Brett Feldman

FELDMAN, THE namesake of the Wonderbrett brand, has been on the Southern California weed scene for a long time, getting his start as a grower back in the late-’90s medicalonly days, leveraging a chance encounter with a cut of OG Kush into a cannabis empire built with business partner Cameron Damwijk around fruity-sounding strains such as Beyond Blueberry, Orange Sunset and Pineapple OZ Kush, and music industry collabs with the likes of Atlanta rapper Russ, singer-producer Poo Bear and rapper B-Real.

The cultivation (based in a 22,000-square-foot Long Beach facility) and manufacturing (including vape pens and prerolls) sides of the business are not part of the city’s social equity program, but the La Brea Avenue storefront, which opened in July 2021 (with a star-studded bash that included a Snoop Dogg pop-in) is, thanks to Feldman’s earlyaughts run-in with the law.

“It was 2 in the morning, and I was sitting in my parked car in front of my recording studio using my laptop because that’s where the Wi-Fi worked the best,” Feldman recalled. “And the cops who were driving by turned around and parked their car and knocked on my window. I smelled like weed because I’d just been smoking in the studio.”

His arrest on suspicion of marijuana possession with intent to distribute (he had a scale) was the beginning of eight months of legal wrangling that he says ultimately resulted in the case being dismissed. “I feel very blessed and lucky to have made it this far,” Feldman said, “and to be unlucky enough to get myself arrested and qualify for the social equity program.”