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His childhood was extremely dark.
By Nia Tipton — Written on Sep 25, 2022
Most people know Joe Rogan from his time hosting "Fear Factor," and his podcast "The Joe Rogan Experience," which has garnered him a massive fanbase.
While Rogan, 55, is known for some of his controversial opinions and blunt attitude, he also speaks candidly about the negative effects of toxic masculinity, especially how it manifested for him during his childhood.
During an episode of "The Joe Rogan Experience," Rogan spoke candidly about his childhood and growing up with an abusive father who skewed his perception of masculinity while growing up.
Joe Rogan claims his father was abusive throughout his childhood.
Rogan, who was born in Newark, New Jersey, to a former police officer, Joseph Rogan, revealed that he and his mother cut off contact with his father when Rogan was seven after his parents divorced when he was five.
While Rogan doesn't have distinct memories of his father, he revealed that his father had been physically abusive, emotionally distant, and a representative of the toxic masculinity that men are often taught to embody.
“My mom and my stepdad are actually very happy, and they’ve been happy since I was seven years old. It’s real weird. All my damage sh-t came from my real father before I was seven," Rogan told Ari Shaffir during an episode of "The Joe Rogan Experience."
"My real father was crazy, he was like a psychotic person. He beat the f-k out of my mother, he beat the f-k out of my cousin. He picked my cousin up by his hair, dude."
Rogan continued, saying that while he was growing up, he was only able to see "worst-case scenario[s]."
"So that was all my sh-t from when I was like, really young. I got to see someone who just can’t keep it together, smacks women, beats the sh-t out of kids, beats the sh-t out of them.”
Rogan then detailed one of the very few vivid memories he has of his father.
"My father wanted me to be like him. One time I had a fight with my cousin because I liked King Kong and he liked Godzilla. … My dad pulled me aside, pulled me in a room, shut the door. I’ll never forget this because I was five years old," Rogan explained.
"There’s very few things that I remember about him but this is one of them. … And he goes, ‘What happened?’ And you could not lie to him, there’s no lie. … ‘You didn’t cry did you?’ ‘No I didn’t cry.’ ‘Don’t ever cry,'" Rogan described.
"Then he patted me on the head and walked out of the room. I was punching everybody after that. I got the green light to punch kids as long as I didn’t cry."
It wasn't until Rogan's mother remarried that he was finally able to see a different side to masculinity, one that he was able to embrace fully.
"My stepdad’s a hippie. My stepdad was a computer programmer, and he was an architect, he went to school for architecture after he stopped doing computer programming... All of a sudden I’m living with this hippie guy in San Francisco … and it’s all like peace and love, it’s the ‘70s man.”
Rogan living with his stepfather changed his outlook on life and gave him a better experience with a father figure.
Nia Tipton is a writer living in Brooklyn. She covers pop culture, social justice issues, and trending topics. Keep up with her on Instagram and Twitter.