Life, Values & Legacy: Our Chat with Victoria Burkard of Los Angeles

Victoria Burkard shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Victoria, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What are you most proud of building — that nobody sees?
What I’m most proud of building is the inner architecture of my perspective. That’s the part people don’t see, but they always feel.

Most people encounter me through my creative work, but the real work happens quietly—in conversations where someone hands me a tangled version of their vision. From there, my role is to identify the signal beneath the noise, name the narrative they’ve been circling, and give their idea a shape they can finally recognize.

That discerning, behind-the-scenes layer is the foundation of everything else I do.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m Victoria Burkard, a Los Angeles–based creative working at the intersection of culture, commentary, and cannabis. My lane blends on-the-ground conversations with the people shaping the scene and creative rolling art that’s been likened to the expressive quality found in Degas’ work—all viewed through a lens tuned to where culture is headed.

A lot of my work feels like documenting community in real time. I highlight both emerging and legacy voices, whether I’m covering industry shifts as an MJBizCon content creator or speaking with tastemakers who typically stay behind the scenes. I also run the BWB Hotlist, a curated guide to the events where real connection happens, and collaborate with brands on strategy and storytelling that reflects their actual impact.

At its core, my work is about perspective and access—offering a closer look at the creativity, conversations, and contributors shaping cannabis culture right now.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
Before the world told me who to be, I was a kid who created because it felt natural. I built websites for my high school, photographed anything that caught my attention, and wrote for my college paper—always drawn to documenting the world around me.

I didn’t have language for it then, but I was already doing an early version of what I do now: noticing what others overlooked, translating it into something people could feel, and finding meaning in the margins of community. That version of me wasn’t trying to fit into a lane or prove anything—she was following curiosity. Much of my work today is a return to her.

What did suffering teach you that success never could?
What some people call suffering, I’ve come to understand as part of the path.

Those seasons taught me how to find clarity and steadiness when the external world offered none—to build from nothing, trust my instincts without a roadmap, and create meaning inside uncertainty. They shaped a resilience that doesn’t depend on outcomes.

That lens informs how I create and how I show up—with a deep respect for community, creativity, and the connective moments that actually matter.

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What’s a cultural value you protect at all costs?
Authenticity—especially in an industry that can sometimes blur the line between image and reality.

Cannabis culture is rooted in community, creativity, and real people doing real work. I’m intentional about aligning with that truth, whether through content, interviews, or partnerships. I focus on amplifying voices that contribute genuine value and telling stories that reflect the moment we’re actually in—not just the trends orbiting it.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What do you think people will most misunderstand about your legacy?
That it isn’t meant to be explained—it’s meant to be felt.

Different people will take different things from my work depending on where they sit within the culture. What I create becomes a time capsule of the tastemakers, creators, and community builders evolving in real time.

I don’t think of myself as building a legacy so much as documenting one. Through my interviews, writing, rolling art, community advocacy, and event curation, everything connects. It’s an ongoing record of where culture was—and where it was headed.

It’s art. It’s personal. And in hindsight, the larger picture won’t need interpretation. It will speak for itself.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://beautywhoburns.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beautywhoburns
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/victoria-burkard-11b52716a

Image Credits
Main Image: Uzoo Para

Image 1: Connor Linnerooth
Image 2: Jia Sound
Image 3: The Real Potparazzi
Image 4: Victoria Burkard
Image 5: Rawdorman