In Mike Tyson's journey from boxer to entrepreneur, the former heavyweight champion has turned to some Chicago business leaders to get his budding cannabis startup off the ground. But, as Tyson himself explains, this next phase of his career was kickstarted by "the toad."
"The toad," or 5-MeO-DMT, a naturally occurring psychedelic found in gland secretions of toads, changed everything for Tyson. The hallucinogenic experience helped him get back in the ring last year after a 15-year hiatus, he says. And it eventually led him to a meeting with Daniel Carcillo, a former Chicago Blackhawks player and co-founder of Wesana, a Chicago firm that wants to use psychedelics to help people recover from brain injuries. Tyson personally invested in the business, which went public in Canada earlier this year.
Knowing the impact psychedelics have had in his life, Tyson believes others should have access to the healing properties of hallucinogens.
"I never was really a fan of psychedelics. I aways smoked weed," Tyson told me over Zoom. "I tried this medicine called the toad ... I did it once and I've never been the same. I've done it around 50 times now."
Tyson said the experience taking the substance helped motivate him to lose more than 100 pounds and get back into fighting shape.
"My psychological state was really negative and dark ... I couldn’t get along with people," he said of his life before 5-MeO-DMT. "It enlightened me. It took me out the darkness."
Tyson's investment in Wesana introduced him to another Chicago startup executive in Chad Bronstien, a Wesana co-founder and the CEO of Fyllo, a Chicago cannabis marketing-tech firm that's raised around $60 million in funding.
Along with fellow business partner Adam Wilks, they are launching a cannabis brand and the latest celebrity-backed weed company to hit the market. Dubbed Tyson 2.0, the cannabis firm will offer cannabis flowers, edibles, dabs and other products. Its first product is expected to hit the market in November, followed by a full-fledged launch in early 2022. Wilks, a veteran cannabis executive, will serve as the company's CEO, with Bronstien as chairman. Tyson will operate as its chief brand officer.
Tyson 2.0 has raised $6 million in funding to date from Sol Global, K2 and Ambria, some of the same investors behind Fyllo and Wesana. The firm has partnered with Columbia Care, a large cannabis producer licensed in more than a dozen states, to cultivate and manufacture its product. The company will sell Tyson's products at its dispensaries, as well as wholesale to other retailers.
Tyson said it was a "no brainer" to partner with Bronstien and Wilks on Tyson 2.0.
"They’re a cannabis dream team," he said.
Tyson 2.0 isn't the boxing legend's first foray into the marijuana market. In 2018 he launched Tyson Ranch, a venture that creates cannabis products. He also launched HotBoxin’, a podcast that features conversations with actors, musicians, athletes and other celebrities that's been listened to over 40 million times.
With Tyson 2.0, the company will look to develop proprietary strains of cannabis and launch across the country in states where the plant is legal.
"This isn’t going to be some run-of-the-mill cannabis brand," Bronstien told me. "I think we’ll be the first celebrity brand with real quality product that will have full scale and products everywhere ... Other celebrity brands have struggled because they don't have scale. Mike’s been a pretty big name in cannabis for quite some time."
With overlapping leadership across Fyllo, Wesana and now Tyson 2.0, Bronstien says the three companies are "working in tandem," with Tyson 2.0 plugging into Fyllo for marketing help, for instance.
Bronstien said Tyson will play a hands-on role in the business, beyond simply providing the company with a celebrity boost.
"Mike is a true entrepreneur," he said. "He’s very methodical. He likes to be a part of the business. Mike's going to show up to the meetings. He’s been a big part of the development of the company. He’s a visionary."
With his latest business venture launched, Tyson's sights may be set next on another return to the right. Rumors have swirled that his next fight could be against YouTuber Logan Paul in February. I asked Tyson when he plans to get in the ring again.
"I don't know. I'm starting to train today. Maybe in February," he said.
