Jenee Branch (@tharealkushthajunkie01), aka KushThaJunkie, or “Kush” for short, has been a budtender for over six years now, but this San Diego native has been smoking for as long as she can remember.
At San Diego’s only dispensary and smoking lounge, Branch helps visitors navigate the wide array of options and, more importantly, leave feeling more confident about Cannabis than when they came in. “I try to give everyone an experience, not an experiment,” she told the Leaf.
Being a rapper as well as a budtender, Branch has a musical mind, a gift of gab and an infectious energy, all of which make for a natural performer both onstage and on the dispensary floor. Like music, she said, Cannabis is all about how it makes you feel.
Branch got into budtending after her reputation in the community and on social media reached Malique Parish, Connected Cannabis Co.’s brand manager, who suggested her for a spot at Cookies in La Mesa. There she spent five years cultivating a reputation among customers for knowing where the newest heat was coming from. When she was asked to join the opening staff for Sessions By The Bay, she made the hard choice to leave her first store and help create something new.
Branch told California Leaf that, at first, budtending was just a pothead’s dream job. It got serious in 2021 to 2022 when she was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma. After undergoing chemotherapy, edibles and Rick Simpson oil helped her recover and stay positive. “Those things really helped me get through a dire situation, and I’m thankful to be cancer-free, and that’s made me love Cannabis even more.”
Having experienced the therapeutic benefits during her own journey, she said she feels a connection with those who come in with questions about how to find relief with Cannabis.
A big fan of both flower and rosin, she said, “I love a gassy OG or a Z. You could cross Zkittlez with a boot, and I’d smoke it if it’s good.” Right now she’s rolling up Turtle Pie, Teds Budz and most of the recent releases from Pound Cake’s. As for dabs, she shouted out the work Barrett Farms has done with Cryo Lab, as well as the recent Piattella from Ay Papi.
While she thrives on the connections she makes budtending, in the long term, Branch said she’d love to move into a purchasing position someday. When asked what advice she had for new hires, she said, “I tell a person if you’re gonna come into this game right now, be your whole-hearted, authentic self.” She remarked on how you need to be ready to meet people with a “positive vibe and a helping hand. Remind them, ‘We’re blessed, now let’s get you less stressed.’”
