Spotify has inked a new multiyear collaboration deal for controversial podcast “The Joe Rogan Experience,” which is reported to be valued at up to $250 million. According to the new agreement, Rogan’s popular show, which has been solely available on Spotify for three years, will soon be available on other audio platforms.
In addition to its continuous availability on Spotify, Rogan’s program will soon be available on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and YouTube. The move is part of Spotify’s new strategy to give up exclusive streaming rights in exchange for expanded distribution, which began in 2023. The Wall Street Journal was the first to announce Spotify’s $250 million contract renewal with Rogan.
Spotify stated that it will collaborate closely with Rogan and his crew “to continue to maximize the audience of the show across platforms.” Under the new agreement, Spotify will handle the podcast’s distribution and advertising sales. Rogan will earn a fixed minimum fee from Spotify as well as a portion of advertising revenues.
“The Joe Rogan Experience” became exclusive to Spotify in 2020 under a 3.5-year deal worth more than $200 million, according to sources. Rogan’s show has been the most popular on the platform for the last three years.
“For more than three years, ‘The Joe Rogan Experience’ has consistently been the number one podcast in the world,” Spotify stated. According to Edison Research’s Q3 2023 study of the most popular podcasts, “The Joe Rogan Experience” rated first for the time. According to Edison, “JRE” was the second most popular podcast among women 13 and older in the United States.
The comedian-turned-podcaster frequently has provocative guests on “JRE,” and Rogan and Spotify have faced criticism for some of the show’s content. In response to Rogan’s anti-vax shows, some musicians, including Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, boycotted Spotify in early 2022.
Rogan has also come under fire for propagating “antisemitic tropes” and telling guest Tom Segura, “Maybe you should just go shoot the homeless people.” In February 2022, Spotify removed 70 episodes of “The Joe Rogan Experience” in which the host used the N-word; Rogan labeled the uproar over his usage of the slur “a political hit job.”
The Joe Rogan Experience premiered on December 24, 2009, and has generated over 2,200 episodes, each averaging 2-3 hours in length. Notable guests have included environmental epidemiologist Dr. Shanna Swan, who studies the effects of chemical exposure on reproductive health and child development; physician Peter Attia, who specializes in longevity medicine; retired US Navy SEAL and ultra-endurance athlete and author David Goggins; psychedelic research pioneer Amanda Fielding; and criminal justice reform advocate and civil rights attorney Josh Dubin.
Other notable guests include Dave Chappelle, Dwayne Johnson, Robert Downey Jr., Quentin Tarantino, Miley Cyrus, Snoop Dogg, Jewel, Eddie Izzard, Mike Tyson, Post Malone, and Zach Bryan. “I never do a podcast just because a person is popular,” Rogan stated in an interview with Spotify. “It’s always from a place of ‘I think it would be cool to talk to that person.'”
Spotify’s new contract with Rogan follows the company’s recent revision of conditions to broadly broadcast another popular podcast, Alex Cooper’s “Call Her Daddy,” which was previously a Spotify exclusive. According to Spotify, “Call Her Daddy” is the top podcast among female listeners on the site.