Mango After Hours Podcast

What does it take to go from military school student, to Merchant Marine officer, to cannabis entrepreneur, to Discovery Channel star, and eventually founder of Midzotics?In Episode 26 of Mango After Hours, Mango sits down with Matt Shotwell for an incredible conversation that spans decades of personal history, cannabis culture, entrepreneurship, federal enforcement, reality television, and the wild early days of California cannabis.Before Midzotics ever existed, Matt's story began in Northern Virginia. Growing up in a large family just outside Washington D.C., he shares stories about being a competitive athlete, attending military boarding school, experimenting with cannabis as a teenager, and navigating the challenges that eventually pushed him toward a life far different than the one originally planned for him.Matt opens up about his time attending multiple military academies, his pursuit of a career in the armed services, and his experiences training as a Merchant Marine officer. The conversation dives into life at sea, navigating massive cargo ships around the world, traveling internationally as a young man, and the lessons learned from operating in some of the most disciplined and demanding environments imaginable.The episode takes a dramatic turn as Matt recounts the events that ultimately led him into cannabis. What started as curiosity evolved into an entrepreneurial opportunity during one of the most uncertain periods in California cannabis history. Long before legalization, sophisticated licensing systems, and billion-dollar cannabis companies, operators were building businesses in an environment where laws were unclear, regulations were constantly changing, and the risks were enormous.Matt shares how he purchased his first home in Vallejo, California, became fascinated by cannabis cultivation, and eventually opened one of the city's earliest dispensaries. At a time when local governments were struggling to determine how cannabis businesses should operate, Matt found himself at the center of a rapidly evolving industry.One of the most unbelievable moments in the episode is the story of how he continued serving customers out of the back of a Ryder truck after being forced out of his original location. The story perfectly captures the entrepreneurial mindset, determination, and chaos that defined California's cannabis industry during the medical marijuana era.The conversation also explores the creation of what would eventually become Weed Country, the groundbreaking Discovery Channel series that gave viewers an inside look at the cannabis world years before mainstream acceptance. Matt reveals how he self-funded production efforts, documented everything on camera, pitched networks, and ultimately became part of one of the most recognizable cannabis television shows of its time.Beyond television, Matt discusses what it was like operating a cannabis business under constant pressure from regulators, competitors, law enforcement, and federal authorities. He recounts being raided by multiple government agencies, the uncertainty that followed, and the resilience required to keep moving forward despite enormous obstacles.Throughout the episode, listeners get a firsthand account of an era that many newer cannabis operators never experienced. This is a story about the industry's Wild West period—a time when entrepreneurs were writing the rules as they went, taking risks that would be difficult to imagine in today's highly regulated market.Matt also reflects on the lessons learned throughout his career, including business strategy, leadership, risk management, personal growth, and the importance of adapting when circumstances change. Whether discussing military discipline, entrepreneurship, cannabis culture, media production, or building Midzotics, Matt provides insights that extend far beyond the cannabis industry itself.

Chase from Umami Seeds joins the podcast for an in-depth conversation about one of the most unconventional paths into cannabis breeding. Long before he became known for creating sought-after genetics, he was a teenager growing cannabis in Utah, navigating a strict Mormon upbringing, and learning cultivation through trial, error, and curiosity.The discussion traces Chase's journey from his first outdoor plants grown from seeds found in brick cannabis to discovering breeding almost by accident through early pollination projects. What began as simple experimentation quickly became a lifelong fascination with genetics, plant selection, and the process of creating something entirely new.Chase shares stories from the early days of cultivation in Utah, moving to Southern California, and eventually learning commercial-scale cannabis production during California's medical market era. From guerrilla grows and indoor warehouse operations to seed collecting and phenotype hunting, he explains how each stage helped shape his understanding of both cultivation and breeding.The episode also explores the realities of operating during cannabis prohibition. Chase opens up about being raided, arrested, facing felony charges, and navigating years of probation while remaining committed to the industry. Rather than ending his career, those setbacks became pivotal moments that pushed him to sharpen his skills, expand his knowledge, and double down on his long-term vision.Throughout the conversation, Chase breaks down the difference between growing exceptional flower and developing exceptional genetics. He discusses building genetic libraries, selecting breeding stock, preserving rare cultivars, making targeted crosses, and the mindset required to create meaningful new varieties in an increasingly competitive market.This episode is a deep dive into persistence, plant breeding, entrepreneurship, and the evolution of modern cannabis genetics. Whether you're interested in cultivation, breeding, business, or the history of cannabis culture in California, Chase's story offers a rare look at the experiences that helped build one of today's most respected breeding programs.

Nick Ryan, better known as the Banana Dealer, sits down for Episode 22 of Mango After Hours and lays out the road from Indiana to California, from cornfield grows to garage rooms, and from the early medical days to building Golden State Banana into a real name.He starts with Indiana. Selling weed young, learning under people already growing, then moving into a setup built around rented houses, clone production, and outdoor plots hidden in cornfields. Thousands of cuts for summer runs, patches cleared deep enough that nobody could see them, harvests timed before the farmer brought the combine through. That part alone says a lot about how different the game looked depending on where you were. In one place it was cornfields and brick weed. In another it was indoor, scarce, expensive, and moving through a completely different world.Florida comes up too. Then back to Indiana. Then California. Santa Cruz changed the setting, but not the pressure. Craigslist clone days, garage grows, raids, lost houses, rebuilding, trying to hold things together while raising a family and staying in motion. None of it sounds polished after the fact. It sounds like one move forcing the next one.The Golden State Banana story is in here the way it actually happened. Nick got the Banana cut through people he was already tied in with, took over built-out garage spots from a friend leaving for Colorado, ran the rooms, saw what that plant was doing, and switched direction. One room was enough. After that, Banana stopped being just another cut in the mix. Santa Cruz first, then San Jose, then LA. Demand grew fast, and the strain started carrying real weight on its own.Before it was Golden State Banana, it was Chiquita Banana. That didn’t last. The name had to change, and Golden State Banana came out of that. Same era, same stretch of time, when the business side was starting to get more serious and people were learning in real time where branding, trademarks, and identity were headed. Dispensaries were still moving flower deli-style out of jars. Packaging was early. A lot of people were still selling great weed without building a real name around it. Others saw where it was going and moved early.Nick wasn’t just growing either. He spent over a decade in logistics, and that changed the way he moved through cannabis later. Freight, timing, coordination, systems, relationships across states. That background mattered once the business got bigger and movement became just as important as production. A lot of people know how to grow. Fewer know how to build something that can keep moving when the market changes.There’s a lot packed into this one without it turning stiff. Indiana and Florida stories, Santa Cruz in the medical days, early BHO runs, deli-style dispensaries, branding before branding became standard, the Oregon Kid connection to Banana, early packaging, events, and the kind of stories that usually get flattened once somebody has a logo and a reputation. This still sounds like the version before all that gets cleaned up.If you know the culture, there’s a lot in here that will land. If you don’t, this is a solid look at how a name like Golden State Banana actually got built and how many different versions of the cannabis industry somebody had to survive to still be standing in the current one.Instagram @Mangoafterhours@miami_mango_caGolden State banana@golden_state_banana@Garden_state_bananaSponsors:@trolmasteragro@thinkgrowled@mangotech.storewww.mangotech.storewww.trolmaster.comwww.thinkgrow.com

Episode 21 goes deep into what actually moves the needle in modern cultivation, and a lot of it comes down to precision rather than hype. Josh Barker breaks down why under-canopy lighting alone is not what shortens harvest windows, and why the real driver has been far-red application and full spectrum tuning. The conversation gets into how Miami Mango has been able to compress certain harvest timelines, why not every genetic responds the same way, and how spectrum, irrigation, plant stress, and environment all have to work together for the results to hold up at scale.A big part of the discussion is the mechanics behind their current lighting strategy. They explain how far red evolved from aggressive end-of-day applications into a lighter “microdosed” approach during the day and a short sunset taper after lights off, helping drive plant response without the excessive stretch they saw early on. From there, they walk through how whites, deep red, blue, and UV get adjusted across stacking, bulk, and finishing phases, and why spectrum only makes sense when it matches the plant’s stage, the irrigation strategy, and the realities of each room and cultivar.The episode also gets practical about the limits of “recipes” in cultivation. They make the case that growers want exact percentages and fixed settings, but those numbers only work in context: fixture wattage, canopy distance, room layout, genetics, airflow, substrate, and environmental control all change the outcome. Instead of pretending there is a universal blueprint, they explain how to think about presets, intensity, and plant signals in a way that lets growers adapt strategy without burning rooms or stalling development.Another major section focuses on irrigation and sensor accuracy. They unpack what went wrong with earlier WCS and WCS2 water content sensors, why EC stacking in the medium caused false water content readings, and how that created real decision-making problems in commercial rooms. More importantly, they explain what has changed in the redesigned sensor, why they believe it is finally solving the original problem, and why accurate moisture data opens the door for true feed-by-demand irrigation instead of constant manual correction.From there, the conversation turns to what’s next: AI-assisted irrigation. One of the more interesting claims in the episode is that automated demand-based feeding is already producing rows that look as good as, and sometimes better than, manually managed rows, while also reducing waste. That points toward a future where cultivators spend less time constantly changing schedules and more time validating sensors, reading data, and dialing strategy with better feedback loops.The back half of the episode shifts into genetics, market realities, and the cost of chasing winners. They talk about Toad Venom, misrepresented cuts, the difference between having a hot genetic and actually knowing how to run it, and why some highly valuable strains still make no sense at scale unless they’re handled carefully. The breeding and pheno hunting side gets equally honest: huge rooms, huge labor, big opportunity cost, and no guarantee that any hunt will produce something commercially viable. It is a candid look at how much trial, money, and risk sits behind every “winner” that eventually hits the shelf.Thank you to our sponsorswww.trolmaster.comwww.mangotech.storewww.thinkgrow.comIG: @mangoafterhours@miami_mango_ca @[email protected]@thinkgrowled

Episodio 17 - En este episodio de Mango After Hours, nos sentamos con Lance Guyan, CEO y fundador de Craft Farmer.Hablamos sobre sus orígenes, sobre crecer desconectado de la red en Mendocino, sin electricidad ni agua corriente, y cómo esas dificultades tempranas moldearon la forma en que trabaja, piensa y se mueve hoy en día. Craft explica cómo empezó en el cultivo, los errores que cometió al principio y el momento en que se dio cuenta de que esto no era solo algo que hacía, sino aquello para lo que había nacido.Nos metemos en el lado real de la industria del cannabis: redadas, momentos de mucho riesgo, reconstruirse después de perderlo todo y lo que significa seguir adelante cuando la mayoría ya se habría rendido. Comparte historias de cultivos de guerrilla, montajes en interiores, consultoría entre distintos estados y cómo pasó de luchar solo a construir un nombre que ahora la gente reconoce en todas partes.También hablamos de mentalidad: confianza, ego, detractores, jugar a largo plazo y por qué creer en uno mismo no es opcional si quieres triunfar. Este episodio no trata de presumir el éxito, sino de los años de caos, riesgo y sacrificio que vinieron antes de alcanzarlo.Si te interesa el cannabis, los negocios o simplemente escuchar cómo alguien realmente construye algo desde cero, este episodio es para ti.Presentado por: Alex Villegas (@miami_mango_ca)Producido por: Josh Monthei (@capturecannabis)www.mangotech.storewww.trolmaster.comwww.thinkgrow.com

On today’s episode, we sit down with Jacob from Ronin Seeds and a special guest appearance from G from Green Dragon, sitting down for a rare, in-person conversation about genetics, pheno hunting, business fallout, and the real story behind Toad Venom.This isn’t a quick back-and-forth. This is a full breakdown of how modern cannabis genetics are built, moved, hunted, protected — and sometimes fought over.Jacob takes us all the way back to the beginning: growing up outside Seattle, breaking into California’s tightly knit breeder circles, moving serious clone volume during the early legalization wave, and eventually building Ronin Seeds into a collaborative genetic platform. He explains how Sinmint Cookies × Zkittlez phenos hunted during COVID became the foundation for what would later be known as Toad Venom — and how a single male selection ended up shaping an entire movement.We get into the Oklahoma chapter — the massive facility buildout, the federal raid that was ultimately dropped, investor disputes, partnership breakdowns, and what it feels like to lose everything and rebuild from zero. This isn’t theory. It’s firsthand experience from someone who lived through it.Then the conversation shifts.G from Green Dragon joins the table, and we go directly into the topic the internet has been debating: how cuts move, who owns a hunted pheno, what happens when seeds are popped inside a funded facility, and where the lines are between breeder, grower, and operator. Instead of social media back-and-forth, this is a face-to-face discussion about credit, ethics, collaboration, and the gray areas that exist in a rapidly evolving industry.You’ll hear about:• The real lineage behind Toad Venom• How Sinmint Cookies and Zkittlez genetics intersect• How pheno hunts are organized at scale• The difference between creating seeds and selecting winners• The economics of boutique cannabis vs. volume production• Why collaboration can build brands — or break partnerships• And how legacy genetics trace back further than most people realizeThis episode pulls back the curtain on how elite phenos actually come to life. It shows the layers — from breeder relationships and male selection to facility investment and market positioning. It also highlights something bigger: in cannabis, nobody builds alone. Every cut has history. Every strain has contributors. And every story usually has more sides than the internet sees.If you care about genetics, ownership ethics, pheno hunting at scale, or the real business mechanics behind high-ticket flower — this is one you’ll want to watch all the way through.Ronin Seeds - @roninseedsThe Green Dragon - @the_green_dragon_laHosted by Alex VillegasProduced By Josh MontheiPowered By Thinkgrow www.thinkgrow.comTrolmaster www.trolmaster.comMangoTech www.mangotech.store

This impromptu, unfiltered conversation captures the real story behind one of LA’s original licensed cannabis operators, a legacy grower who helped shape modern cultivation, extraction, and genetics long before legalization made it “acceptable.”In this episode, Mango sits down with G from Green Dragon, a founding member of LA’s Prop D era and part of the original wave of licensed dispensaries dating back to 2006–2007. What unfolds is a rare, long-form oral history that connects underground cannabis, music culture, early extraction tech, and modern legal cultivation into one continuous story.G shares how growing cannabis in the 1990s and early 2000s required skills most people today never had to develop — construction, HVAC, electrical work, and the ability to scale quality without missing runs. When dispensaries began demanding consistency, growers had to evolve or disappear. This episode explains exactly how that transition happened.The conversation goes deep into:The early LA dispensary scene and what it took to survive before legalizationWhy quality and consistency mattered more than yield once retail expectations existedHow OG genetics dominated California for nearly a decade and reshaped the marketWhy many growers were forced out when the gene pool narrowedThe real difference between hype strains and weed that actually gets you highG also opens up about a parallel life most people never knew about — a Grammy-winning career in the music industry, working with legendary artists while simultaneously growing and supplying elite cannabis. Studios weren’t just creative spaces — they were cultural hubs where music and weed evolved together.A major portion of the episode focuses on Toad Venom / Frog Poison (originally named “Becky”), one of the most talked-about cultivars in the industry. For the first time in long-form detail, G explains:How the seed was originally popped at Green DragonWhy it was named BeckyHow selection, blind testing, and internal grading actually workWhat really happened with the cut’s spread and marketingWhy credit, transparency, and documentation matter in cannabis geneticsRather than bitterness, this episode shows a veteran grower choosing collaboration — sharing the cut with respected breeders like Archive, Seed Junkie, Karma Genetics, and Masonic, and embracing the plant’s evolution instead of fighting it.The discussion also dives into:Early BHO extraction, yield honesty, and getting ripped off before people knew betterBuilding one of the first high-performance chillers in extractionSelling technology worldwide before choosing to refocus on cultivationWhy teams, retention, and trust are more valuable than any single strainHow social media suppression forced legacy brands to think bigger than InstagramThis episode is raw, unscripted, and historically important. It captures the mindset of operators who survived prohibition, scaled through chaos, and are still here — not because of hype, but because of systems, standards, and work ethic.If you want to understand where today’s cannabis industry actually came from — this is required listening.

Episode 17 - In this episode of Mango After Hours, we sit down with Lance Guyan, CEO and Founder of Craft Farmer We talk about where he came from, growing up off-grid in Mendocino with no power or running water, and how that early struggle shaped the way he works, thinks, and moves today. Craft breaks down how he got into growing, the mistakes he made early on, and the moment he realized this wasn’t just something he did — it was what he was built for.We get into the real side of the cannabis industry: raids, close calls, rebuilding after losing everything, and what it’s like to keep going when most people would’ve quit. He shares stories from guerrilla grows, indoor builds, consulting across state lines, and how he went from grinding solo to building a name people now recognize everywhere.We also talk mindset — confidence, ego, haters, playing the long game, and why believing in yourself isn’t optional if you want to win. This episode isn’t about flexing success, it’s about the years of chaos, risk, and sacrifice that came before it.If you’re into cannabis, business, or just hearing how someone actually builds something from nothing, this one’s for you.Hosted by: Alex Villegas ( @miami_mango_ca)Produced By: Josh Monthei ( @capturecannabis) www.mangotech.storewww.trolmaster.comwww.thinkgrow.com

He didn’t start out as a fugitive. He started as a kid moving from base to base, learning early how to adapt, disappear, and start over. By his mid-teens, cannabis became both curiosity and currency. What began as smoking turned quickly into distribution, then scale, then momentum. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, there were no strain names, no legal protections, and no margin for error—just brick weed, word-of-mouth connections, and cash moving hand to hand.As the operation grew, so did the stakes. Pounds became boxes. Boxes became routes. Trust became leverage. Then it collapsed. Friends cooperated. Federal agencies stepped in. Property was seized. With a young family and charges looming, Jay Larkins made a decision that would define the next decade of his life—he ran. What followed was nearly ten years of living under assumed identities, crossing borders, surviving raids, and continuing to operate large-scale cannabis grows while constantly one step ahead of arrest. Every day carried the same risk: one traffic stop, one wrong name, one knock at the door.During that time, something unexpected took shape. Not a business—an idea. Harvest after harvest exposed the same problem: drying cannabis was inefficient, dangerous, and physically punishing. Sagging wires. Cramped rooms. Labor wasted. What started as a workaround in an attic—using sticks to avoid crawling under hanging lines—became a system. The designs were born from necessity, refined through repetition, and tested under pressure most growers never experience.Eventually, the running stopped. Jay turned himself in. He served time. The case closed. And for the first time in years, life slowed down. Teaching yoga replaced hiding. Legal cultivation replaced underground operations. From there, the drying system that had been shaped quietly over years of harvests became what is now known as Dry Flower—tools built by someone who understood exactly what failure looked like because he had lived it.This episode documents the full arc: rise, collapse, survival, and reinvention. Not as a cautionary tale. Not as a redemption story. Just the facts of how one life moved through the shadow economy of cannabis—and how the systems used across the industry today were forged there.EP 16 - Jay Larkins, CEO Founder of DriflowerHosted by Alex Villegas, Miami Mango, CEO Founder of Miami Mango Cannabiswww.trolmaster.comwww.mangotech.com

In this episode of Mango After Hours, our host Alex Villegas sits down with Sergio Picazo — cultivator, entrepreneur, community builder, and founder of The Connect Community — for one of the most insightful deep dives into modern cannabis culture. From Sacramento’s iconic District 6 to the emerging science of smokeability, Sergio explains how genetics, data analytics, water activity, and community collaboration are reshaping the future of the industry.Sergio shares his roots as a first-generation Mexican-American raised on discipline, hard work, and family unity — values that eventually guided him into cultivation, entrepreneurship, and leadership within Sacramento’s unique grower ecosystem. He breaks down why Sacramento stands alone: a city where fierce competition exists right alongside camaraderie, information sharing, and collective progress.The conversation jumps into the science of smokeability, championed by Dr. Allison Justice — from measuring puff PSI and vapor output to understanding harshness, moisture content, and water activity. Sergio highlights why THC percentages are misleading, why flavor and terpene transfer matter more, and why consumers have been conditioned away from sensory buying since the deli-style days before COVID.Sergio also opens up about building Cultivated from the ground up, learning deep water culture, discovering the power of tissue culture, flipping homes to fund his grow, and watching his parents become part of the journey. It’s a raw and inspiring story of risk, resilience, culture, and passion for the plant.If you're into cultivation, genetics, nursery operations, pheno hunting, or the culture behind cannabis, this is an episode you won’t want to miss.Sergio Picazo Instagram Handles-@Sergio_thecustodian @theconnectcommunity  @powrhouseMango After Hours Instagram - @mangoafterhoursBuy MangoTech Gear- www.mangotech.storeTrolmaster- www.trolmaster.com Thinkgrow- www.thinkgrow.com