"People mocked me openly" - $250 million podcast host Joe Rogan reveals challenges he faced while launching JRE

UFC commentator Joe Rogan currently operates one of the biggest podcasts in the world. The Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) has witnessed several high-profile guests over the years.

This includes U.S. President Donald Trump, tech-billionaire Elon Musk, boxing legend Mike Tyson and Hollywood stars like Robert Downey Jr, among others.

The podcast, however, wasn't always the massive platform it has grown to become today. On a recent episode of JRE with Bert Kreischer, Rogan revealed some of the difficulties he faced in the early days of the podcast, and spoke on the lack of support when he launched JRE. Furthermore, he also touched upon some of the criticism he received at the time from established media personalities like Howard Stern.

Rogan said:

"Everybody thought I was out of my mind for even doing [The Joe Rogan Experience]. Like, people mocked me openly. Like, Howard Stern famously mocked all people that were doing podcasts."

Check out Joe Rogan's comments below (11:35):

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Joe Rogan includes his podcast and UFC commentary as things he wanted to pursue in life

Joe Rogan has stepped into various roles over the years as part of his professional journey. One of the biggest contributors to his popularity, however, was his job as a host on the TV show Fear Factor.

During his recent interaction with Bert Kreischer on the podcast, Rogan shared that although he liked the job, he wanted to pursue other passions in life like his current podcast and his role as a UFC commentator.

He said:

"I was on the hugest show in television. Fear Factor was f**king gigantic. It was nuts... It was a fun job... But this is what's important, even though it was the number one show in the country... I didn't wanna do it. I wanted to do [a podcast] and standup and the UFC, which, to me, is not even a job." [5:05 onwards]