Joe Rogan is by far one of the most well-known podcasters in the world. However, the UFC commentator is not as successful when it comes to his comedy career. While he does have one of the largest fan bases in the world, many of his fans are not big fans of his stand-up.

But, with the release of his upcoming stand-up special, ‘Burn the Boats’ on Netflix just hours away, the JRE podcast host has the opportunity to win them over. But, the one question that fans have been ceaselessly speculating about on fan forums is: What will the special be about?

Given his history of not shying away from controversial topics in previous stand-up specials (and indeed his podcast), the special will doubtlessly see him give his irreverent and possibly controversial take on contemporary hot-button issues. Not to mention the name of the special, which indicates he is in no mood to take prisoners.

Politics and culture, of course, are two of Rogan’s favorite subjects, and most are expecting him to speak on the recent wild developments in American politics. Conspiracy theories, too have been a staple of the Texas resident’s comedy, and it is only reasonable to guess that he will touch upon them. A few wildlife-related jokes and a smattering of psychedelic humor to round off the special will also not be surprising.

And all of this, of course, in Rogan’s loud, gesticulation-heavy, Sam Kinison-inspired delivery. But one thing is for certain- no matter how good or bad Rogan’s material is, it will almost definitely be a roaring success because of the ‘Joe Rogan Effect.’

Why Joe Rogan’s ‘Burn the Boats’ may break records

By sheer virtue of the size of his platform and popularity, Joe Rogan can make someone or something popular simply by mentioning them. All of Rogan’s guests see a boost in popularity immediately after an appearance on his podcast. The clearest manifestation of the ‘Joe Rogan Effect’ is apparent in how rich and successful some of his (less talented, according to many) comedian friends have gotten.

The ‘Rogansphere’, as it has been termed by many, consists of Rogan’s close stand-up comic friends, including Bert Kreischer and Brendan Schaub. Kreischcer of course, famously sells out arenas on tour and is among America’s most successful commercial comics. And he manages to do this despite comedy fans feeling that there are far better comics than him qualitatively who cannot sell out arenas or make the kind of money ‘The Machine’ does. Reddit, even the JRE subreddit is full of posts that talk about this precise topic.

Schaub, on the other hand, has two of the lowest-rated comedy specials on IMDB. The former UFC heavyweight quit fighting to pursue a comedy career after being pushed by Rogan (the infamous “you’d be surprised” moment). And given how his specials have been received, it is clear that he wasn’t ready for it. But, he was still able to secure a deal with Netflix for his first special, titled ‘You’d Be Surprised’ (another indication of how central a part Rogan was to his comedy career).

Imagine how much more potent the ‘Joe Rogan Effect’ will be for the man himself. Since this will be Rogan’s first comedy special after more than half a decade, his most dedicated fans are eagerly waiting for ‘Burn the Boats’. This is why it should not be surprising to see his special not only the number one streamed show in all of the Netflix library, but break a few records, too.