Today we’d like to introduce you to Ryan Spalding.
Hi Ryan, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My name is Ryan Spalding, and my fascination with plant medicines began 16 years ago when I first discovered psilocybin mushrooms. I became obsessed with psychoactive substances—their recreational uses, their ability to influence new ways of thinking, and their potential to help people heal from emotional trauma and overcome mental health struggles.
I grew up in Durham, NC and graduated from the University of North Carolina Wilmington in 2013 with a dual degree in International Business and Spanish. Shortly after, I moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in DJ’ing. I spent the next five years working in event production and performing, but I never fully resonated with the city or the people I was meeting, likely because of the industry I was in. I spent 5 years in LA and by the end of it I felt restless, uncertain about my purpose, and feeling pulled toward a different path. Trusting my intuition, I moved to San Diego in late 2019, searching for clarity and a new direction.
Not long after my move, Netflix released Fantastic Fungi (a must-watch if you haven’t seen it), and my passion for plant medicine reignited. Around the same time, the pandemic hit, and as the world turned upside down, I spoke with a close friend about the idea of starting a mushroom business together. With everything uncertain, our mindset was: What do we have to lose? That summer of 2020, we dove headfirst into mushroom cultivation—and so began the next five years of my life.
Over the following three years, I worked on three different grows, mastering sterile technique, refining processes, and scaling operations. The work was rewarding, but grueling, and I eventually realized that my extroverted personality was better suited beyond the lab. In 2023, I shifted my focus toward launching my first mushroom edibles brand (*name redacted for privacy purposes*), producing chocolates, gummies, and microdose capsules made from our homegrown mushrooms. Post-lockdown demand was skyrocketing, and the timing was perfect—the brand quickly found traction in San Diego.
For two years, I grew that business into an established presence, until a transformative Ayahuasca ceremony in Peru changed my course. The medicine showed me that operating in the grey market—even with legalization on the horizon—was no longer aligned with my path. I knew I had to let go, even though I wasn’t yet sure what would come next. That clarity arrived upon my return when I first experienced Kanna.
Prior to my trip to Peru, I had visited a friend’s mood-enhancing candy company, where I was gifted some of their first batch of Kanna chocolates. I’d heard of it amongst people in the industry for months but never tried it, and I was intrigued to see what all the hype was about. One evening I decided it was time to give them a test drive and dosed myself with what I would later discover was a substantial 200mg dose! Within an hour, I felt waves of euphoria, I was smiling ear-to-ear, and I noticed I was in a far more gregarious mood than usual. My roommates and I had each taken the same amount and the three of us were experiencing the exact same effect- We felt we had discovered lightning in a bottle! What we expected would be comparable to the relaxed mood you get from consuming CBD turned out to be so much more. The intrinsic serotonergic effects created a palpable glowing effect on us that enhanced our social connection, removed anxieties, provided no noticeable comedown or hangover the next day, and best of all…it was completely LEGAL!
Needless to say, that night changed everything. That experience convinced me that Kanna is poised to be the next breakthrough in plant medicine and just one month after my Ayahuasca journey, I launched Youphoria, a brand dedicated to sharing the benefits of Kanna and other legal psychoactive botanicals.
My years in the mushroom space gave me more than technical skills—they instilled respect for these medicines, a commitment to quality, and a deep understanding of how to create meaningful experiences around them. With Youphoria, my mission is to carry those lessons forward: crafting products rooted in intention, designed to elevate mood, spark connection, and help people feel their absolute best!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
There have been many challenges along the way. When I left Los Angeles, I did so without a clear plan of action, driven more by intuition than certainty, and carried with me the constant question of whether I was making the right move. When I dove into mushroom cultivation at the height of the pandemic, I did it with no financial safety net, taking on significant risk in a time when so much of the world felt unstable. The work itself was often exhausting—long, repetitive hours spent in sterile labs that were not only physically demanding but also lonely and isolating.
Even as the business grew, the ever-present fear of operating in a legal grey market weighed heavily on me, knowing that everything I was building could be taken away at any moment…Perhaps one of the hardest decisions I faced was walking away from that profitable brand altogether after my Ayahuasca experience in Peru. Letting go of something I had poured years of energy into without knowing what would come next. And when I finally discovered Kanna, I encountered a new kind of challenge: the skepticism of others trying an unfamiliar plant without knowing what to expect. This coupled with the subsequent lack of demand for something that’s unfamiliar to 99.9% of the population are some of the current obstacles i’m facing.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’ve been immersed in the electronic music scene ever since my sister took me to my first festival back in 2011. Two years later after graduating college, I attended my first Burning Man and for the past 12 years I’ve returned almost every year without fail. The people and culture there embody the kind of community I strive to cultivate in my own life and work—radically expressive, authentic, deeply connected, and unafraid to push boundaries. Each year, I leave Black Rock City inspired by the creativity, openness, and sense of belonging I experience there. That energy continues to fuel my creative passions for building, curating experiences, and creating products that help people feel that same sense of connection in their everyday lives.
In 2016, I stumbled across a video on Facebook of a couple who had converted a full-sized school bus into a fully functioning RV. This was years before “van life” became a trend, and I was stunned to see they had only spent $3,000 on the bus. Within months, I purchased my own 40-foot school bus for the exact same price. Over the next six months, I transformed it into a custom RV that doubled as a mobile stage, drawing inspiration from the Art Cars I had seen at the Burn.
Six months into the build I drove my bus from NC out to California and brought it to Burning Man. From there it quickly became an after-hours centerpiece at camping festivals like Oregon Eclipse, Dirtybird Campout, All My Friends, Lightning in a Bottle, and EDC numerous times over the years. When the pandemic hit and restrictions limited gatherings, I began taking the bus out to Ocotillo, in the San Diego desert, to host intimate renegade parties on BLM land—spaces where we could come together freely, celebrate life, and reconnect at a time when isolation was being forced upon us.
At one of those gatherings, I had a chance encounter with a San Diego production company owner and stage designer. He proposed building a stage around my bus, and just a few months later, we hosted our first Love Machine—a house and techno festival blending world-class music with health and wellness workshops by day and immersive stage production by night. Four years later, we’ve produced ten shows together, each one pushing creative boundaries while deepening community connection.
Producing these festivals has been one of the most challenging yet fulfilling endeavors of my life. I’ve always loved bringing people together and curating meaningful, unforgettable experiences, but doing it with intention and a holistic foundation has given the work an even deeper sense of purpose. The San Diego community has been incredibly supportive, and the exceptional feedback has really become a source of immense gratitude for me. While we’ve taken a short hiatus as my partner and I explore other projects, our passion for Love Machine remains strong, and we fully intend to return to creating festivals that celebrate music, wellness, and connection in the not-so-distant future.
What are your plans for the future?
Looking ahead, my focus is on growing Youphoria into a leading brand in the emerging world of Kanna and psychoactive botanicals. I see Kanna as a plant with incredible potential to help people feel more connected, balanced, and uplifted. Coupled with the fact that it is also 100% legal I am confident that the Kanna boom will be far bigger than the mushroom one but it’s going to take time. In the near future, we’re planning to expand our product line, strengthen our presence on platforms like Amazon and Shopify, and build more educational content to help people understand the benefits of Kanna as the lack of awareness has currently been our biggest challenge to overcome.
Beyond the brand, I’m also looking forward to returning to festival production with Love Machine, which has always been about curating spaces for connection, music, and wellness. That project has been on pause as I’ve focused on Youphoria, but the vision is still alive, and I’m excited about bringing it back with even more intention and creativity. Ultimately, what really excites me most about the future is the opportunity to continue blending my passions—plant medicine, music, and community building—into work that not only brings joy to myself and others but also leaves a lasting impression on our lives.
Pricing:
- Kanna products retail for $49.99 and are available on our wesbite
- Use code “SDVoyager15” for a 15% discount
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.loveyouphoria.com
- Instagram: @love.youphoria & @the.love.bus
- Other: @lovemachine.live
Image Credits
Sydney Troxell
Galen Oakes
