Our Chat With Mike
MMR Publisher Ben Horner sits down with Mike Tyson
By Ben Horner
Boxing Legend Mike Tyson and his new brand of cannabis products, Tyson 2.0, was the featured cover story for the May/June issue of The Marijuana Report.
We had a follow-up interview for The Michigan Marijuana Report with Mike Tyson in the backroom office of Liv Cannabis Company on Saturday, April 23 in Lansing, Michigan.
Upon arrival to a scene crowded with Tyson fans and media, we presented our credentials and our host, publicist Chris Behnan, checked “Ben Horner, The Michigan Marijuana Report” off the list.
There were many journalists waiting to interview Tyson but fans were first. After several hours our names were called: It was our turn with Mike.
“Never disregard first impressions,” Herbert Huncke once said. Surprisingly, Mike Tyson is a quiet man. Soft spoken. Respectful, when treated that way. (Journalists had been told to avoid questions regarding Tyson’s entrapment by a noxious fan on a boarding flight just days before. What is there to ask we thought? Simple solution: Don’t rudely antagonize the most recognizable heavyweight boxing champion on the planet unless you desire to get knocked the fuck out.)
It was our turn with Mike and after a quick greeting, my associate Jermome Poynton handed Tyson “The Long Count” by Mel Heimer, a book about the 1927 bout staged at Chicago Soldier Field between Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney. The bout was controversial due to a long count on Tunney who was able to get up and knock out Dempsey later in the match. Tyson looked around for a pen, thinking we wanted an autograph. “For your library,” clarified Jerome. Tyson smiled and held the book close during the interview, obviously grateful for the insightful generosity.
In the backroom office at Liv Cannabis Company in Lansing, Tyson gave us these responses:
In our last interview we asked you about your connection to Larry “Ratso” Sloman who was the editor of High Times and helped write Undisputed Truth, and you said he was a good guy. Can you expand on that?
Man, that was so long ago. I remember talking about Asshole Joe and Sour Diesel, but did he have an influence, I just don’t remember.
There are still a lot of people still locked up on cannabis charges, how do you feel about that?
That is why Tyson 2.0 is working with the Biden administration to help exonerate and get early release for people still locked up and expungement for people who have criminal records. Nobody should be locked up for cannabis, not twenty years ago, not today.
Now here in Michigan there is a politician that wants to make it illegal for people to smoke weed on probation. What do you think, should people be allowed to smoke while on parole or probation?
Listen. When I started fighting 1985 to what like 2005, I only smoked weed once, but I drank every night. I was a full-blown alcoholic, but it was okay, because it was legal. It was ok that I was falling over, kicking people in the head, falling off my motorcycle. Once I started smoking weed and getting my life together, they said I’m a phony, he’s a pothead, he’s a stoner. They made fun of me about that. Now look at what we are doing. Who’s laughing now?
Jerome and I then got to ask Common Citizen CEO Michael Elias about their involvement with Tyson 2.0 and other ongoing projects:
How many Common Citizen stores carry Tyson 2.0 cannabis?
We are excited about this historic cultivation partnership with one of boxing’s living legends, and I have no doubt Tyson 2.0’s safe, affordable and high-quality cannabis products will deliver a knockout for our customers. These amazing new products are immediately available in all Common Citizen retail locations, and we will continue to grow distribution throughout 2022.
What strain that you are producing in Michigan is your favorite?
At Common Citizen, all of our safe, high-quality cannabis products are designed to serve the individual needs of our patients and adult-use customers. Each Tyson 2.0 strain provides a unique experience, so picking just one would be like picking a favorite child. What I can say is the strains we chose for our first batch of Tyson products were carefully curated to give people the premium experience expected from high-quality flower like Tyson 2.0.
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