Joe Rogan 'declined' one of his most wanted podcast guests because he 'didn't want him to know where we are'
Joe Rogan rejected the chance to have one of his most wanted guests on his podcast out of sheer fear.
Rogan has hosted more than 2,000 episodes of his hit podcast, which secured a mammoth $100 million deal with Spotify in 2020 and averages around 11 million listeners per show.
The UFC commentator has interviewed people from all walks of life in various sectors, including huge names like Elon Musk, Donald Trump, The Rock, Mark Zuckerberg and Theo Von.
Aside from former US vice president Kamala Harris - which ultimately couldn't be agreed - there aren't too many people Rogan hasn't chopped it up with for an in-depth conversation over the years.
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But while he was able to tick off a highly-requested guest in Trump, the United States' 45th and 47th president, there is one sought-after guest that Rogan himself ultimately turned down.
During a 2020 episode, Rogan delved into the life of crime boss Michael Franzese, who was born into the Italian-American Colombo family in New York City.
His father, Sonny, was second in command and Michael, having dropped out of Hofstra University after his dad was sent to prison for 50 years for armed robbery, ended up becoming a major player and claims he made around $8 million per week at his peak.
He was sentenced to 10 years in prison on conspiracy charges but was released three years later - only to return in 1991 for violating his parole terms.
But during his second stint in prison, he became a born-again Christian and completely changed his life, moving away from the mob to become a motivational speaker who resides in California and has 1.6 subscribers on YouTube.
His people have reached out to Rogan about a possible appearance, with the 57-year-old revealing: "He's a motivational speaker now? He sounds like a f***** hustle. I saw him being interviewed recently. Wait a minute, they contacted me! Really recently I got a request to have him on."
Yet even with his drastic lifestyle change, Rogan isn't so sure about inviting him to his studio in Austin, Texas, explaining: "I don't know if I want him to know where we are."
On his own channel, the 73-year-old recalls events from his life, reviews mafia films and TV shows - as well as interviewing several famous figures from the world of crime.
Franzese keen for an appearance
Though Rogan appeared a little reluctant, Franzese is more than up for linking up with the JRE crew and appreciated being spoken about at length on the show.
However, he did stress that he would only go on if he receives an invite from Rogan's people.
Speaking on his show, he said: "Everybody's telling me 'Mike, Joe Rogan mentioned you on his show he spoke about you for five or six minutes'.
"I haven't seen it but I heard he had a graphic up about me, was reading things about me him and his guest for a couple of minutes.
"Everybody is saying 'Mike you've got to get on Joe Rogan'. Hey, it's not up to me to go to him, if he would like to invite me, I'd be happy to go.
"He is the number one guy no doubt about it. In podcasts he does a brilliant job.
Josh Lawless