Is “Cancel Culture” a joke? Like many who believe it actually is, controversial podcaster Joe Rogan, 54, is laughing in the face of those who believe “Cancel Culture” is a valid phenomenon. On two instances Joe Rogan was “cancelled” — for his n-word use & covid misinformation — but despite social media calling for people to stop supporting him — he flourished. He now says, he in turn gained 2 million subscribers on his ‘The Joe Rogan Experience‘ podcast.
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The Backstory
Now, as a refresher — back in 2020, Spotify offered Rogan an exclusive distribution deal for his podcast, worth about $100 million. This was obviously during the pandemic, so of course, Rogan was going to speak on COVID-19 and/or have guests to speak on it as well.
RELATED: India Arie Doubles Down On Boycotting Spotify & Again Blasts Joe Rogan Over N-Word Use
Joe Rogan’s COVID Controversy
And that’s what happened. In December 2021, Rogan had a guest named Dr. Robert Malone. Now, Malone was a vaccine skeptic and some controversial statements were said on the episode. Consequently, over 200 medical professionals, academics and others sent an open letter on January 10, 2022, claiming, “The episode has been criticized for promoting baseless conspiracy theories and the ‘Joe Rogan Experience‘ Podcast has a concerning history of broadcasting misinformation, particularly regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.”
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Joe Rogan’s N-Word Use
Several celebrities condemned Rogan, including musicians Neil Young and Graham Nash. An attempt to cancel Rogan was taken, but things weren’t fully executed. Another attempt was taken after singer India Arie slammed Rogan over his habitual use of the n-word. Along with Graham Nash — who boycotted Rogan and Spotify over COVID misinformation, and pulled his music from the platform — Arie claimed she’d walk too, and called for celebrities and Spotify listeners to boycott the platform over Rogan’s n-word usage.
RELATED: Joe Rogan Calls Himself A ‘Victim’ Of A ‘Political Hit Job’ Amid N-Word Controversy
Joe Rogan Threatens To Leave Spotify
The second cancel attempt seemed to have worked, but Rogan was back in the headlines after he threatened to quit his then-$200 million Spotify deal, if he had to “walk on eggshells.”
RELATED: Joe Rogan Threatens To Quit $200M Spotify Deal If He Has To “Walk On Eggshells”
Joe Slams Cancel Culture & Nabs 2M Subscribers
Things cools downed and we since haven’t heard much controversy involving Rogan. Now, in a recent episode with British pundit commentator Douglas Murray, Rogan was told by him, “You have been put through the wringer since we last met. They did a number on you. Wow.”
Quipping back, Rogan, who reportedly averages 11 million listeners an episode, said, “It’s interesting, my subscriptions went up massively — that’s what’s crazy. During the height of it all, I gained 2 million subscribers.” Later in the episode, Rogan says, he’s “cancel-proof,” and slams CNN, “Yeah, [the media] went for it. It’s also fortunate that the people who went for it were CNN. They’re so untrustworthy and people know how biased they are and socially weird their anchors are.”
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