EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH HEMPFEST FOUNDER VIVIAN MCPEAK

Elise McDonough | August 20, 2016

Revolutionary founder of Seattle Hempfest, Vivian McPeak is a veteran of a great many psychedelic rodeos. While growing the world’s largest gathering of cannaphiles from a modest happening down at Gas Works Park into a behemoth “protestival” that brings 150,000 people to the skinny, shore-hugging Myrtle Edwards park in the heart of the city for three days each August, McPeak and his crew of stalwart volunteers have transformed the good vibes of Hempfest into a year-round lifestyle, with a full-time office and retail store and a devoted following who return to the park every year.

However, instead of focusing solely on celebration at the 25th Anniversary of Hempfest, McPeak is distracted by financial woes, compounded by the ever-changing legal landscape around cannabis as well as local pundits who feel the festival has become irrelevant.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH HEMPFEST FOUNDER VIVIAN MCPEAK