Grab your Zig-Zags, glass tips, and your favorite bag as we roll up on this legendary tale of the true origins of the world-famous cannabis strain, OG Kush! A strain crafted by legends in the game that didn’t just spark a revolution; but built a billion-dollar empire and became the backbone of half the hybrids you’ll find in dispensaries today. While the original and unadulterated cut remains the single most celebrated strain of the last three decades, many have tried to replicate the original, but nothing compares to the “real” OG that was discovered and perfected by three legendary California cultivators: Matt Berger, Josh D (Del Rosso), and Kenji Fujishima. While grinding as VP of Sales for B-Real (Cypress Hill) and Kenji Fujishima’s Dr. Greenthumb’s and Insane brands for over two years, I was fortunate to learn the real story of how this king of all cannabis strains came to California and became a worldwide phenomenon of cannabis culture.

FLORIDA’S HIDDEN STASH

Let’s start at the beginning. It’s 1991, Gainesville, Florida, and growing weed is risky as hell. Feds are lurking, and growers like Matt Berger are playing it close to the chest. Matt scores a bag of “Krippy,” the kind of bud that hits like a freight train, but inside he discovers a few seeds. He plants ‘em all, but one female plant steals the show: its frosty, resin-drenched leaves, smelling like pine, lemon, and a gas station at midnight, proved it was about to yield an absolute genetic banger, likely Chemdawg crossed with Hindu Kush, maybe a dash of Lemon Thai to vibe with Florida’s swampy heat.

Matt calls it “Kush” after a homie says the buds look like “Kushberries,” a nod to the sticky landraces from Afghanistan’s mountains (which many often mistake for OG’s birthplace). Guarding that mother like its family, Matt decides to cross some clones with a chunky indica called “The Bubba,” giving birth to Bubba Kush, a couch-locking legend that’s still revered as a hard-to-find legacy strain. For a few years, this Kush was Florida’s best kept secret, passed only between growers like a sacred blunt.

THE GREAT KUSH ROAD TRIP

By ’96, Matt was ready to shake shit up and he got connected with Josh Del Rosso, a legacy LA grower known for transforming good weed into straight-up magic. Matt’s tenacious spiel about how Florida bud smoked all the competition in Cali was enough to get Josh pumped up and eager to prove him wrong. Soon after, Matt, with big prohibition-era balls, would stuff some Kush cuttings and Bubba Kush seeds in his pockets and hop a flight to LA. It wouldn’t be long before the Kush would go from local plug to West Coast king.

Josh got to work in his San Fernando Valley grow rooms, treating that clone like a rockstar diva even though the strain was a pain to grow. This strain hates overwatering, loves pests—but Josh is a true alchemist and knew he was sitting on pure gold about to be unearthed. He dialed in the hydro, the lights, the whole high-end indoor-grow vibe, and those buds popped: dense, sticky, and just reeking of lemon pine and diesel fuel. THC numbers hit 18–26%, with a 55/45 sativa-indica split that was like a perfect roll-up with its heady buzz and body chill. By ’98, he was passing cuts to the Wonderbrett crew and other Valley weed heads like Matt “Rojo” DeSantis—which all led to this cultivar blowing up in Hollywood’s underground, smoked by rappers, actors, and dealers chasing that “real OG” high. This is also around the time that the perfected plant took on the name OG. There has always been some confusion around the origins and meaning of the name OG. Many knew it to mean “Ocean Grown,” as many were growing their own cuts and crosses near the ocean up by Santa Barbara. Some believed it referred to the way it was grown and cultivated, “Originally Grown,” and others simply called it the “Original Gangster” of the cannabis crop. But in the original circle, the fellas maintain that it was simply called OG because it was the true original, and was dubbed so by Kenji Fujishima and crew. Also, as new variations were cultivated from the clones, everyone kept calling them Kush, but Kenji and team knew they had to treat this one extra special. It deserved its own moniker.

KENJI, B-REAL, AND THE CYPRESS HILL HUSTLE

Kenji was an LA native and martial arts badass who linked up with B-Real of Cypress Hill in the early ‘90s through training. B-Real was taking instruction under Kenji’s dad, a legit sensei. They bonded over bud, and by ’95, Kenji was growing in all kinds of sketchy spots: closets, bathrooms, anywhere the cops wouldn’t look, and was honing his craft as a master cultivator. When Josh D’s OG Kush started making noise around LA, Kenji’s Dr. Greenthumb’s crew scored a cutting from Wonderbrett around ’96, which is when the game changed in the rise of OG Kush! Kenji’s a grower’s grower and treats his clones like fine art. I’ve watched him in the grow room, obsessing over every detail from the lights and nutrients to the spacing, and I have often referred to him as “The Wizard” for his magical ability to craft the most tasty and eye-appealing buds I’ve ever witnessed. He scaled OG, pumping out pounds in underground ops, stuffing it in mason jars or turkey bags for the elites that sought this king of cannabis. He bred his own version of OG Kush known as “Insane OG” (aka Kenji Kush), a cultivar that hits hard at 26% THC and tastes like a lemon dipped in diesel.

Cypress Hill soon became the megaphone for Insane OG. With massive songs like “Hits from the Bong” and “Insane in the Brain,” all eyes were on what the iconic group was puffing on. Kenji earned a reputation as the plug. By ’98, Cypress Hill was smoking Kenji’s OG almost exclusively on tour, passing ounces to Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, and others. Cypress Hill’s lyrics made it a hip-hop badge of honor to claim you were smoking OG on the daily. Kenji was on the road, sneaking clones and seeds to growers from Cali to Amsterdam. I’ve heard him tell stories of stuffing cuts in guitar cases, spreading OG like a weed evangelist. Then it hit Europe, with DNA Genetics dropping seeds like Kosher Kush, proving that B-Real and Kenji made OG a global name long before dispensaries were even a thing.

THE CALI TAKEOVER

By the late ‘90s, OG Kush was running California. Josh D’s clones were everywhere, Kenji was pumping Insane OG, and Matt’s Bubba seeds were sprouting like crazy. The strain hit the Emerald Triangle of Humboldt, Mendocino, and Trinity, where outdoor growers turned it into a real cash crop. In ’09, a pound was fetching a minimum of $3,500 wholesale, which was unheard of for outdoor grown flower! By the time of California legalization in 2016, OGs were a dispensary staple right out of the gate. Other phenotypes started to pop off: Tahoe OG for indica heads, SFV OG for citrus lovers, Fire OG for terpene chasers. Each one sounding off as a new riff on Matt’s clone, proving OG’s DNA dominance in the scene.

OG flipped the script for growers too that wanted to grow what was hot at the time. They ditched pure sativas and indicas for more hybrids, chasing that balanced high and seeking out sticky buds loaded with terpenes like myrcene, limonene, caryophyllene, creating new flavor bombs of earth, lemon, diesel, all in one hit.

THE DANK DYNASTY

OG Kush didn’t just make waves, it built an empire. Genetically, it’s the genesis for over 100 different strains. Girl Scout Cookies, OG x Durban Poison, Headband, OG x Sour Diesel, Skywalker OG, were all born of this sacred lineage, and all industry heads would say that 20–30% of modern hybrids carry OG’s DNA in them somewhere. That 55/45 split, that 18–26% THC, that lemon-pine-diesel vibe has become the true gold standard of cannabis. At Dr. Greenthumb’s, Insane OG was always our top seller by far with customers lined up for every fresh drop. Culturally, OG is West Coast royalty. Cypress Hill, with Kenji’s buds, made it a hip-hop legend. Snoop’s spitting bars about “OG Kush from the West Coast”; Wiz Khalifa’s got albums repping that OG gas, and it’s still on every rapper’s lips from Kendrick to Dre. Brands like Cookies owe their entire empires to OG’s DNA and how it set the stage for a worldwide cannabis culture dominance!

Medically speaking, OG’s a true beast, ready to knock down any ailment as its terpenes ease pain, stress, anxiety, insomnia, all without gluing you to the couch. I’ve spoken to many vets who grab Insane OG for PTSD, saying it’s better than any pill. Harvard Health even backs OG strains for inflammation, and I’ve had customers call it their only lifeline. OG’s that rare strain that hits home for both rec and medicinal users as a true crowd-pleaser.

Economically, OG’s a titan. Post-legalization, it’s driven billions in sales, with Cali’s $20 billion market leaning heavily on OG-derived strains. Cannabis Cups bow to its phenotypes, from Tahoe to Kosher—the proof that if it has OG in the name, it’s gonna sell!

HOW I GOT IN WITH THE OGS OF OG

I have been fortunate to know these legacy OG cultivators and call them friends, but I didn’t just stumble into this world—I fought my way in. Back in the early days, I was a professional rock ‘n’ roller, touring the world and making records with members of KoRn, White Zombie, Mudvayne, and a host of others, but life as a hired gun was not an easy road, and I was about to become a father. Simultaneously, a new career in cannabis was calling and I dove into the industry headfirst. I’d heard the buzz about Kenji’s OG and I knew B-Real from Cypress Hill was the voice of weed culture in music. So I did what any confident hustler would do: I showed up at the grand opening of his first Dr. Greenthumb’s dispensary, asking to rep his brand. I made my pitch, telling B and the Insane crew that I could move their product and speak their language in the shops like no one else. B and Kenji took a chance on me, and that’s how I landed in the inner circle, eventually becoming VP of Sales for Dr. Greenthumb’s and Insane. I was slinging Insane OG, working with Kenji, and building relationships with legends like Wonderbrett and many others. That hustle put me in the room where OG Kush’s legacy was being written and prevailed, and I’m certainly proud to have been able to play a small part in helping grow OG’s legacy through Insane OG!

THE CREW THAT MADE IT

Regardless of what anyone may claim, Matt Berger, Josh D, Kenji Fujishima, Cypress Hill, and a few others in the Valley like Matt “Rojo” DeSantis—they’re the OGs who built this dynasty around OG Kush. Matt’s the spark, finding that seed in Gainesville and smuggling it to LA. Josh D’s the alchemist, turning that clone into Cali’s crown jewel, sharing cuts that changed the game. Kenji and Rojo the hustlers, scaling grows and linking with B-Real to make OG a cultural force. Cypress Hill’s the megaphone, bringing OG to the center stage, and their legacy’s still alive and well. Matt’s cuts are DNA-verified, preserved like relics. Josh D remains a legend, his clones trading like rare vinyl. Kenji’s bringing the whole mob together with Craft Cartel, a new outlet for some of LA’s top cultivators to shine. Rojo is killing it with Redline Reserve. And B-Real and Cypress Hill are lighting up stages all over the globe, performing to bigger audiences than ever before as each year passes.

STILL THE KING

Fast-forward to the fall of 2025, OG Kush is still the GOAT. Today you can walk into any dispensary and find a wide variety of OG cultivars from sweet to sour, stanky to sticky, signifying one truth: that OG will always be crowned the real kind of cannabis cultivars! So next time you reach for the OG, make sure you salute the true OGs who gave this powerful plant to the world!

Scott “SVH” Von Heldt is a musician, author, spiritual guide, and cannabis entrepreneur. He has toured the world with KoRn, White Zombie, Limp Bizkit, and Cirque du Soleil. In 2008, SVH released Mind Over Metal: the Musician's Guide to Mental Mastery, and has served as a staff writer for many music publications.