BOBBYCAST - GMA Host Michael Strahan on Splitting a Bottle with Julia Roberts & Going to Space

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Bobbycast – Michael Strahan: Splitting a Bottle with Julia Roberts & Going to Space

Episode Title: GMA Host Michael Strahan on Splitting a Bottle with Julia Roberts & Going to Space
Date: April 2, 2026
Host: Bobby Bones
Guest: Michael Strahan

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Episode Overview

In this rich, high-energy episode of The Bobbycast, host Bobby Bones sits down with the multi-faceted Michael Strahan—NFL Hall of Famer, Good Morning America (GMA) co-anchor, businessman, and recent space traveler. The conversation covers Strahan’s evolution from football legend to versatile media personality, touching on career pivots, the emotional journey of his daughter’s health battle, his insights from space, business ventures, and memorable celebrity encounters. Throughout, Strahan’s warmth, honesty, and humor shine through, revealing the drive and compassion powering his success.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Early Encounters & First Impressions

• Bobby recalls their previous meetings and lauds Strahan for his warmth despite his intimidating athletic frame.
• Strahan credits his “people-first” philosophy to his upbringing and early jobs, emphasizing the value of making people feel seen.
  • “It's always about being warm and making people feel seen. And I like people. So, yeah, I always—I feel like I’m that guy. Except for the football field.” (03:03)

2. Developing the ‘Switch’—Duality On and Off the Field

• Strahan discusses learning to separate aggression on the football field from his everyday demeanor.
  • “...learning how to control your aggression and how to control your focus. It took me years, but it made the game easier—more relaxed, more fun, less stressful.” (03:45)
• Transition to TV and the lessons learned in both scrutiny and self-evaluation.

3. Reinventing Identity After Football

• Michael candidly shares the challenges of defining himself beyond football, confronting the “football player” image, and finding fulfillment in new ventures.
  • “You walk into a room and you feel like that’s all everybody sees: the football player. They don’t see the human being...That was a big adjustment for me.” (04:58)
• The importance of dropping ego, embracing opportunities, and conquering the fear of failure.
  • “Get rid of all that stuff, drop your ego at the door, and go to work. And that's what I did, and it's worked out.” (06:05)

4. Broadcasting: From Sports to Live TV

• The transition to co-hosting Live with Kelly felt natural to Strahan; however, GMA and Fox required broader skills.
  • “Live was probably the easiest show I’ve ever done...GMA and football were the two that, when I first started, I was a little overwhelmed.” (07:39)
• Adapting to criticism—Strahan draws parallels between TV and football’s high-pressure environments.

5. Handling Major World Events on Live TV

• The unpredictability of live news, especially covering world events and technical glitches, keeps Strahan on his toes.
  • “...the unpredictability of it...If every day is just the same, after a while, you could go in and be a robot and do the job. I’m like, okay, you guys could just AI me and I’ll stay home...” (12:33)
• Highlights include covering King Charles’ coronation and reporting from Easter Island.

6. Personal Challenges: His Daughter’s Cancer Battle

• Bobby asks about the deeply personal documentary on Strahan’s daughter’s cancer journey.
• Strahan credits his daughter for driving the project and being public to help others; he hasn’t watched the film himself due to how difficult it is.
  • “I lived it and it’s too hard to watch. ...her putting it out there really did help me...” (15:19, 16:53)
• Discusses emotional compartmentalization, comparing it to flipping the “football switch.”

7. Formative Years in Germany & Starting Football Late

• Strahan grew up in Germany from ages 9 to 17, feeling more European than American upon returning to the U.S.
• He played only one year of high school football but learned quickly by watching and visualizing himself as a pro.
  • “If I could do that—I got one scholarship. And then from there I figured it out and I learned…” (21:22)

8. Key Figures Who Believed in Him

• His father, Major Gene Willie Strahan Sr., set a tone of inevitability and positivity: “when, not if.”
• After football, his business partner Constance Swartz became his media career champion.
  • “Between the two of them, they have really taken care of me.” (22:44)

9. Space Travel with Blue Origin

• Strahan vividly describes the twelve-minute flight: the rush, fear, exhilaration, and existential perspective gained.
  • “Looking back at the planet, it makes you realize how insignificant we are in the grand scheme of everything here… It’s just the most unique feeling I’ve ever, ever felt, man.” (25:19)
• Strahan details pre-flight nerves and being reassured by Blue Origin’s preparation.

10. Reflections on Michael Vick, Coaching, and Redemption

• Praises Vick’s accountability, growth, and the powerful lessons from adversity he brings as a coach.
  • “I think Mike has a lot of honor… He’s a great example paying your debt to society and getting back on your feet.” (30:15)

11. Retirement from Football

• Strahan says he could have played longer but wanted to walk off a champion and avoid long-term injury.
  • “I walked off the field, Bobby. I didn’t limp.” (32:17)
• Found fulfillment post-career thanks to belief in his adaptability and new opportunities.

12. Financial Literacy

• Strahan credits a long-time friend and finance professional for teaching him about money early in his career, not for payment but as a repayment for kindness extended during a family emergency.
  • “He never charged me one penny and has been that guy for me for over 30 years. I got very lucky.” (33:08)

13. Fatherhood Advice

• Offers reassurance, compassion, and emphasizes the profound love and vulnerability of parenthood.
  • “When you’re not with me, my heart lives outside of my body. You’re my heart now.” (36:32)

14. The Michael Strahan Collection

• Details on his affordable, stylish menswear line: “Everything is me. ...If I’m gonna put my name on it, it’s got to be me.”
  • “I’m not a bougie guy...my suits are affordable, but they’re nice. And there’s a lot of thought that goes into them.” (37:57)

15. Starstruck Celebrity Moments

• Julia Roberts: Finished a bottle of rosé with her at the Beverly Wilshire; he sends her wine every year for her birthday.
  • “Who turns down Julia Roberts and a glass of rosé? And we ended up finishing off a bottle of rosé.” (40:06)
• Also mentions Nicole Kidman, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Michael Jordan as standouts.

16. Keys to Success

• Strahan boils it down to genuine interest, kindness, and authenticity.
  • “Show up, be authentic, be interested and do the best you can... Life ain’t that complicated.” (43:23)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Compartmentalizing Pain:
  “It’s kind of like football. A switch. To be honest with you. It’s a gift and a curse.” (16:53)
• About Going to Space:
  “You're flying, man...and you're just floating...looking back at the planet, it makes you realize how insignificant we are in the grand scheme of everything here.” (25:19)
• On Fatherhood:
  “You’re gonna love your kid more than you ever thought you can love anything, including yourself.” (36:32)
• On Julia Roberts:
  “She asked me if I want to have a glass of rosé. I said absolutely, because who turns down Julia Roberts in a glass of rosé?” (40:06)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Warmth and Approachability, Early Jobs: 03:03
• Learning to Flip the Switch (Football vs. Personal Life): 03:45
• Transitioning Identity Post-NFL: 04:58
• Overcoming Ego and Fear: 06:05
• GMA and Live with Kelly, Ease vs. Challenge: 07:39
• Handling Live TV Crises: 12:33
• Daughter’s Cancer Documentary: 14:46, 15:19
• Growing Up in Germany, Starting Football Late: 20:28, 21:22
• Key Influences: Father & Constance Swartz: 22:44
• Space Flight with Blue Origin: 24:10, 25:19
• Reflection on Michael Vick’s Journey: 30:15
• Retirement Decision: 32:17
• Financial Literacy and Friendship: 33:08
• Advice for New Fathers: 36:32
• Suit Collection & Style: 37:57
• Starstruck by Julia Roberts: 40:06
• Perspective on Michael Jordan: 42:01
• Keys to Sustained Success: 43:23

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Tone and Final Thoughts

The episode is candid, lively, and motivational, driven by the mutual respect and humor between Bobby and Michael. Strahan’s openness about personal and professional struggles, his admiration for others, and his grounded advice offer both entertainment and genuine wisdom. For anyone seeking insight into resilience, adaptability, and kindness as the foundation for achievement, this conversation is essential listening.

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End of Summary

Transcript

[Bobby]

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[Michael Strahan]

She asked me if I want to have a glass of rose. I said absolutely, because who turns down Julia Roberts in a glass of. And we ended up finishing off a bottle of. And it was, it was fantastic. Every year I sent her a case of. I don't know if she drinks it or not, but you know, I send it to her.

[Bobby]

We have a living legend on the Bobby cast today, super bowl champion with the New York Giants. He's a hall of famer. He's co anchor of Good Morning America. Going to talk to Michael Strahan from setting the single season SAC record. He flew in space with Blue Origin, which we'll talk about. He's all over the place. He also has a collection and it's called the Collection by Michael Strahan. It suits. It's in 100 Belk stores and it's online. And I love this guy. I've been able to work with him a couple times, be on Good Morning America. And he was so nice. We talk about that and we talk football and TV and business and space and everything in between. If you don't know him well, you're about to love him. Here he is. My conversation with Michael Strahan. Michael Strahan, what's up, man?

[Michael Strahan]

What's up, man? I'm so hungry, I'm over here eating from Starburst.

[Bobby]

You eat Starburst. I'm surprised that you, for two reasons would eat Starburst.

[Michael Strahan]

Well, I haven't had them in years, but. And that's why they're probably harder than a rock. They all kind of harder than a rock right now. But when desperate times call for desperate,

[Bobby]

desperate measures, is it that desperate? You gotta eat old Starburst.

[Michael Strahan]

I am that desperate right now. Bobby,

[Bobby]

let me just say it's been a few minutes. I don't even know if you remember me, but I have a couple Michael Strahan stories.

[Michael Strahan]

Come on, dude.

[Bobby]

Once I was in New York for something else, and I got a call going, hey, will you go up to GMA and talk to Michael Strahan about Old Town Road? And I was like, yeah, sure. So I threw on some jeans. I literally threw on some jeans and a B plus shirt and went up and talked about Old Town Road whenever Lil Nas X was blowing up. And that was kind of fun, kid, because you're just the easiest guy to be around. And then obviously when I, you know, I went dancing with the stars, that was kind of odd. That was a fun one, too. But I always tell people, like, you're a big dude, but you're a very warm guy. You feel like you've always been that way towards people.

[Michael Strahan]

Yeah, yeah, I appreciate that. I appreciate that. And I remember meeting you every time. So, yeah, I've always felt like people are important. I was always. Growing up as a kid was kind of had those jobs that you weren't the same person in. When you're cutting the grass, you're moving furniture, and people just don't see you. You're kind of just there. So for me, it's always about being warm and making people feel seen. So. And I like people. So, yeah, I always. I feel like I'm that guy. Except for the football field. Outside of that, I'm actually pretty nice.

[Bobby]

Was that a switch?

[Michael Strahan]

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. You gotta have a switch. You have to be able. It's weird. When I was a kid, kid being like 21 in the first year in the league, you have to. You think for years, like, I got to be mad at that guy. I got to be mad. He said something about my mama. Like, you're creating all these scenarios in your head. But as I got older, it was, hey, we can have this conversation right now. And I say, hold on, Bobby, put my helmet on, run out there, look at the guy, smile at him, beat him up a little bit, come back, put the helmet down, and continue the conversation. It was more about learning how to control your aggression and how to control your focus. And it took me some years to do it, but it made the game easier, made it more relaxed, made it more fun, less stressful. So, yeah, I definitely felt like you have to have a switch. If you don't, you'll burn yourself out quickly.

[Bobby]

I think it's been pretty amazing to watch the new professional identity you've created. But I do, and I work for the NFL, and I work with Matt Castle, who was a quarterback. And we talk a lot about athletes who, when they leave, they kind of have to figure out who they are because all they've ever done is be like, was that, you know, mentally for you, Was that a struggle?

[Michael Strahan]

Absolutely. I knew I had a job with Fox when I retired. I mean, that was. That was done. I already had a deal that signed and put in a drawer, and the first year of that deal went by, and I still. I went back to the Giants. It wasn't about having a job. It was about having a, you know, being comfortable. And my first year at Fox, first three weeks, I was thinking, I should have gone back to play football. This TV stuff is not for me. It's hard. It's a lot harder. Harder than it looks. And. But once I got it down, I love it. But, yeah, football was just. It's something we've done our whole lives, and how do you transition out of that? And you walk into a room and you feel like that's all everybody sees is the football player. They don't see the human being. They don't see someone who has other interests, someone who is more rounded than what they expect in an athlete to be. So, yeah, that was a big adjustment for me. Even though I knew I had a job, it still was tough.

[Bobby]

Did you feel like when you would go into a room that you would try to prove you were more of what you actually were, but try to be more of that so people would take you as that instead of just an athlete?

[Michael Strahan]

I think. I think at some point, probably, Probably. But I remember I was talking to a movie guy, movie producer, and I remember saying to him, yeah, you know, I feel like I go into these thing because I thought I wanted to be an actor at that point. So I'm like, yeah, I go to these auditions, and I feel like I walk in and they just go, he's the football player. And he said, people will see you as you see yourself. And he said that. And it kind of like, okay, I got to take myself out of just that football player mentality. And once I did that, like, all a lot of different things started to happen. I think people did see me in a different light. I think being just taking advantage of opportunities. And by that, I mean getting over the fear of failure to fill your fear of being in front of a group of people and something not working out, just saying yes to something just for the experience of it. And See where that led. And I look back now and I'm so grateful that I kind of got over the fear of, of the failure, the fear of feeling like you're, you're. You're going to look stupid if you do something. Just get rid of all that stuff, drop your ego at the door and go to work. And that's what I did, and it's worked out.

[Bobby]

How early did you start doing live with Kelly and Michael from after you

[Michael Strahan]

retired the fourth year out of football? Yeah, I think my fourth year out.

[Bobby]

Did you feel like you were ready for that or do you feel like that was, was training camp for what you're doing now?

[Michael Strahan]

Oh, no, I was ready for that because coming from Fox, got four other guys I have to listen to and pay attention to. That was tough. Live was probably the easiest show I've ever done, to be honest with you, because it was more personality driven. It was more, you know, celebrity driven, more fun and upbeat. So that was just kind of natural to me and I enjoyed it. I loved it. It was really a lot of fun. And GMA is a little bit of that. But you have the news and you have other components. So it required for you to have a different, different range and much more, a much more rounded range than live. But I felt like I was ready for live. GMA and football were the two that when I first started, I was a little overwhelmed. Live felt natural. It was just a good fit.

[Bobby]

Did you feel like playing football you would get more scrutiny like film or once you started doing gma, when they were, were you getting scrutiny from, you know, producers or, or executives?

[Michael Strahan]

No, it's, it's weird. Producers and executives, in a lot of ways you need people around you outside of that who are going to tell you the truth. And not that they don't tell you the truth, but I think a lot of them are so afraid to upset what they call the talent. So they, they will go around and try to hopefully get around. That gets to you around the band, not directly to your face. But coming from football, I'm used to it like a coach cursing you out, screaming at you, talking about everything about you. You just got to take it or you just got to toughen up. And I'm being on the field and having guys do that or being in. Have the media do that to you after you have a bad game or a bad season. So I was pretty tough from the football aspect of it. I think that the other criticisms that you get, I think I was, I judged myself a lot harder than anybody in the newspaper is going to judge me. I. So I just learned when I played football. And I remember telling one of the reporters this after he had kind of pissed me off, I said, well, you know what I learned? I'm not gonna let take. I'm not gonna let the opinion of someone upset me. Who? The LaHood. The last time they put on a football uniform is when their mom took them trick or treating. And it's very easy for me to criticize what you do. I can't do what you do. But I know one thing I could do. What those guys were doing, they couldn't do what I was doing at the time. So I, I used to always look at no one is more. People want to are. People want to see you succeed, but most people, you know, sometimes they don't, but then if they don't and you have a comeback, they like that too. And being in New York, you have to have thick skin. So I developed it here, man, and it's worked great for me.

[Bobby]

It's weird, you bring up a great point. Like our culture is funny because they love to build you up, but they don't always love to see you stay up there because then they love to knock you down and, and then they love to see you build yourself back up again after they've built you up and knocked you down. It's almost like they want to. Yo. Yo, you. Yes, that's exactly what.

[Michael Strahan]

Yeah. But I will tell you, if you could build yourself back up after getting knocked down, then you almost feel like nothing could take you down again, you know, unless you do something to sabotage yourself. But I enjoy that. I enjoy challenge being challenged. I enjoy people doubting. I think that's what most motivates me, to be honest with you, to keep on doing all these things that no one expected this football guy to do. So I take it as motivation. I take it as fuel. I don't feel like I have anything to prove anymore to anybody. And now I do things that I love to do and I enjoy doing and just trying to prove to myself that I can accomplish and be good at something.

[Bobby]

What time do you wake up in the morning?

[Michael Strahan]

5:00am oh, that ain't so bad. Not so bad. You know, like, George wakes up at 3, 3:30, and Robin's like, 4, 4:30. And they're like, oh, we meditate. I'm like, well, I do too. It's called Suli.

[Bobby]

Why? Why?

[Michael Strahan]

So I wake up at five and it's. It's a great job, man. I love it. I actually Enjoy going in. I think moving our studio the. All the way downtown has brought a different kind of vibe and feeling to it and has reinvigorated everybody there. So it's a lot of fun.

[Bobby]

Do you have any moments with it with Good Morning America? And I'll just compare it out for a week. I went and I hosted the Today Show. I hope that's not a bad word,

[Michael Strahan]

but I went, no, not at all. I love them over there.

[Bobby]

I hosted the Today show, and Queen Elizabeth died one of the days that I was doing it. And so it just. It threw everything off, Meaning it was like, okay, we had all this planned, but now we're going straight coverage. It's Queen Elizabeth has. Have any of those big world events happened to you where you've had to go, all right, time to, you know, just tighten up and we got to change?

[Michael Strahan]

Oh, yeah, absolutely. Every day. I mean, we. We got a situation going on in Iran right now, so it's like you're in the middle of something, and something happens, and it's breaking news, and you got to break in the show, get thrown in flux. And when you first start, oh, man, you don't know what's going on. Your mind just spinning because you've never experienced it, but now you kind of get used to it. It's not that it's easy, but you're able to calm yourself down and process everything to get through it. And that's what's kind of fun about, is the unpredictability of it. Because if every day is just the same, after a while, you can go in and be a robot and do the job. I'm like, okay, you guys can just AI Me and I'll stay home, and you can still get this job done. But, yeah, you got to be able to just move and flex and be flexible with everything. Sometimes one of the worst is when I'm like, we're talking. All of a sudden, your remote messes up, and then that camera, you're like, we got a problem. We'll be right back. The panic is real, but it's fun, man. That's the interesting part about my job, is that I get to talk to interesting people like yourself, get to meet a ton of people, get to cover world events. Some of my highlights I went to TO when they coordinated King Charles. I did the coordination for abc. I let the coverage. So I'm throwing all the royal experts, and I have to be an expert on the subject myself to go to places like Easter island and cover the Moai statues. And the ecosystem there. So it's like all these interesting places. I get to go around the world to cover different things and topics and people and animals and everything. It's fantastic.

[Bobby]

The documentary you did about your daughter's fight against cancer, and I believe that's even in the title of it. That's professional, but it's extremely personal.

[Michael Strahan]

And.

[Bobby]

And this is a professional question. But I'm assuming in Final Cuts, when you get the decision of what's going to be shown, like, you're having a balance. This is your daughter's journey, and yet it's also being made as a documentary for. To me, what seemed like to allow people to see they're not alone and like, to also to show, you know, what had happened, but that a lot of folks are like, how did you balance that?

[Michael Strahan]

Well, that's all unheard. I'll be honest with you. My daughter is amazing because I. When. When we got the diagnosis and she was going through what she was going through, she couldn't find anybody her age to. To communicate with, to. To share, just to be comfortable with. So that's why she wanted to reach out and, like, post all these block vlogs and do our blogs and do all these things. And when they came to. When we thought about doing it, the document. I'll be honest with you, Bobby. I've never seen it.

[Bobby]

Oh, still. Because you lived it or it's too hard to watch?

[Michael Strahan]

I. I lived it and it's too hard to watch. And being there every day and seeing it every day, that is one. The one project where I said, okay, if you want to do this, God told her, you don't have to do this. She wanted to do this because she wanted to help other people. So I was a one project. I said. Handed it to the team and said, here you go. This is the. This is my baby. Take care of my baby. But I. I can't. I. I can't be involved on a daily. And look at this. But she's in remission. She's. You know, checkups are great. She's back in college. But, yeah, it's a very hard. That was a very hard time because I have to go to work every day and put on a brave, happy face. But yet I know when I go home, I'm dealing with a daughter who I have to take to get radiation treatments or I got to go to give her. You should take her to do her chemo treatment. So it was. It was. It was tough, you know, rushing to the hospital at night. If she gets a fever and then, you know, showing up in the morning and acting and being in a way in which. Okay, that I can't let my personal side interact with my. My professional side. But her putting it out there really did help me in a sense that I didn't feel like. I felt like I could express what was going on with the people that were close to me and not feeling like had to hold something back and because she didn't want the world to know, she wanted the world to know because she felt it was a good way to help other people in the world.

[Bobby]

How did you compartmentalize that?

[Michael Strahan]

You know, it's kind of like football. A switch. Be honest with you. It's like a switch. It's a gift and a curse. Because I can have something serious and I can block it out and do what I need to do in a moment and I can go right back to it and I can block it out and go do other things. It's a gift and a curse. But in this case, it was a gift. And yeah, I was just compartmentalized Internet. I think playing sports, playing football and having to develop that skill helped in this case.

[Bobby]

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[Bobby]

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[Michael Strahan]

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[Michael Strahan]

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[Michael Strahan]

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[Bobby]

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[Michael Strahan]

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[Michael Strahan]

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[Michael Strahan]

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[Bobby]

over ice or milk at the click of a button. Nespresso your coffee your way. Virtuo up [e-mail]. And we're back on the bobbycast. I know you spent time growing up in Germany. I'd never been until recently and I stopped in Munich and I got a hot dog and I really put, I put a lot of pressure on that hot dog being good.

[Michael Strahan]

Just because you got a bratwurst.

[Bobby]

I got it, yes. And so I had high hopes. High. And I got and it met every expectation that I could have ever had. Yes. And I talk about it. If anybody's like, you ever been to Germany? I'm like, not only have I been to Germany, let me tell you about this hot dog at a street fair. It was a bride. It was definitely a pride. So what ages were you there?

[Michael Strahan]

I was we moved to Germany and when I was nine and then I I came back to the States for half of my senior year to play football and lived with my uncle in Houston for five months. Got one football scholarship to Texas Southern. Got back on the plane in December for Christmas and flew back to Germany and graduated high school there. So I was there from nine till 17, 18 years old. My parents stayed until I was 27. I was in the NFL for six, seven years before my parents moved back. So I would still go back. I'd go see my family. Obviously I felt when I first came back here for high school, for that half of my senior year, I felt more German and European than I felt American. That was home. And yeah, it was definitely a culture shock to come back to the States.

[Bobby]

Did you only play American Football then for one year.

[Michael Strahan]

I played one year in high school. Yeah, that was it. Had no idea what I was doing, man. I was just like running around getting the guy with the ball, just whoever. I had no idea. I knew. I knew no technique. I watched the game on tv. You know, you just tackle the guy with the ball. So if I could do that, I got one scholarship. And then from there I figured it out and I learned, you know, I've really learned a lot about how to do it. I watch tv, man. I would watch NFL games on Sunday, even though when I was in college, I'd watch NFL games on Sunday. And I'm just watching a guy and what he's doing and how he's successful at different things. And I remember reading in those something and these magazines need to have the players, their size, their weight, all these things. And I remember going, I need to be 65250. I need to be 65250. And my brothers aren't big guys really. And I ended up being like 65 at times in my career. A little bit over 250 other big bone. But. But by the end, yeah, but by. By the end of the day, I ended up being what I always imagined I needed to be in order successful in the NFL. It's crazy.

[Bobby]

Is there a person, both in sports and in your. We'll call it your second life in media who believed in you and you look at that person and go, man, if it wasn't for that person, I don't know if I'd be here.

[Michael Strahan]

I think it's. It's two people at different faiths in my life. Number one is my dad. My dad, Major Gene Willie Strahan senior, passed away a few years ago. But incredibly great, great father and a great man. And my dad growing up would always say when, not if. So he said, when you do this, when you do that, when you go back to the stay with your uncle and get the scholarship, when you make it to the pros, when. I mean, everything was when, never if. So in my mind, I believed anything was possible. I never had any doubt. So my dad was that growing up and. And then once football was over, my business partner, Constance Swartz, it was like Constance kind of picked up the baton. And I'll never forget the first time I did live. I was a guest host. I was nervous as all could be. I do it. We get backstage and she looks at me and go, this is what you're gonna do. This is your next job. This is your next gig. This type of business is what you're gonna do. And from there to everything that I do now on the business side, to the television side, it's all because Constance has taken over the role that my dad had all those years growing up. And yeah, between the two of them, they have really taken care of me.

[Bobby]

This may be a really corny question, but what was it like in space?

[Michael Strahan]

Oh, amazing. When I tell you, people will ask me that, and I could sit here and take our whole time together to describe it to you. But in essence, the whole thing was 12 minutes up and down. 12 minutes. But because you're so hyper aware of every sound, every feeling, every. Everything, it feels like it was hours. When you're sitting in that capsule and you're watching that screen and it's telling you the countdown clock. And then they added more time to our countdown clock, which makes you go, huh? Why did they do that? Something wrong. And they're coming on, they're like, no, nothing's wrong. They're okay. And you're watching that countdown clock. And once you get to two and a half minutes, then it goes on the computer. You're locked in. So until then, you got two things. You can say one time out. Which means they'll come on and try to say, okay, Bobby, you can do this. You got it? Or I don't want to fly today. Then they'll just come take you off. And I'm. I'm looking at the countdown clock and I'm like, oh, is anybody on here gonna say they don't want to party? They need a break.

[Sponsor/Commercial Voice]

Break.

[Michael Strahan]

And if they do, will I go with them? And once you get past that threshold where you realize you're locked in and you have no other option but to do it, it is such a calming peace over your body. You're not even scared. It's a piece. And once we took off and this thing is moving up, everybody just screamed. Yeah, like unprompted scream. Because it was like all this, this joy and pressure relieved. And you're. You're flying, man. I mean, you look up that just screen, it's like, oh, we're 40, 000 square feet. I mean, 40ft, thousand feet in the air. And we have. We're going 300 miles per hour. You're like, okay, cars that do 340, 000. I've been in a plane. Next thing you know, you look up, you're like 200, 000ft in the air doing 2, 000 miles per hour. And you were in the light looking at the darkness. Now you're in the dark looking back at the light. And the first time you realize that they release the main rocket and poof. And you go like that. And you go, oh, my gosh, my arms are floating. Then once you release your seat belts, you put them, you take them off. You push yourself with the pressure of holding up a cell phone with two fingers. That's it. Don't ever use your leg. You'll break your neck. Don't blow like the cartoon. You're not going to move anywhere. Don't do that. You're not going anywhere. It doesn't work that way. But you push off of that seat and you're just floating. You're doing spinning. You're looking out the window, and it looks like, you know when you leave your phone, your TV on an iPhone, and I mean, the apple in this, the circular screen, and just looking back at the planet, it makes you realize how insignificant we are to the grand scheme of everything here. And it gives you a different sense of what your life is. Your family, like, you start, you, you, you get. You become peaceful with the fact of death when you're getting ready to take off because you realize this could go awry. But then, you know, I don't want to leave my family. I don't want them to leave me. And. And you realize how much love that there is that you have inside of you and. But how insignificant in the grand scheme of the world you are at the same time. It's just the most unique feeling I've ever, ever felt, man.

[Bobby]

And you didn't take it all to yell, I don't want to do it. You were in. You were locked in.

[Michael Strahan]

Absolutely. I thought I didn't want to do it. When I got the call to do it, I had all this. I went to the first launch that Bezos did, Jeff and his brother Mark, and I went for GMA and I'm like, okay, you know, I'm gonna watch these guys go up in a spaceship. I'm not a space guy. I watched it and I said, this is the coolest thing. When a rocket came back and landed on the pad by itself and they're gone. You can't see them. I'm thinking, I'll just see them up there and they'll come down like a roller coaster. That's really hard. No, they were gone. Then they come down. I talked to them. It was the most unbridled joy I've ever seen out of human beings in my life. Everybody who did it. And I said, this is the coolest thing I've ever seen. When that rocket land, I think this is, like, Iron man cool. Few weeks later, I get invited to dinner with them and another couple. And I got there late because I was doing Thursday night football at that point for Fox, and I'm eating my cold left. The cold leftovers that they left me. And I said, you know that rocket thing? I would say I would never do that, but I would do that. That was one of the coolest things I've ever seen. A few days later, I'm playing golf, and I get a call, and it's Jeff. And he goes, I think you know what this is about. I'm like, yeah. And I was so excited. I'm like, yeah, I'm in, man. I'm in. A week before, I was like, maybe I got Covid. Maybe, dude. I was scared to death. I was like, what did I sign up for? Because in the interim, you got to get your paperwork in order. You know, I'm like, this could be the last, like, week I see my family and friends. This could be it. But it ended up being magnificent. And by the time you get on that ship, they've explained everything to you. You've sat with the. The engineers who built the rocket. You sat with other astronauts who've gone to space. They do an incredible job of educating you, so when you get on the ship, you feel confident you're ready to go. My family cried. I don't know if they were crying because they wanted me back or they didn't, but they said they cried, and I had the best time. The best time.

[Bobby]

I want to ask about the Coach Vick experience. As a kid growing up, loved Michael Vick of Virginia Tech. Like, he was that dude. I remember the commercials, the Mike Vick experience commercial on the roller coaster. So the rides of Mike Vic. And then, you know, when he went to prison and he's back at. So I've just kind of seen Mike Vick. The roller coaster of Mike Vick. And I wonder now, because I don't know him, and he's coaching now. Like, what did you take away from Mike Vick as an adult and as a coach and as a leader of men?

[Michael Strahan]

Well, one thing I will say about Mike, that I've known Mike a long time, and I have so much respect for him because he realized what got him in trouble back in the day. And the way that he was living his life back in the day, that was the wrong way to live his life. And here's a guy who grew up in a certain way doing certain things that seem normal for the community that he came from, but they weren't. And they weren't right. So he paid his debt, he went to prison, came out of prison, got back on the football field, but also had a lot of. You know, he owed a lot of money to a lot of people, but he didn't file bankruptcy and rip everybody off. He paid people back. So I look at Mike, and I think Mike has a lot of honor. I think as a. As a coach, I don't know if there's any other player I would listen, I would be amazed. But I look at Mike and I look at Dion. I mean, these guys are some of the goats of what they did. And they both are the guys who were signature. Like, they're so incredible at the time. They're one of the few football players at the top with their own shoes, with their own apparel line through Nike. Like, we didn't get that as football player. That's how exceptional these two were. And I love Mike as a coach because I think he's had some life experiences that other kids. These kids need to hear. These kids need to experience someone who's been on top, who's been on the bottom, who's making their way back. And I think as a coach, it is so much probably more than he thought it was going to be. It's a lot to bite off. It's a lot of work. There's a lot of time away from your family. There's a reason I got in the tv because I wouldn't want to be a coach. So I think that Mike is a great example of resilience. I think he's a great example paying your debt to society and getting back on your feet. And hopefully he can turn Norfolk State back around, because last year was a rough year. But I think he's also learning along with these kids as a coach, and I think they're learning from him. How, as a. As men, do you think you could

[Bobby]

have played another year?

[Michael Strahan]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Bobby]

Why? Why didn't you.

[Michael Strahan]

I said I walked off the field, Bobby. I didn't limp.

[Bobby]

Okay. Why?

[Michael Strahan]

Hey, we won a Super bowl, man. I had 15 years. I did everything I wanted to do. There was nothing left to do. What was was I'd won awards, I'd done all the individual stuff. And after so many years of that, you kind of go, this is not really fulfilling. Only thing I hadn't done was won a Super Bowl. So once that happened, I was like, why am I sticking around for. For the money to blow my knees out and the next thing I got something that's gonna mess me up for the rest of my life for a few bucks. And I. I just kind of felt confident enough that I could make something happen outside of the game of football. And thankfully I've been able to do that. But yeah, I could have. Physically, I feel great. There are days I wake up now and I feel like I can give them another year.

[Bobby]

Did you have good financial literacy?

[Michael Strahan]

I. Yeah. And not because. Not because. It was because I had a chance encounter with the guy who ended up being like one of my. He is one of my best friends and my brother who has looked out for me over the years. And it was like a 10 year age. No, it's. Well, hold on. Yeah, it's like 12 year age difference. We met on a golf trip when neither of us played golf. We ended up being like sweet mates and we just really hit it off in 1994. And he got into an accident in the city and called and his wife called me, who was nine months pregnant at the time, in her mid-40s, which is back then, very risky pregnancy. And I went to the hospital and saw him and made sure that she had nothing to worry about and took care of him, made sure I got all the doctors. I made that happen. And his promise to me was, you took care of my wife and my unborn son who is now mid-20s and works big hedge fund. I can't teach you. I want to do something for you. So I can't teach you football. And I'm like, yeah, because judging from the accident when you got hit by a rollerblade or you can't take a hit, so. And it was pretty bad how he looked. So I want to teach about money. I don't want to invest your money. I don't want to control your money. I don't want any say over your money. I just want you to bring me every deal that anyone brings to you and all the things that you've done before you've met me and I want to make sure we go through it. I want to teach you how to look at money. I want to teach you how to value money. I'll teach you how to understand it, what questions to ask when people want it. Like everything. And that would be life lesson out of the best financial literacy that anybody can have is someone who's in that business, in the finance world who takes you under their wing for nothing. Never charged me one penny and has been that guy for me for over 30 years. So I got very lucky. Very fortunate in relationships.

[Bobby]

The Bobby cast will be right back. This is the Bobbycast. I'm gonna ask you a question that I've asked a few people recently. I don't have any kids yet. My wife's about to have our first kid.

[Michael Strahan]

Congrats.

[Bobby]

Thank you very much. As vague as could be, like, give me some advice.

[Michael Strahan]

Well, when the baby's born, you come home. They don't give you a manual at the hospital. But don't panic. I think that first of all, you'll know what you're doing without even knowing what you're doing, and you'll figure it out. And kids aren't. Aren't as delicate and as you think they are. They're rough. I mean, we were all kids and ran and fell and hit our head on coffee tables and everything else, and look at us. We're functioning somewhat. So I, I would say you're gonna love your kid more than you ever thought. You can love anything, including yourself. Because I tell my kids all the time because I'm that annoying dad who's sending them, you know, stuff off Instagram. Watch out for this. When you're in an Uber, do this. And they're, dad, you gonna take self defense class? Oh, dad, I'm like, you don't understand. When you're not with me, my heart lives outside of my body. You're my heart now. So wherever you go and whatever you do is me. And. And that's the thing about having kids. It makes you realize that your life is a lot bigger than whatever you do for a living. And, and, you know, whatever car you drive and how many people you know, doesn't matter. Kids are, are the creme de la creme of what life is about if you have them. And you'll be fine. Don't be nervous. And you'll, you'll crush it. And whatever they most, for the most part, whatever they learn in life. I think his fathers were always told that, you know, when he got a baby, what are we supposed to really do? And I'd read. I read a book years ago that said the first three years of your kid's life are the most important as a father. Because we always get this, this idea that, oh, I'm not breastfeeding, I'm not doing this, I'm not doing that. But being there, your rhythm of your heart, the smell, like everything. And your kids could get as attached to you as they can to anybody. And I'm telling you, man, it's going to be magical. I can't wait to talk to you in a few months or a year. And you're like, michael, this is the most amazing thing ever. And I'm having a second one.

[Bobby]

All right, I got three final questions for you. I love when people do, like, lines of clothes because there's a lot of themselves in it. And I know that you have. At Belk stores, you have. Is it suits? Like, what do you have and how much of it is, like, your style?

[Michael Strahan]

It's all of. It's my style. Everything. So we have suits, we have belts, we have all the men accessories. So everything that you need to get suited and booted is what we got. And it's all my style. I don't wear everything. Every time you see me in a suit, it's my suit. See me in a shirt, it's my shirt. I don't go out and buy something else and wear it and try to say, oh, yeah, this is mine. Client, everything. Because I believe if I'm gonna put my name on, it's got to be me. And. But I am kind of. I'm not a bougie guy, if that's a word. Like, I'm not this fancy hoity toity guy. Because my suits are affordable, but they're nice. And there's a lot of thought that goes into them. And I would touch every fabric. Oh, I like this pocket. I like that lapel. Like, obsessing over it because I didn't want someone. If something, the success, success. And you're getting credit for it, and you were really, really invested. You could feel good about it. If it were a success and I had nothing to do with it and they're giving a lot of credit to me, I would feel bad just like, if it's a failure and I didn't put anything into it, then I'm mad at myself because maybe I could have made a success by investing. But if it's a failure and I put everything into it, I could live with that. At least I try. So everything is me. Everything. So I. I love the business. It's organic to me and organic to my life. And being a football player, we had to dress up. I love getting on the road trips because you see some of the most interesting outfits you'd ever see. I was a chameleon suit that change colors with every freaking way you walk to suits that look like Skittles bags with yellow, green, and purple and everything else. So, yeah, the interesting life.

[Bobby]

Okay, two questions Left. This one's probably going to be tough, but I got. If you could go 1, 2, 3. Like, who have you been able to interview that you were starstruck by when you sat down with them?

[Michael Strahan]

Julia Roberts. Julia Roberts.

[Bobby]

How'd that go?

[Michael Strahan]

First time? Fantastic. I interviewed her at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, the anniversary of Pretty Woman. And I interviewed her in the suite where they shot the movie. Movie. And when we finished the interview, she asked me if I want to have a glass of rose. So I said, absolutely, because who turns down Julia Roberts in a glass of rose? And we ended up finishing off a bottle of rose. And it was. It was fantastic. And her birthday is the same as my twins, so, you know, every year I send her a case of. I don't know if she drinks it or not, but, you know, I send it to her. But, yeah, Julia Roberts was one man. It's so weird because I've interviewed people multiple times now, so I'm not really as nervous. Oh, I had Nicole Kidman yesterday, and Jamie Lee Curtis.

[Bobby]

Nicole Kidman is so nice. She lives here.

[Michael Strahan]

Like. Yeah.

[Bobby]

And I know she's local and I know her, and I knew her and Keith when they were together. I knew them both really well. She's so nice. Like, she shouldn't be that nice.

[Michael Strahan]

You know what? She's so nice. And Jamie Lee and her, of course, complimented each other, and I love the way in which they met and they're working on this project together. And, and, and so I, I. Jamie Lee said how nice she was, and, and you could just see it. She's a gentle soul man. So I, she, she kind of intimidated me because I love her work. Like, I love everything she does. I think she just is fantastic. And the last one. Who would be number three.

[Bobby]

You stop. What about it? Stop it. Like, what about an athlete? When I interviewed Derek Jeter, thought that was pretty cool. Or it's usually anybody from when I was a kid that I looked up to, because when I meet them, I'm like, this is crazy because I still have that inside of me, even if I know everything's, like, real and, you know, people are people. But, like, when I meet somebody from when I was a kid, I still have those feelings.

[Michael Strahan]

I mean, you know what, the guy that my. They're really good. Jeter's my buddy. I mean, I'm gonna get me started on that knucklehead, but I love him. The one guy who I love to. Is a good friend and, and everything else. But you see him and you're still like whoa. And I remember the first time I interviewed him with, with first year he got into NASCAR and I was like Michael Jordan. I mean MJ is still MJ and and so that was like the one guy. And as a kid I started trying to walk a little bow legged and stuff like that and wish I'd grown to 66 and about 2:15 so I could have played basketball but that didn't quite work out so I had to go to football. But mj, MJ is like one of those athletes that I look at, I'm like, okay, this is, this is Michael Jordan. This is the guy who I still get a bunch of highlights on Instagram for my buddies.

[Bobby]

Let's take a quick pause for a message from our sponsor. And we're back on the Bobby cast. Final question for you. You've done many things and you've been successful at many things. Like what's the key? What's the key to people doing things and making it

[Michael Strahan]

really having and enjoyed and having through the ATHM4 it just don't show up and mail in, mail it in. Be interested. I think that's the thing. A lot of people do things because and we've all done things like oh, I'm making a lot of money. But you just don't jump into something and make a lot of money. You got to build up to those things. But the only way you're going to build up to it if you have an interest in and to stay in it. And I've always been interested in things that I've done. I think I try to do things that really make me want to do them and that just has seemed to be the magic on top of just being nice to people. I think that is like the greatest thing for me is just people being nice to people, understanding people, having a feeling for people. Like I said earlier, making people feel seen because if you treat people in that way, people will want to be around you. We never have you ever seen somebody walks in a room and you're like, oh man, when somebody walks in the room you're like hey. And, and I think that's just from the vibe and energy that you give off. So for me I've just tried to give off the vibe of, you know, I'm easy. I don't want anything from anybody. I don't need anything from anybody. I just want to truly be friends with people. I think there's so much more fun in that than always having an angle. So yeah, show up, be authentic, be interested and do the best you can. At least it. This is. Life ain't that complicated.

[Bobby]

I'm gonna check out this. I'm gonna check out the suits. If those are the ones you're wearing on tv, I'm gonna check out the suits, then that's it.

[Michael Strahan]

You let me know. I'll send you some, man. I got you. All right, Somebody get your sizes. We'll ship you some suits.

[Bobby]

All right? All right.

[Michael Strahan]

Dapper Dan, man.

[Bobby]

I appreciate that. Like I said, I. I'm not just saying it because, you know, we're on Netflix now or whatever. It's like, you. You were always so kind to me. Even if you didn't know, you were like, you naturally were that guy that you're talking about right now, like, that's who you were to me. When people ask about someone like you, or even someone like Dion, who I know, like, it's like people make you feel a certain way when you're around them, and you were that guy. So I really appreciate you being so nice to me.

[Michael Strahan]

No, you kidding me? You were great, man. And we were talking about it today, Dancing with the Stars, by the way, congratulations again. Every athlete that I've talked to who's done it. And Emmett Smith won the first year he came to New York and I took him to dinner. And literally, we couldn't walk in a restaurant. Like, women getting up from each table we passed. And he'd have to dance with each one of them to get just to the table. Like, can we just eat? I'm hungry. But every athlete I talked to said, man, that is the freaking hardest thing we've ever done. I said, that's why I'll never be on the show. I don't wanna work that hard anymore to see you go on. And not without a dancing background or anything. That's what I loved about it, man. And it's how tough I know it is because I've been around. Everybody's been on that show. And for you to go out there and crush it like that, that was fun to see, man. So congrats again, champion.

[Bobby]

I appreciate that. I'll end on this. Since you brought up Emmett, this is my favorite Emmett Smith story. I didn't know Emmett at the time. It's the finale, and, you know. And you've judged Dancing with the Stars, right? You've, like, you've been up there and you.

[Michael Strahan]

So I'm the guest judge. Yeah.

[Bobby]

Yeah. So on the finale, everybody's super tight because you're just trying to do your best. There's Everybody's trying to win. You're doing multiple dances. I' and I've got one more dance to do. I did not know what I was doing the whole season. Like, I was just. Every week, I was just piecing it together. And I run into Emmett in the back. There's like, the craft services, the catering thing. And he sees me. I'm a little bit outside my mind. And he also knows what it's like to be in that spot because he won the show. And he came up to me and he said, how you feeling? And I was a little too. Just wired for the show to go, holy crap, this is Emmett Smith. And so I was just talking to Emmett, a champion of dancing with a star. I said, I'm doing pretty good. And he said, look. Look at me in the eyes. And so I, like, focused up for a second. He put his hand on my shoulder and he said, look, you have worked every bit as hard, if not more than any single person to be here. You have one more dance to do. That dance is already done. You haven't done it yet, but it's already done because of all the work that you've put in. Just go out there and exist. You're gonna win this show. And then I went out, and I'll never forget that. And after I won, the first person to hop up on stage with me was Emma to take a picture. Like, he gave me the go get one for the giver speech right before I won.

[Michael Strahan]

I love it. Hey, I kind of got some chills.

[Bobby]

Me too. Telling the back. Me too. Me too. Mike, thank you so. Thank you so much for the time and continued successes and hopefully our paths will cross again soon.

[Michael Strahan]

I hope so, man. Anything for you, Bobby. I love it. I appreciate you, man, and continued success in everything you do and the honor and pleasure to do this with you. So you thank. Thank you, man.

[Bobby]

I'm gonna get a couple of those suits. Even if I gotta buy them, I'm gonna get them and I'm gonna wear them.

[Michael Strahan]

All right, we got you.

[Bobby]

All right. Thank you, Mike.

[Michael Strahan]

Thanks, brother.

[Bobby]

See you later. Thanks for listening to a Bobbycast production. This is an Iheart podcast. Guaranteed human.