Singer-songwriter Christopher Cross funded his first album in an unorthodox way—he sold weed. People reported that the soft rock musician makes the drug revelation in the new film, Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary.‘ “I financed my original songs by selling weed. I had a very successful weed business, and I bought a tape machine and some consoles and stuff and invested in a studio in Austin,” Cross said in the doc. The album in question was self-titled and was released to much acclaim in December 1979. It snagged him five Grammys at the 1981 awards ceremony and featured one of his most popular songs, “Sailing.” As it turns out it wasn’t just the financing of the album that was unique. According to Cross, he mistakenly sent the album to an assistant at Warner Bros. Records, and not one of the label’s executives. Luckily, this assistant was so impressed he shared it with one of the bigwigs, who loved the record. The film is due for release on HBO later this month, and features other yacht rock legends such as Michael McDonald and Steely Dan.
