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But Is the 'Liberal Joe Rogan's' Podcast Any Good? Kylie Kelce's 'Not Gonna Lie'

By Dustin Rowles | Celebrity | December 20, 2024 |

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Header Image Source: YouTube

Kylie Kelce has been getting a lot of attention over the past couple of weeks since launching her podcast, Not Gonna Lie, which has overtaken Joe Rogan as the top podcast on Apple and Spotify. There are several reasons for this: podcast charts favor recent releases, Kelce leveraged her husband’s wildly popular podcast with his brother, New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce, her potential future sister-in-law happens to be one of the most famous musicians in the world, and she’s tapped into a genuine market for her content — a podcast centered on women, motherhood, and sports.

That’s a stark contrast to Joe Rogan - whose show often features conspiracy theorists, his dickish comedian buddies, and, oddly, bodybuilders — and even to Alex Cooper, the most popular female podcaster, who spent this morning chatting with Hailey Bieber about her relationship with Justin. Yes, I listened, and yes, I listen to a lot of podcasts because, increasingly, that’s where pop culture thrives.

Outside of true crime, there aren’t many popular female-led podcasts geared toward moms who’ve graduated from the boozy chaos of Call Me Daddy. I’ve sampled a few, but most seem fixated on mental health, which is fine, but there’s something oddly refreshing about hearing a woman famous-by-association vent about motherhood, talk some smack, interview women in her circle (her first guest was It’s Always Sunny’s Kaitlin Olson), and keep it all under 45 minutes.

I’ll admit I initially tuned in because Kelce describes herself as “aggressively left,” which is nice to hear, even though she doesn’t discuss politics on the podcast. (She did tell the NYTimes that she’d love to chat with Michelle Obama or Josh Shapiro.) She has a great Philly accent, spends a chunk of her first episode clapping back at people criticizing her for cursing in front of her kids, and radiates good vibes—even if the podcast itself isn’t super polished yet. In fact, that lack of polish might be part of its charm: she’s still figuring it out.

And it’s not all about motherhood. This week, for example, she had an in-depth conversation with Charissa Thompson about Thompson’s decision not to have children (and her struggles with marriage). In that same episode, Kelce shared her anxieties about her kids noticing that other parents do Elf on the Shelf way better than she does. With three daughters (and a fourth on the way), a job coaching high-school field hockey, and a packed schedule, she doesn’t have time for that shit.

It feels strange to call someone who hangs out with Taylor Swift “down-to-earth,” but that’s exactly Kelce’s vibe. I’m not sure if she can compete with Rogan long-term — she clearly doesn’t have the bandwidth to record three three-hour episodes a week — and I doubt she’s aiming to be the “liberal” anyone. But I’d much rather hear her talk about Elf on the Shelf than listen to Hailey Bieber awkwardly talk about her Demi Lovato drama.

Kelce doesn’t seem interested in fame. She’s simply tired of letting others define her and wants a space to define herself. If she’s going to be in the public eye anyway, she may as well own her narrative. Through the first three episodes, she’s proven to be a fun hang — even if she’s not spilling much tea. That said, she does lightheartedly poke fun at her husband and brother-in-law, which is a nice bonus. That said, the constant sponsored Dunkin shout-outs are annoying AF, even if Dunkin seems like the perfect ad sponsor for this show.