Joe Rogan has a foothold in pop culture that few can compare to, evident in the success of his almost 16-year-old podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience. The Spotify-backed platform has been home to some of the most viral, controversial moments in recent history, such as Elon Musk smoking weed, Ye raving about Star Wars, Alex Jones ranting about organ farming from babies, and more.
Despite the wide range of guests that the 57-year-old media personality has hosted, he has racked up some crazy numbers thanks to big names within Hip-Hop, as well. Recently, Ye made it seem like he and Rogan were going to run it back after sharing a screenshot of what appeared to be a text conversation with him.
Unfortunately, for the artist formerly known as Kanye West, it appeared that he was getting scammed because the former Fear Factor host informed him that he was not the person sending him those text messages. It was believable before that revelation, though, as Rogan has welcomed a slew of Hip-Hop artists to his show and rarely runs away from hard conversations.
With that in mind, let’s take a look back at Joe Rogan’s top 10 biggest rap interviews.
-
Raekwon (2025)
Image Credit: Bryan Steffy/Getty Images for Haute Living Views: 867K
Raekwon needs no introduction as a founding member of The Wu-Tang Clan, author, and entrepreneur. He joined The Joe Rogan Experience on Jan. 1, 2025, to discuss the origins of the Wu, performing on Rikers Island for Old Dirty Bastard, Jimi Hendrix’s death, and the dark side of the music industry, specifically record labels. This interview sits so low primarily due to only having two months to cook in comparison to some of the episodes that stand above it. Nonetheless, Raekwon is already in the top 10, which is an accomplishment as Rogan has over 20 rap interviews.
-
Jelly Roll (2024)
Image Credit: Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images Views: 1.1M
Jelly Roll joined JRE in October 2024, right around the time he released his latest album, Beautifully Broken. The timing couldn’t have been any better, as he is the first person on this list to break the million-views threshold. The duo discussed Roll’s weight loss, his songwriting process, psychedelic drug use, imposter syndrome, and more. With Roll leaning more into rock and country these days while maintaining his rap roots, there is no surprise that so many people were invested in hearing what he had to say, especially after a popular appearance on JRE in 2023.
-
Action Bronson (2024)
Image Credit: Mike Coppola/Getty Images Views: 1.2M
Action Bronson’s second appearance on JRE didn’t outpace Jelly Roll’s 1.1M by all that much, relatively, but it did come with some great conversation. They tackled Terrence Howard and his unique views on science, the sociopolitical climate in Detroit, UFC fighter Mark Hunt, and more. Ultimately, it would prove that sometimes the sequels don’t outperform the original iterations, and we’ll get to that later in this list. Still, Bronson is a rap legend when it comes to The Joe Rogan Experience.
-
Willie D (2020)
Image Credit: Matt Cowan/Getty Images Views: 1.3M
Willie D joined the show, alongside writer and filmmaker Mike Judge, in 2020. The trio discussed Bushwick Bill getting shot and how it became a legendary album cover for Geto Boys, showed love to Z-Ro and Mo City Don, and gave the 58-year-old rapper the space to talk about overcoming his troubled past. Through that, he dropped two gems on the people: “My past doesn’t define me, it refined me,” and “I’m responsible for what I say, not how you interpret it.” That’s the wisdom one can only get from a rapper and boxer who eventually transitioned into politics.
-
RZA (2019)
Image Credit: Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images Views: 1.7M
RZA joined the Rogan audio universe in 2019 and brought comedian Donnell Rawlings along with him. Many viewers complained that the Chappelle Show star took up too much space in the conversation, but the interview racked up views regardless. It also marks the only time on this list that two members of one rap collective clock in within the top 10 most-viewed interviews. Like Raekwon, RZA discussed the Wu-Tang Clan’s origins, Martin Shkreli, his vegan lifestyle, and meditation.
Now it’s time to get into the top five, and some of the names might surprise you.
-
That Mexican OT (2024)
Image Credit: Scott Dudelson/Getty Images Views: 3.5M
Coming in at No. 5 is That Mexican OT, who is the first artist on this list to break into the three million view threshold. His March 2024 appearance on JRE covered his album, Texas Technician, which came out that month, ghosts being “real,” psychedelic use, his desire for love, and his belief that Z-Ro was better than 2Pac. With such a wide variety of topics and a genuine buzz as an artist, it is no surprise that this interview was so highly viewed.
-
Action Bronson (2016)
Image Credit: Cindy Ord/Getty Images for BEYOND THE STREETS Views: 3.5M
Action Bronson is the only rapper to appear on this list twice, and one of two rappers to have the same amount of views on his JRE interview, tying That Mexican OT with 3.5 million views. His 2016 interview covered his life as a chef, his show F*ck, That’s Delicious, figuring out who invented the first drone, the large number of squirrel deaths in his neighborhood, and the fact people don’t drive around blasting music anymore.
-
Killer Mike (2019)
Image Credit: Paras Griffin/Getty Images for Netflix Views: 3.7M
Killer Mike joined JRE in 2019 and racked up 3.7 million views. The Atlanta rapper and Rogan spoke about how the artist-manager relationship is created, UFC fighter Anderson Silva, Ted Turner, myostatin, and more. This is the last interview that will be outside of the ten-million range.
-
Wiz Khalifa (2019)
Image Credit: Amy Sussman/Getty Images Views: 16M
Wiz Khalifa’s 2019 appearance on the JRE racked up a whopping 16 million views. They discussed the unsurprising fact that he smokes an ounce of weed a day, THC edibles, tripping on mushrooms, gaining 40 pounds through his martial arts training, and living in Japan as a kid. Some people may be shocked to see Wiz having such drawing power despite being out of his prime, but his ascension into pop stardom has given him crazy longevity, and weed content also does well on social platforms. However, he sits behind one rapper on this list; possibly one of the most complex and unpredictable people to ever walk the earth.
-
Ye (2020)
Image Credit: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy Views: 20M
In 2020, in the thick of his campaign for President of the United States, Ye (previously Kanye West) joined The Joe Rogan Experience and generated a category-leading 20 million views; it’s poetic that a 2020 interview got 20 million views. They discussed the rapper being misunderstood, people who call him crazy, and how much the earth costs. Plus, the Chicago artist even sang for him in their almost three-hour conversation.
Leave a comment