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A trio of Woodstock-era stoners smoke the dankest, most magical strain on the planet, take a 50-year nap and Rip Van Winkle into current-day San Francisco.
Along with adjusting to their new normal, post-Summer of Love, these dudes will need to restock. That’s where Weedmaps comes in, with the cannabis marketplace showing up as the hero that keeps the party going for the stars of the Tubi animated series The Freak Brothers.
The collaboration between the popular weed platform and the cult favorite entertainment property is “a convergence of the psychedelic past and the digital present,” according to Greg Goldner, chief brand and strategy officer for The Freak Brothers, a series based on the renowned underground comic The Furry Freak Brothers.
As part of the deal, Weedmaps will sponsor “Smoke & Screen” premiere parties in eight U.S. cities where recreational cannabis sales are legal—Denver, New York, Chicago, Boston and Phoenix, among them. The gatherings, scheduled in the run-up to season 2’s new episode launch Sept. 24, are planned for rooftop clubs and other venues where on-site consumption is allowed.
Gen Z meets OG
The partnership aims to bring two like-minded audiences together while potentially identifying new fans for each brand.
The Freak Brothers’ voice cast includes John Goodman, Tiffany Haddish, Pete Davidson, Adam Devine and cannapreneur-dispensary owner Woody Harrelson. With characters that predate Cheech & Chong, it has dual viewership from “OG counterculture” followers of the original 55-year-old comic to Gen Z and millennials who discovered it on the Fox-owned streaming service, Goldner said.
The alliance could broaden exposure for Weedmaps, better known among digital natives than Baby Boomers, via its pivotal product placement in the series as the go-to resource for cannabis. Likewise, its young devotees may not have caught onto The Freak Brothers yet, but they’re likely to be predisposed to the irreverent comedy.