Wiz Khalifa launches mushroom brand MISTERCAP'S. Is he getting into psychedelics?

Grammy-winning rapper Wiz Khalifa has launched a new brand that promotes healthy living through the use of mushrooms.

No, not those mushrooms. At least not for now.

MISTERCAP'S is being marketed as a "mushroom-forward brand promoting healthy living via natural organic mushrooms."

"These are normal culinary mushrooms, not psychedelic!" Mistercap's spokeswoman Kendall Stoudt told USA TODAY on Monday.

Here's what you need to know about the new company and whether it has anything to do with what seems to be a growing movement to legalize magic mushrooms and other psychedelics in the U.S.

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More about MISTERCAP'S

MISTERCAP'S general manager, Philippe Chetrit, said in a statement to USA TODAY that the company "is exclusively focused on culinary mushrooms at this time" and sees them "as the best way to increase the reach of mushrooms as a means of well being."

"But the brand will keep its eyes on the legal landscape and re-evaluate as appropriate," he said.

MISTERCAP'S is partnering with with Red Light Holland, described in a news release as exotic mushroom farmers in North America and Europe.

Red Light Holland describes its business as "revolving around the production, growth and sale ... of a premium brand of magic truffles to the legal, recreational market within the Netherlands," in accordance with the European nation's laws.

"Red Light Holland is strategically based in the Netherlands, an area with a long-standing, established legal magic truffles market," the company says.

Khalifa also has a cannabis brand, Khalifa Kush, launched in 2016 with a weed strain "tailored specifically for his personal tastes and held closely within his private stashes in Los Angeles," according to the company's website.

What will MISTERCAP'S sell?

MISTERCAP'S is launching an at-home grow kit, which allows customers to "experience the entire life cycle of a mushroom from mycelium to meal."

"People love growing their own food," Khalifa said in the news release. "People know so little about mushrooms, so my goal with MISTERCAP'S is to showcase its positive benefits, and bring them to a wider audience."

Mistercap's is launching exclusively online with three products: the Oyster grow kit, Shiitake grow kit and the Lion's Mane grow kit.

The company says that the mushrooms will be packed with flavor and that each species has "functional and nutritional benefits, which may result in improving energy levels and brain function, reducing inflammation and supporting the immune system."

"We were inspired by Wiz's interest in culinary mushrooms and the benefits they provide," Philippe Chetrit, general manager of MISTERCAP'S, said in the news release.

"Our branding was purposefully designed to make mushrooms more approachable," he said. "The kits provide a fun and friendly way to introduce mushrooms into our customers' lives, allowing them to discover the beauty of such an amazing process."

MISTERCAP'S kits are available online for $27.95.

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California could legalize magic mushrooms, natural psychedelics

Khalifa's announcement comes as a bill legalizing magic mushrooms and other plant-based psychedelics sits on California Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk.

The bill, authored by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, passed the Senate earlier this month with a 21-14 vote. Newsom has until Oct. 14 to sign or veto it.

If approved, the law would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2025, making California the third state in the nation to make such a move.

Oregon voters passed Ballot Measure 109 in 2020, legalizing the use of state-regulated psilocybin, sometimes called magic mushrooms. The state's first psilocybin service center opened in June, according to PBS News Hour.

In November, Colorado voters approved the use of the drug. Several cities in other states have likewise decriminalized it, and Arizona is considering a bill that would spend $30 million to research psychedelic mushrooms as a treatment for a host of medical conditions.

The debate over legalized psychedelics

Those in favor of legalizing psychedelics point to health benefits observed in people experiencing PTSD, depression and addiction, and they "deserve access to these promising plant medicines," Wiener said in a statement after his bill passed in the California Assembly.

“It’s time to stop criminalizing people who use psychedelics for healing or personal well-being," he said.

Others are urging caution given that the potential risks of using psychedelics for medical reasons is still being studied.

One group opposing Wiener's bill is the William G. Nash Foundation, a coalition of mothers who've lost children in connection with the use of ingesting psychedelics.

Kirstin Nash has widely shared the story of her son who died two months before his college graduation. She now runs a foundation named after her son, William, through which she works to raise awareness about harm reduction efforts, according to the foundation's website.

Nash told CalMatters that she is not against allowing veterans and others to use these substances for treatment, but she'd like to see Wiener's bill amended to include safety measures for personal use.

“I would argue that we need these safeguards,” she told the nonprofit. "When we make this policy shift, we know that use will increase further, that adverse events will increase further, and so I feel like we don’t have to choose between social justice, equitable access and safety, we can do all of those things.”

Her son took his own life after experiencing a state of psychosis from taking psychedelics in March 2020 with friends, who called police for help, according to the group's website.

"Will was able to fatally harm himself before that help arrived," the site says. "Psychedelics themselves do not cause death, like overdoses from alcohol and other drugs can. However, people can injure themselves or others while hallucinating. He is missed every day by cherished friends, close family and an extended community that loved him dearly."