Dana White has been close friends with Joe Rogan for a long time, and has watched him rise from a comedian doing free shows to podcasting royalty.
Before even landing his star-making role because the host of Fear Factor, Rogan had worked with the UFC within the pre-White era. He hosted backstage segments where he interviewed fighters and provided evaluation, a far cry from the spot on commentary that’s now synonymous along with his voice.
Nowadays, his side gig hosting a podcast has turn into his most lucrative enterprise, earning him a Spotify deal value as much as $250million. And White believes that he knows exactly what has made him so successful.
Dana White explains the key to Joe Rogan’s success
Dana White recently gave unprecedented access to Forbes Magazine for a canopy story and documentary in regards to the goings on behind the scenes on the UFC. He took them cageside for UFC 310 in Las Vegas, and even showed off private messages from President Donald Trump.
Nonetheless, perhaps one of the fascinating parts of the feature was when White explained how Joe Rogan managed to capture the imagination of a worldwide audience along with his show. The UFC boss reckons it’s recent years and the sociopolitical climate that has brought him to the following level
“You recognize, Joe’s podcast was all the time big,” White told reporter Matt Craig. “But then I believe all the things that’s happened over the past 5 or 6 years and the best way certain people have handled it? That’s led us to where we’re today.”
Dana White details how he and Joe Rogan took over the cultural zeitgeist
For years, the UFC struggled to garner mainstream attention in any significant way after White and the Fertitta Brothers bought the promotion for just $2million. They ultimately, nevertheless, turned it right into a multi-billion dollar business which sold for $4billion and is now valued upwards of $12billion.
Consequently, he and his close-knit group of friends including Rogan have turn into major players in your entire culture of the Western world. White and Rogan at the moment are close friends with the likes of Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and naturally, president Trump.
“It’s fascinating,” he continued. “It wasn’t by design, all of it just type of happened. I believe that each one of us, what all of us have achieved, we’ve all stayed… Every part in life if about authenticity; who’s authentic? Who’s real? Who’s whatever?
“We’ve all the time stayed true to who we’re and what we consider and regardless of what sort of pressure was on the market we never folded to any of that. It just stays there, our core beliefs and values and who we’re.
“That’s not only as people but as a business and as a sport and as a podcaster. Even Lorenzo [Fertitta] as a business owner… I mean we’re all viciously loyal to one another. In the event you don’t have loyalty what do you’ve got?”
Joe Rogan used to work UFC events free of charge in Dana White’s early days
One example of that loyalty can be the close bond that White and Rogan have shared for a long time ever since his debut within the UFC. The comedian offered to do his first few shows free of charge, before eventually becoming a serious star and now commanding major money.
The variety of shows varies; Dana White claims it was 31 while Rogan says it was closer to fifteen. But speaking on a 2021 podcast episode, the commentator explained: “I did that gig free of charge for the primary 15 shows.
“Yeah, that’s what happened. The UFC was struggling, they only bought the corporate. It wasn’t financially viable, they weren’t making a whole lot of money.
“There was like Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell. This was like pre-2005. 2005 is when it really took off due to The Ultimate Fighter. That was season one among The Ultimate Fighter. So I used to be on fear factor and Dana and I became friends because he offered me tickets to the fights once they had just bought the UFC.”
