Former President Donald Trump will sit with Joe Rogan for a recording of his podcast in Austin, Texas, on Friday, according to two sources familiar with the planning.
Trump will visit Texas the same day Vice President Kamala Harris is scheduled to host a campaign rally in Houston.
"The Joe Rogan Experience" has for years ranked as one of the most popular podcasts in all of media, particularly among young men, who have been key targets of the Trump campaign.
For months, Trump has made outreach to male voters a priority, appearing on audience-aligned podcasts, with social media influencers or at high-profile sporting events, like the male-dominated UFC mixed martial arts fights he has attended alongside his friend Dana White. Trump had been scheduled to appear at a town hall this month hosted by Tony Robbins, a longtime self-help guru with over 7 million followers on Instagram, before Robbins postponed the event because of an incoming hurricane.
In an election being fought along narrow margins, Trump's campaign hopes that growing his support among male voters will help narrow the gap. Since 2020, his support among men — including Black and Hispanic men — has increased to a 16-percentage-point margin over Harris (56%-40%), according to the latest NBC News poll. By contrast, women support Harris by a 14-point margin (55%-41%).
National polls indicate a deadlocked race.
Trump has done a number of interviews in recent weeks with other media figures popular among men, including Ben Shapiro, Adin Ross and Theo Vonn. He also appeared on Andrew Schulz's "Flagrant" podcast with Akaash Singh. On the day Trump held a rally at Coachella in California, the "Nelk Boys" rode along with him on his plane — and captured the visit for their millions of viewers.
Rogan and Trump have a complicated history. Though Rogan, the host of “Fear Factor,” supported Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., during the 2020 primaries, he also has praised Trump's presidency. In August, Rogan also said he was a "fan" of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., then an independent presidential candidate, though he quickly clarified he wasn't endorsing him.
Of Kennedy, Rogan said on X that "I really appreciate the way he discusses things with civility and intelligence" but that "I also think Trump raising his fist and saying ‘fight!’ after getting shot is one of the most American f---ing things of all time." He added, "I’m not the guy to get political information from."
In his interview with the Nelk Boys, Trump called Rogan "a good guy" and hinted that he would appear on the podcast soon.
"The Joe Rogan Experience" has been criticized over the years over accusations that Rogan had spread Covid misinformation, used a racial slur and made antisemitic comments.
Rogan signed an exclusive deal with Spotify in 2020. In February, he and Spotify reached a multiyear deal that would allow him to take "The Joe Rogan Experience" to other audio platforms. According to Spotify, it is the platform's popular podcast.
