Country and cannabis icon Willie Nelson will be honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 15th annual Emerald Cup next month. Ironically, Nelson’s brief scheduled appearance at the 2018 Emerald Cup will be the first time that the famous country songwriter and guitarist will attend the cannabis-themed event, which returns to the Sonoma County Fairgrounds in Santa Rosa, California the weekend of December 15-16th.
The event’s producers announced on Wednesday that Nelson will make a rare December appearance to accept the honor in person, in addition to performing a few songs for fans in attendance. Organizers also revealed that the Lifetime Achievement Award will be rebranded as the “Willie Nelson Award” going forward for future honorees. The award is considered a high honor for anyone, let alone a Country Music Hall of Famer and cannabis connoisseur as experienced as Nelson.
“We’re finally going to get Willie there. It’ll be a magical moment given [his] age and how much we’ve always wanted him,” Emerald Cup founder Tim Blake said about the thrill of confirming Nelson’s appearance at his event following years of failed attempts.
One of the big hurdles the event organizers have been forced to deal with in previous years is Nelson’s relentless touring schedule, along with the fact that he rarely performs in the winter month. However, Nelson’s appearance at the event on December 16th from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. will be short-lived, as he’s expected to accept his award followed by a brief performance of just a few songs. Nelson will come up from Cupertino, California, where he and his Family Band are scheduled to play at the Flint Center the night prior. Nelson’s remaining fall tour schedule has him performing across his native Texas and other southern U.S. cities throughout the month of November.
“An unwavering ability to stand true in his beliefs and refusal to accept society’s rigid set of rules are only part of what makes Willie the perfect individual to be recognized as a hero to the cannabis world,” Blake continued in his praise for Nelson, who sells his own strain of weed titled “Willie’s Reserve.”
Fans can click here for more information and tickets to the 2018 Emerald Cup, which will also feature musical performances by Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Nattali Rize and more. Fans can also watch the video below to hear one of Nelson’s famous weed-themed songs, “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die.”
Willie Nelson – “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die”
[Video: WillieNelson]
[H/T Leafly]