From Joan Rivers to JAY-Z, these high-flying influencers made waves by blowing smoke in the public eye.
We knew from her name that chameleonic popstar Doja Cat was a smoker. Her 2014 debut single “So High” was another hint. But Doja may have surprised some pop fans when’s she was caught puffing (and tossing) her trusty vape at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards Sunday night.
Before taking the sage to accept the golden microphone for Top R&B Album (one of four wins for Doja), she hit a mysterious vape that stans and sleuths have determined to be a Flum Float device. The clip has since been gif’d and meme’d to capacity, going viral on Twitter to mostly positive quote tweets lauding her relatability.
The reigning pop princess needs a puff in intense situations, just like us. And she even credits shrooms with breaking her cigarette habit, which she now curbs with that trusty (and durable) Flum Float.
Doja is far from the first celebrity to smoke something other than cigarettes in public, and she certainly won’t be the last. And her Billboard awards moment reminded us of other iconic hits, rips, and puffs from some of our favorite famous smokers over the years.
When it comes to influencers who proudly blow o’s, Doja’s in esteemed company. Keep scrolling to discover 9 more public puffs that helped normalize toking and vaping for all.
Barack and Malia Obama as college students
When those black and white shots of former President Barack Obama hitting a joint surfaced during his presidential campaign in 2008, the internet went berserk. I mean, wouldn’t want to sit on a couch with baby-faced Barack in a fedora and motorcycle jacket while blowing some o’s?
Obama averted scandal by staying open about his past cannabis use with the public. He even detailed using weed and other substances in his memoir Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance. And it seems like he passed his 420-friendly views down to at least one of his daughters.
Malia Obama, then a student at Harvard, was also photographed smoking something that could have been weed back at Lollapalooza 2016. Conservatives had a field day trying to make a moral issue of the matter, but the country collectively shrugged as the plant continued to overcome old stigmas at incredible rates.
Elon Musk on Joe Rogan
These two blew millions of minds during a 2018 interview, and have mostly blown smoke since. Rogan passed the multi-billionaire a joint, and pressured him to hit it since they were recording in California, where the plant is legal.
The memes that follower are legendary, we’re just waiting on these two to put more of their money and considerable platforms behind creating more 420-friendly spaces and supporting the 40,000 prisoners who are still locked up for non-violent weed charges.
Snoop at the Super Bowl
Color us shocked that Hip Hop’s king stoner took a personal timeout to chief while performing at the big’s game’s half-time show.
We’ve seen Snoop launch his own brand, his own media platform, and get zooted with Martha Stewart, but something about sparking one on the world’s biggest stage felt like a historic moment for stoners worldwide.
Zach Galifianakis on Bill Maher
Zach Galifianakis has made a career of making people uncomfortable and finding comedy in the unexpected.
One such moment came back in 2010, on Bill Maher’s Real Time talk show on HBO. While discussing drug legalization and California’s Proposition 19, Zach whips out a joint and lights it, in lieu of articulating his stance on the matter.
The studio audience loved it. And Maher, a noted stoner, likely did as well. But HBO’s legal team was probably not keen on paying the FCC fine for breaking federal law. So they, and Maher, claimed it was not actually weed in the joint he passed around the panel.
Yeah, OK guys.
JAY-Z smokes weed on SNL
Back in 2000, JAY-Z took his crew on Saturday Night Live to blow spliffs in a droptop driven by Will Ferrell (as Robert Goulet).
JAY was never known to smoke as much as rap peers Snoop or Cypress Hill, but he is now heavily invested in a legal weed partnership with Caliva.
The SNL clip was a rare look at how the rapper and mogul actually acts when he’s stoned.
Joined by blunt-blowing friends Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel, JAY proceeds to take a few hits and give one of the worst live performances in SNL history, with Goulet’s vocal assistance. Thankfully, JAY’s dank demeanor was all part of the skit (we think).
Seth Rogen, any time, any place
Point to any public appearance Seth Rogen has ever done, and you can bet money he smoked weed beforehand. If you hadn’t noticed, the guy is stoned 24/7, and proudly so.
He smokes on the sets of his movies, while writing, while on podcasts, and of course, while at home. In fact it’s said that every time Seth Rogen lights some flower, a pothead gets their wings.
Joan Rivers smokes on her reality show
Rest in Peace, Joan Rivers: We just know you would have loved the Puffco Cupsy.
The scathing fashion critic and comedy genius could make anyone want to need a toke after getting roasted by her fiery tongue. On her 2012 reality show, Joan and Melissa, she patronized a medical marijuana dispensary and took a bong rip that will live on in our hearts forever. They were so baked they had to call a driver to get home safely.
Aubrey Plaza smokes weed with Sisters of the Valley
Aubrey Plaza, some nuns, and some Zaza walk in a room.
We wish there was a punchline. But in 2017, comedy cool girl Plaza joined members of the Sisters of the Valley medical weed-growing nuns to share their secret stash and love for the plant in this hilarious video.
“We believe cannabis oil was the other holy oil of the Bible,” said one nun during their baked dialog. “Our position is if Jesus lived, he probably smoked weed.”
The nuns say they grow weed to support themselves, and to “create honorable spiritual jobs for women.”
Miley Cyrus at the European Music Awards
Miley has smoked plenty of weed in public over the last decade since shedding her Disney Channel image, but not all of her tokes have been well-received. Back in 2013, at the height of her Bangerz phase, Cyrus whipped out and lit a joint onstage while accepting her best video award, causing some news outlets to lose their effing minds.
Thank heavens the dark days of being a smoker are over, and here’s to many more iconic puffs for you and yours.
