MALA MUÑOZ

“Marijuanera: A Podcast for Potheads”

Muñoz is a writer, a comedian, a voice actor, a podcast producer, to name a few of her endeavors — but the common element linking each of these ventures is marijuana.

She launched “Marijuanera: A Podcast for Potheads,” combining comedy and cannabis, in 2021; each episode starts and ends with a hefty rip from her bong and is accompanied by frequent smoke breaks during recording sessions.

“I like to smoke the entire time, while I’m writing, while I’m recording, while I’m editing — like I am in just a giant cloud,” Muñoz says.

Before she was sharing her high thoughts about the state of the world on the internet, Muñoz worked on-call 24/7 at a rape crisis center along with a team of first responders. The grueling experience prompted Muñoz to shift career paths and she became a sex education teacher. Then, as the COVID-19 pandemic erupted, she utilized her newfound free time to explore comedy through her own solo podcast.

“Literally, I need to laugh to keep from crying, and I feel like my audience needs that too,” Muñoz says.

One example is Muñoz’s May 26 episode, “Soliloquy for Sad Girls,” which grapples with topics such as the difference between effective and ineffective comedy as well as the idea that not all feelings are valid if prejudice is being misrepresented as perspective.

“Marijuanera: A Podcast for Potheads” is produced by Locatora Radio, a production company co-founded by Muñoz and fellow radio host Diosa Femme in 2016. She and Femme recently closed a deal with iheartradio.

— Katie Reul