’t far from the truth.
Once taboo, the stigma associated with cannabis as some sort of gateway to hardcore drug use is slowly dissipating. And there’s data to show that Americans’ attitudes about the consumption of cannabis are changing.
Although the use and possession of marijuana is still illegal under federal law, nearly half of the United States has legalized pot for recreational use. In Missouri, both medical and recreational use of marijuana is legal. At least 38 other states and Washington D.C. have legalized pot in some form, according to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, an advocacy group that tracks such data.
Support for marijuana
According to a 2024 Pew Research Center survey, 88% of adults in the United States said marijuana should be legal for medical or recreational use. Only 11% believe the drug should be outlawed altogether. This discrepancy has held true over the last five years, according to the research.
And Kyjuan, his brother, Murphy Lee, and their sister, a comedian that goes by the name Jus Blaque, are using a different route to tap into this burgeoning industry: comedy.
Murphy Lee is a Grammy-award winning rapper and also a member of the St. Lunatics, a group who counts hip-hop superstar Nelly as one of its founding members. Jus Blaque is executive producer of the siblings’ comedy series Smokes and Jokes.
The show made its first appearance in Kansas City over the weekend. Based on the audience reaction to the comics on the bill, it most likely won’t be the last.
“When are y’all coming back?” a person in the crowd yelled out after the last show.
“We’ll be back,” Kyjuan said.
Kyjuan said he was stoned when he developed the concept for Smokes and Jokes almost two years ago. The goal is to bring cannabis users together with live comedy. The siblings have produced multiple shows in St. Louis. Smokes and Jokes made a stop in Houston too. A Chicago show is next month. Kansas City was the next logical market.
“Why not here?” Kyjuan said. “It’s in Missouri and it’s legal.”
Comedian Kevin Robe of Kansas City owns Legends Event Space. He opened as the first act during the second show Saturday. After his five-minute set, Robe was asked why he wanted to get involved with hosting private, 420-friendly events such as Smokes and Jokes.
“They legalized it,” he said. “A lot of my friends and family members smoke it. Why not bring the worlds together?”
Kansas City comic Real Lamont High also performed. Decked out in a red Kansas City Chiefs jacket and matching t-shirt, Real Lamont High said after his set that he was honored to be included in the rappers’ first Smokes and Jokes event here. He even chided Murphy Lee about the Grammy award he won in 2003 for the song “Shake Ya Tailfeather” with Nelly and Diddy, the rap mogul who is currently facing charges for alleged criminal acts including untoward sex crimes.
“I love it,” Real Lamont High said of the comedy series. “It’s dope.”
Rooted in Hip-Hop
The inspiration for Smokes and Jokes is rooted in comedy and hip-hop, Kyjuan said. He cited BET’s Comic View comedy show and HBO’s iconic Def Comedy Jam as the models. The plan is to film a comedy special later this year for worldwide distribution, he said.
“The West Coast had Comic View,” Kyjuan said. “The East Coast had Def Comedy Jam. The Midwest has Smokes and Jokes.”
Murphy Lee added: “We’re just trying to build a foundation. I just want this to be a start for finding the funniest people in each city around the world and showcase that.”
Jus Blaque explained not everyone smokes pot, but there are certain health benefits to cannabis. Smokes and Jokes have vendors on location that sell alternative forms of cannabis such as gummies or THC-infused products to help folks cope with anxiety, stress or other medical issues. One company was on site to educate people on how to obtain a medical marijuana card, she said.
“Smokes and Jokes is about wellness, too,” Jus Blaque said.
At the venue, I counted close to 300 people in attendance. The first show was a private event for the general public. The second was reserved for employees of event sponsor Vivid Cannabis, a Missouri-based company owned by Show-Me Organics.
Free samples and swag bags were plentiful. And reefer smoke flowed freely. Not everyone indulged but a good time was seemingly had by pot users and non-smokers alike.
“It was really, really enjoyable,” Tanya Jones, a non-pot user from Kansas City, said. “I really, really enjoyed myself.”
Over the course of four hours, one comic after another took the stage and left the audience members in stitches. Kansas City comedians shared the stage with acts from St. Louis. Each had their own style. Some were raunchy and funny. Others were laid back and just as hilarious. I laughed most of the night.
Stand-up comic Jovan Bibbs of St. Louis was the headliner. During the second show, noticing the stillness in the room, Bibbs dropped perhaps the best one-liner of the night.
“That weed kicked in,” Bibbs said, referring to the delayed reaction from the audience. Laughter followed. And that was the goal of the entire evening, Kyjuan said.
“What’s better than weed and comedy?” he said.
This story was originally published September 25, 2024 at 5:06 AM.
