Joe Rogan Experience #2123 - Gary Clark Jr.

1. 0:00 – 2:19

   Finishing the album: mixing, mastering, and no time to decompress

   1. NANarrator0:00

      (drum roll) Joe Rogan podcast, check it out. The Joe Rogan Experience.

   2. JRJoe Rogan0:06

      Train by day, Joe Rogan podcast by night, all day. (rock music) So how much of a relief is it to have the album done?

   3. GJGary Clark Jr.0:15

      Uh, it-

   4. JRJoe Rogan0:16

      You've been working on this for a while, huh?

   5. GJGary Clark Jr.0:18

      Yeah, it would be a relief if I got a chance to chill out. I just-

   6. JRJoe Rogan0:21

      Ah.

   7. GJGary Clark Jr.0:22

      I just kind of m- mixed it, mastered it, mastered it again, and that took a little while. And, uh, I was supposed to go on vacation. I was gonna take a trip and go chill out and, like, think about it, and that took like... That didn't end up happening, so I just turned my phone off for, like, two, three days. And then it was let's go talk about it and break it all down and, you know, so it's, it's a, it's a relief. It's finally done. But it just, it's kinda kept going, so I haven't had a chance to, like, chill on it.

   8. JRJoe Rogan0:54

      Those breaks are important, right? Those just vacation breaks, just shut your brain off breaks.

   9. GJGary Clark Jr.0:58

      Yeah. Yeah, I, I don't... I, yeah, I really, I really wanted that one. (laughs)

   10. JRJoe Rogan1:06

       (laughs)

   11. GJGary Clark Jr.1:06

       I really, really wanted that.

   12. JRJoe Rogan1:07

       Looking forward to those margaritas.

   13. GJGary Clark Jr.1:08

       I needed it. I just wanted to ch- I just wanted to go be by myself, just camp out in the woods by myself or something.

   14. JRJoe Rogan1:13

       Oh, really?

   15. GJGary Clark Jr.1:13

       Yeah, just be completely solo.

   16. JRJoe Rogan1:15

       Oh, yeah.

   17. GJGary Clark Jr.1:16

       And just chill out, you know. I was, I just made 40. I was just wanted to go chill out and go, "Wow," you know, reflect and be like, "Wow, this first 40's been pretty cool." Like-

   18. JRJoe Rogan1:27

       Yeah.

   19. GJGary Clark Jr.1:27

       ... "What's gonna happen in the next?" And it was like, boom, New York City, Tonight Show-

   20. JRJoe Rogan1:32

       (laughs)

   21. GJGary Clark Jr.1:32

       ... Questlove looking at me. I was like, "This is not what the plan was." (laughs)

   22. JRJoe Rogan1:39

       (laughs)

   23. GJGary Clark Jr.1:39

       At all.

   24. JRJoe Rogan1:39

       And sometimes you gotta force the plan. And those-

   25. GJGary Clark Jr.1:41

       Yeah.

   26. JRJoe Rogan1:41

       ... all those other people.

   27. GJGary Clark Jr.1:43

       Yeah, absolutely.

   28. JRJoe Rogan1:43

       You know, you have a lot of people to make happy.

   29. GJGary Clark Jr.1:45

       Absolutely. But I'm, uh, I'm also excited to do it, you know.

   30. JRJoe Rogan1:48

       Mm-hmm.
2. 2:19 – 4:13

   Making albums in a singles world: ignoring rules and getting weird in COVID

   1. GJGary Clark Jr.2:19

      Well, I think I, I still care about this shit, you know.

   2. JRJoe Rogan2:22

      You can tell.

   3. GJGary Clark Jr.2:22

      I really care. Like, I, I, you know, people are like, "What the hell are you making a whole album for if it's about singles?" I'm like, "I still like listening to, to a full record, putting a record down-"

   4. JRJoe Rogan2:34

      Yeah.

   5. GJGary Clark Jr.2:34

      ... "you know, having the needles scratch the thing and playing it and then, you know, flipping that other side and seeing what's happening." I still like listening to a record from top to bottom, you know, like an art-

   6. JRJoe Rogan2:43

      If there's anything that I've ever learned, it's that j- do what you like to do.

   7. GJGary Clark Jr.2:47

      Mm-hmm.

   8. JRJoe Rogan2:48

      It doesn't matter what the trend of the business is. Just fucking do what you like to do.

   9. GJGary Clark Jr.2:52

      Oh, yeah. Yeah.

   10. JRJoe Rogan2:54

       You like albums? Make a fucking album.

   11. GJGary Clark Jr.2:55

       Yeah, yeah, sure. And so, yeah, that's what I did. I've b- I mean, I, I was locked in. A lot of it was by choice too, you know. It was like I, I, I just love being in the spot. I built a studio. I was like, "Well, why not fucking use it?"

   12. JRJoe Rogan3:11

       Yeah.

   13. GJGary Clark Jr.3:12

       You know, so that's what I did. Kinda to a fault, my wife was like, "You, you gotta get out of there."

   14. JRJoe Rogan3:20

       (laughs)

   15. GJGary Clark Jr.3:20

       (laughs) You know, "Trying to hang with you, get me out of the house, socialize me and stuff."

   16. JRJoe Rogan3:23

       Yeah, yeah, yeah.

   17. GJGary Clark Jr.3:23

       But I was just, I was just locked in, you know, just nerding out, trying to make noise, organize noise, you know.

   18. JRJoe Rogan3:31

       But the end is beautiful.

   19. GJGary Clark Jr.3:34

       Thank you.

   20. JRJoe Rogan3:34

       The e- the end result is beautiful.

   21. GJGary Clark Jr.3:36

       Thank you. Thank you for-

   22. JRJoe Rogan3:36

       There's so many layers to the music, man. I got it last night. They sent me a link, but then the link needed a passcode and I couldn't get a passcode. And then last night they sent me the link.

   23. GJGary Clark Jr.3:45

       Yeah.

   24. JRJoe Rogan3:46

       So while I was riding last night when I came from the store, I listened to the whole album.

   25. GJGary Clark Jr.3:50

       Awesome. Awesome.

   26. JRJoe Rogan3:51

       Man, there's so many... The, the music, the sounds, like right off the bat, there's so many layers.

   27. GJGary Clark Jr.3:58

       Yeah.

   28. JRJoe Rogan3:58

       It's like, you know, it's very... You could tell there's so much thought into it.

   29. GJGary Clark Jr.4:05

       There's a lot of smoke in the air.

   30. JRJoe Rogan4:08

       Yeah.
3. 4:13 – 7:13

   Hard to market, impossible to label: influences and resisting the 'next Hendrix' frame

   1. GJGary Clark Jr.4:13

      Yeah, it was just, uh... And there was nobody saying... You know, usually it's, for me, people expect a certain thing, you know. And, uh, like, you know, I get, have talks, I don't... No strings on the album, stay away from singing falsetto stuff because your core fans don't like it. And I was like, "I just don't give a fuck." Like, I didn't care. I was... It was the middle, in the middle of COVID.

   2. JRJoe Rogan4:39

      Yeah.

   3. GJGary Clark Jr.4:39

      So everybody was locked down, and I was just like, my phone was down. Nobody was talking to anybody. I just-

   4. JRJoe Rogan4:44

      That-

   5. GJGary Clark Jr.4:44

      I got weird, man. I got weird in the studio.

   6. JRJoe Rogan4:46

      To me, that is so crazy that anybody is around you that gives you that kind of advice.

   7. GJGary Clark Jr.4:51

      Well, it's the, it's, it's folks that are in the business and, you know, I guess people... I've been, I've been told that I'm not... I'm, I'm a hard act to put on a shelf. You don't know where to put me. So they-

   8. JRJoe Rogan5:05

      Right.

   9. GJGary Clark Jr.5:05

      ... don't know how to market or sell this confused-

   10. JRJoe Rogan5:09

       (laughs)

   11. GJGary Clark Jr.5:09

       ... kid who plays power chords and listens to Nirvana, who also loves Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre, who thinks that Thelonious Monk is one of the baddest dudes on the planet, who wants to play harmonica like Sonny Boy Williamson. They're like, "What the fuck are you?"

   12. JRJoe Rogan5:23

       (laughs)

   13. GJGary Clark Jr.5:23

       You know? So...

   14. JRJoe Rogan5:24

       You're Gary Clark Jr.

   15. GJGary Clark Jr.5:25

       Yeah, yeah, exactly.

   16. JRJoe Rogan5:26

       That's it.

   17. GJGary Clark Jr.5:26

       Exactly, exactly. But it's a, it's a, it's a, it's a weird time, you know. Like, just people wanna be able to call you something, and that's-

   18. JRJoe Rogan5:33

       Yeah.

   19. GJGary Clark Jr.5:33

       You know, so they try to do the whole next Jimi Hendrix thing, and that didn't really work out. I kind of rebelled on that, and-

   20. JRJoe Rogan5:40

       Yeah.

   21. GJGary Clark Jr.5:41

       ... they're like, "Oh fuck, now what?" You know. So here we are, you know what I mean? It's, um... But I, you know, there's no reason not to try shit. All my favorite artists tried shit.

   22. JRJoe Rogan5:53

       Yeah.

   23. GJGary Clark Jr.5:53

       I mean, that's why I like, you know, Prince.

   24. JRJoe Rogan5:56

       Mm-hmm.

   25. GJGary Clark Jr.5:57

       T- like, unapologetically. Stevie Wonder.

   26. JRJoe Rogan5:59

       Yeah.

   27. GJGary Clark Jr.6:00

       You know, that's also why I like-

   28. JRJoe Rogan6:01

       Sturgill Simpson.

   29. GJGary Clark Jr.6:02

       ... hanging out with you motherfuckers, 'cause y'all just be trying shit, you know.

   30. JRJoe Rogan6:05

       Yeah.
4. 7:13 – 12:40

   Country life, nature nerdery, and predators in the backyard

   1. GJGary Clark Jr.7:13

      Y'all been doing it, man. That bird on the street, y'all are taking over. It's game changing.

   2. JRJoe Rogan7:18

      It's fun.

   3. GJGary Clark Jr.7:19

      For real.

   4. JRJoe Rogan7:19

      We got so many guys moved here now.

   5. GJGary Clark Jr.7:21

      Oh, I know.

   6. JRJoe Rogan7:22

      It's-

   7. GJGary Clark Jr.7:22

      They're my neighbors now.

   8. JRJoe Rogan7:23

      (laughs)

   9. GJGary Clark Jr.7:24

      Way out in the country.

   10. JRJoe Rogan7:26

       Well, that's the smart way to live, man.

   11. GJGary Clark Jr.7:27

       Yeah, yeah.

   12. JRJoe Rogan7:27

       I tell everybody. I go attack it from the outside.

   13. GJGary Clark Jr.7:30

       Yeah.

   14. JRJoe Rogan7:30

       Like Tony Hinchcliffe, he likes living in the city. I'm like, "That's great," and everything like that.

   15. GJGary Clark Jr.7:34

       Yeah, yeah.

   16. JRJoe Rogan7:34

       But you're gonna go crazy. You wanna be-

   17. GJGary Clark Jr.7:36

       Ah.

   18. JRJoe Rogan7:36

       ... outside, get that balance.

   19. GJGary Clark Jr.7:37

       Yeah, definitely.

   20. JRJoe Rogan7:37

       When I lived in LA, I lived way outside of LA in, in the hills with coyotes and mountain lions and shit.

   21. GJGary Clark Jr.7:43

       Yeah, right.

   22. JRJoe Rogan7:43

       I had to worry about hawks and-

   23. GJGary Clark Jr.7:44

       Yeah.

   24. JRJoe Rogan7:45

       ... you know, those are like the things that I would think about. I'd like just that quiet, just quiet, and then get into the crazy, and then get back to the quiet.

   25. GJGary Clark Jr.7:52

       It's a choice.

   26. JRJoe Rogan7:53

       Yeah.

   27. GJGary Clark Jr.7:53

       It's a choice. It's a choice.

   28. JRJoe Rogan7:54

       Just have a... Like, the way you're doing it, it's perfect. Live in the country. Just relax.

   29. GJGary Clark Jr.7:59

       Yeah, yeah.

   30. JRJoe Rogan8:00

       When you get outside and you drink a cup of coffee in your porch, man, you just chilling.
5. 12:40 – 15:18

   Addictive personalities and the pull of new hobbies (golf, cameras, archery)

   1. GJGary Clark Jr.12:40

      I brought a guitar for you, and if... At least we're gonna teach you how to play an E chord before I get outta here.

   2. JRJoe Rogan12:47

      Okay. I'll, I'll try.

   3. GJGary Clark Jr.12:49

      Yeah?

   4. JRJoe Rogan12:49

      I'll try it. I just, I've never even tried it.

   5. GJGary Clark Jr.12:51

      Well, that's the problem.

   6. JRJoe Rogan12:53

      Is that the problem? No, the problem is... Here's the problem.

   7. GJGary Clark Jr.12:56

      Okay.

   8. JRJoe Rogan12:57

      I know my brain.

   9. GJGary Clark Jr.12:58

      Oh. (laughs)

   10. JRJoe Rogan12:58

       And my... I have a dangerous brain. I can't, my brain can't get too interested in things-

   11. GJGary Clark Jr.13:02

       All right.

   12. JRJoe Rogan13:02

       ... 'cause then it's all in. And then, it's like, "Fuck eating. Let's do this all day."

   13. GJGary Clark Jr.13:07

       Mm-hmm.

   14. JRJoe Rogan13:07

       I, uh, so I've learned through all my years how to keep that wolf in a cage-

   15. GJGary Clark Jr.13:11

       Hmm.

   16. JRJoe Rogan13:12

       ... and not to let it out. So, that's why I don't play golf.

   17. GJGary Clark Jr.13:15

       Gotcha.

   18. JRJoe Rogan13:16

       'Cause I'm addicted to pool. It's a real problem.

   19. GJGary Clark Jr.13:19

       Okay.

   20. JRJoe Rogan13:20

       I play like a hai-... I could play like a hare under professional speed-

   21. GJGary Clark Jr.13:23

       Right.

   22. JRJoe Rogan13:24

       ... when I'm on, when I'm really on. I've been practicing for several hours. I could run... I ran three racks the other day, three racks in a row. That's big-

   23. GJGary Clark Jr.13:31

       Oh, wow.

   24. JRJoe Rogan13:31

       ... four and a quarter inch pockets. Yeah, see that's the problem. Like, I get like that with music. I would get like that with anything.

   25. GJGary Clark Jr.13:37

       Yeah, yeah.

   26. JRJoe Rogan13:37

       I get like that with golf for sure. I see Jamie. He's a full-on junkie.

   27. GJGary Clark Jr.13:41

       (laughs)

   28. JRJoe Rogan13:41

       He's a full-on junkie. He's got a, a simulator out there, and I come here. And like, when I pull the car up, he's driving balls into the simulator and m- mapping it out on a fucking computer.

   29. GJGary Clark Jr.13:52

       Obsessed.

   30. NANarrator13:54

       Let's go.
6. 15:18 – 37:55

   Art vs business: meetings, setlists, managers, and getting ripped off

   1. JRJoe Rogan15:18

      Yeah, I don't like people telling you what to do.

   2. GJGary Clark Jr.15:20

      Hmm.

   3. JRJoe Rogan15:21

      That drives me nuts.

   4. GJGary Clark Jr.15:22

      Mm-hmm.

   5. JRJoe Rogan15:23

      When I hear people telling you what to do and telling, about giving you advice on music, just shut the fuck up.

   6. GJGary Clark Jr.15:29

      Fuck.

   7. JRJoe Rogan15:29

      Everybody shut the fuck up, and just market whatever he does.

   8. GJGary Clark Jr.15:32

      Yeah, it's, yeah, well, yeah, right?

   9. JRJoe Rogan15:34

      Just do that.

   10. GJGary Clark Jr.15:34

       I did it. You, you sell it. But, you know, the thing is, is, uh, that it's, it's, it's not people telling me what to do. It's meetings and suggestions.

   11. JRJoe Rogan15:44

       Mm-hmm, right.

   12. GJGary Clark Jr.15:44

       So, I'm translating it as people telling me what to do.

   13. JRJoe Rogan15:46

       That is what it is, though.

   14. GJGary Clark Jr.15:47

       But they're... Suggestions, right?

   15. JRJoe Rogan15:48

       It's as much as they can do.

   16. GJGary Clark Jr.15:50

       Right.

   17. JRJoe Rogan15:50

       As much as they can tell Gary Clark Jr. how to make music, they're gonna give it a shot.

   18. GJGary Clark Jr.15:54

       Well...

   19. JRJoe Rogan15:54

       You know? You know what I'm saying? It's just, it's just-

   20. GJGary Clark Jr.15:57

       I gotcha.

   21. JRJoe Rogan15:57

       ... annoying. It exists in comedy too.

   22. GJGary Clark Jr.15:59

       Yeah, it does.

   23. JRJoe Rogan15:59

       They're always telling comedians, "Do this. Do that. Dress nice. Do this. Do that."

   24. GJGary Clark Jr.16:03

       Yeah, yeah.

   25. JRJoe Rogan16:03

       "Stop talking about COVID. Stop talking about this."

   26. GJGary Clark Jr.16:06

       Yeah, sure.

   27. JRJoe Rogan16:06

       "Do the... You know, you'll lose 5% of the audience when you do this, and 10% when you that." Shut the fuck up.

   28. GJGary Clark Jr.16:12

       Yeah, yeah, yeah.

   29. JRJoe Rogan16:12

       Shut up.

   30. GJGary Clark Jr.16:13

       Yeah, I was in a conversation the other day in New York, we're talking about a set list. "You should put this in this order, and do this and this." And I was like, "You know what? Y'all talk about it. I don't talk... I don't wanna... I, I, I'm leaving this conversation."
7. 37:55 – 42:09

   Entourages, fame levels, and the value of staying solo

   1. JRJoe Rogan37:55

      That's also how dudes develop entourages. That's a wild one.

   2. GJGary Clark Jr.37:59

      Man, speaking of entourages, I had to talk a, I had to just tell (coughs) my dad is going crazy.

   3. JRJoe Rogan38:07

      Oh, no.

   4. GJGary Clark Jr.38:08

      I love my pops, but, I mean, he shows up to my shows, and this dude all of a sudden is sitting courtside at Spurs games.

   5. JRJoe Rogan38:18

      (laughs)

   6. GJGary Clark Jr.38:20

      He shows up to my shows with, like, 30 folks, 30 deep. He's got a table at the Moody Theater. He's living his best life. He's just squatted up around town.

   7. JRJoe Rogan38:27

      (laughs)

   8. GJGary Clark Jr.38:27

      People talk to me about him all the time. My dad is out here getting it in Austin, Texas. It's pretty funny.

   9. JRJoe Rogan38:32

      Wow.

   10. GJGary Clark Jr.38:33

       But yeah, he's like, my pop's just a superstar out here.

   11. JRJoe Rogan38:36

       That's awesome.

   12. GJGary Clark Jr.38:36

       So yeah, it's good. He's having a good time.

   13. JRJoe Rogan38:39

       Just having fun?

   14. GJGary Clark Jr.38:39

       Yeah, enjoying it.

   15. JRJoe Rogan38:41

       Yeah.

   16. GJGary Clark Jr.38:41

       You know? It's, it's definitely en- enjoying, uh, having a, a kid who's known around town, you know?

   17. JRJoe Rogan38:50

       Yeah.

   18. GJGary Clark Jr.38:51

       That's good.

   19. JRJoe Rogan38:51

       Oh, man, he must be so proud.

   20. GJGary Clark Jr.38:53

       But yeah, it's, he's, he's getting a little bit ridiculous.

   21. JRJoe Rogan38:56

       (laughs)

   22. GJGary Clark Jr.38:58

       Showing up 10, 15 deep.

   23. JRJoe Rogan39:00

       Entourage.

   24. GJGary Clark Jr.39:00

       "Hit me up, hit me up. Hey, man, can you get me into this spot?"

   25. JRJoe Rogan39:03

       Uh...

   26. GJGary Clark Jr.39:03

       "How many people you got?" "Oh, a couple." Yeah.

   27. JRJoe Rogan39:07

       When Dave rolled, when Dave Chappelle came to the Mothership, he came with three SUVs. (laughs) He's got, he had, like, three Escalades full of people. (laughs)

   28. GJGary Clark Jr.39:17

       Where did it go, how do you fit anywhere?

   29. JRJoe Rogan39:19

       Oh, man, he's got family, he's got friends, he's got fello- fellow comedians, musicians. Like, he just travels with people. He loves it. It's like a party-

   30. GJGary Clark Jr.39:27

       Right.
8. 42:09 – 1:13:46

   KISS, rock spectacle, and the weird pipeline from pop culture to TikTok anxiety

   1. JRJoe Rogan42:09

      Kiss had that forever.

   2. GJGary Clark Jr.42:10

      Sure. Right.

   3. JRJoe Rogan42:11

      You know? I remember when Kiss took their makeup off, everybody was like, "Oh."

   4. GJGary Clark Jr.42:15

      What year was that?

   5. JRJoe Rogan42:16

      Like, the '80s, I think.

   6. GJGary Clark Jr.42:18

      Yeah.

   7. JRJoe Rogan42:19

      I think it was the '80s. It was Kiss unmasked.

   8. GJGary Clark Jr.42:22

      I couldn't imagine, like, "Oh, oh my God."

   9. JRJoe Rogan42:25

      They used to be able to go around town. So they would go out and, like, they would, like... I remember Gene Simmons was dating Cher, and he- he would go out, but he'd put a bandana on like he was during COVID times.

   10. GJGary Clark Jr.42:36

       Oh, right.

   11. JRJoe Rogan42:37

       Yeah. So everybody was like, "Oh, we almost got a picture of him." So it was, like, half blurry pictures of someone's side of their face with their hand up, "That's all you gotta Kiss forever."

   12. GJGary Clark Jr.42:46

       That's cool. I, I kinda miss those days and that mystique.

   13. JRJoe Rogan42:48

       You have a comic for it? Does that look right?

   14. GJGary Clark Jr.42:51

       (laughs) Yeah, see how he's wearing the bandana? That's how he used to go around town. He used to wear a bandana.

   15. JRJoe Rogan42:56

       1980.

   16. GJGary Clark Jr.42:56

       You know how ridiculous that is? It was 1980?

   17. JRJoe Rogan42:59

       Yeah.

   18. GJGary Clark Jr.43:00

       ... I think that's cool.

   19. JRJoe Rogan43:00

       Yeah, I was in- I was, like, going into high school when they did that.

   20. GJGary Clark Jr.43:05

       Oh, damn.

   21. JRJoe Rogan43:07

       (laughs)

   22. GJGary Clark Jr.43:08

       (laughs) What a crew, man. What a-

   23. NANarrator43:13

       Oh, wow.

   24. GJGary Clark Jr.43:13

       ... talk about-

   25. JRJoe Rogan43:13

       They didn't get the love they deserved because people had already thought it was corny to have makeup on, for some reason. They didn't have real hit records that were like, they, their songs didn't play on the radio that much. If they played on the radio, it was rare.

   26. GJGary Clark Jr.43:25

       You don't think so? Well, I, I, I kinda grew up with Kiss being a household name already.

   27. JRJoe Rogan43:31

       Yeah, well they were huge. They sold millions of records, they sold out arenas, but they weren't getting love on the radio.

   28. GJGary Clark Jr.43:40

       Huh.

   29. JRJoe Rogan43:40

       It was just fans. And there was a thing that were like, people would be embarrassed to be a Kiss fan.

   30. GJGary Clark Jr.43:45

       Really? (laughs)

Episode duration: 2:45:53