There’s a lot of noise in the cannabis space right now. Press releases dressed up as insight. Influencers chasing trends instead of truth.
Podcasts that feel more like brand pitches than conversations.

And then there’s The Controlled Burn.

This isn’t a show built for hype. It’s built for people actually in the trenches of Oklahoma cannabis. The operators, growers, lab techs, compliance folks, dispensary owners, and anyone trying to make sense of an industry that seems to change rules mid-sentence.

At its core, The Controlled Burn is exactly what the name implies: a deliberate, managed fire. Enough heat to clear the underbrush.
Not enough to burn the whole thing down.

Hosted by Brandon Fountain and Shane Davis of Oklahoma Compliance Testing Lab (OKCTL), The Controlled Burn doesn’t pretend to be neutral or polished. It’s conversational. Sometimes blunt. Often funny. Always informed by firsthand experience.

These are not outsiders commenting on cannabis from a distance. These are people who deal with OMMA regulations, testing requirements, legislative shifts, and operational headaches every single day. When they talk about compliance gray areas or policy confusion, it’s not theory, it’s lived.

That’s what makes the show resonate. You’re not being talked at. You’re being talked with.

The show lives in the uncomfortable middle ground most cannabis media avoids. Topics regularly include:

• Regulatory confusion and enforcement inconsistencies
• Testing standards, lab accountability, and data integrity
• Legislative updates that actually matter to operators
• Hemp loopholes, Farm Bill fallout, and market whiplash
• Dispensary realities beyond the sales floor
• Industry burnout, consolidation, and survival

They don’t sugarcoat the mess, but they also don’t root for failure. The tone is less “burn it all down” and more “let’s stop pretending this is fine and talk it through.”

Oklahoma cannabis is no longer in its wild-west phase, but it hasn’t fully matured either. We’re in the awkward middle era where rules are tightening, margins are shrinking, and mistakes cost real money.

This is where The Controlled Burn shines. The podcast acts like a pressure-release valve for an industry under constant stress.

It gives space to questions people are afraid to ask publicly. It acknowledges that compliance isn’t always clear, enforcement isn’t always consistent, and good operators can still get caught in the crossfire.

That kind of conversation is necessary if the culture is going to survive the transition from boom to balance.

While the show clearly speaks to professionals, it’s surprisingly accessible for cannabis-curious listeners too.
If you’ve ever wondered why prices fluctuate, how regulations actually affect product availability, or what goes on behind the scenes of your favorite dispensary, this podcast pulls the curtain back.

It doesn’t glorify the chaos, but it doesn’t hide it either.

The Herbage take

At Herbage Magazine, we’ve always believed cannabis culture deserves honest storytelling—especially when things get complicated. The Controlled Burn fits squarely in that lane.

It’s not flashy. It’s not performative. It’s not trying to sell you anything. It’s a conversation Oklahoma cannabis needed, and still needs, as the industry figures out what it’s becoming.

If you’re looking for a podcast that respects your intelligence, understands the stakes, and isn’t afraid to say the quiet parts out loud, The Controlled Burn is worth your time.