Mike Davis Explains What Staying Authentic Has Cost Dirty Mo

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Dale Jr. Download

Episode: Mike Davis Explains What Staying Authentic Has Cost Dirty Mo

Host: Dirty Mo Media, SiriusXM
Air Date: July 22, 2026
Guests: Mike Davis (Dirty Mo Media), Kelly Earnhardt Miller

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Episode Overview

This special edition of "The Business of Motorsports," a subseries within The Dale Jr. Download, dives deep with Mike Davis—Dirty Mo Media’s co-founder and former Dale Jr. Download co-host. The focus: how Dirty Mo Media has expanded from its racing podcast roots into broader sports content while remaining authentic, and the personal and business costs that come with such devotion to authenticity. Mike and Kelly discuss new ventures, why certain experiments have worked or failed, the company’s relationship with NASCAR, and the art of leading a passion-based media business.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Purpose and Expansion of Dirty Mo Media

• Defining the shows and their purpose ([04:24]):
  • Dale Jr. Download: “Access to the Dale Junior world… what’s going on in his mind… there’s a real truth going on…” — Mike Davis
  • Actions Detrimental: A drivers-eye view post-Dale's racing career, centered now around Denny Hamlin and noted for its unfiltered honesty.
  • Door Bumper Clear: Offers team/spotter perspectives.
  • Bless Your Heart: A lifestyle podcast, led by Amy Earnhardt.
  • Tear Down & Gluckcast: Journalistic/media points of view.
  • Speed Street: Delivers the IndyCar angle (Connor Daly).
  • Herman & Schrader: “Old guard” wisdom—set to sunset at year’s end.
  • New verticals include more lifestyle content and “Rare Breeds” (experimental phase).

“So, like, all these different shows serve different purposes. We’re now getting into some lifestyle shows and getting a little bit outside the racing part…” — Mike Davis [08:03]

Experimenting Beyond Racing – The Rodeo Venture

• Rodeo and this Cowboy Life podcast ([12:03]):
  • Mike details why and how they ventured into the rodeo scene, emphasizing shared values: patriotism, faith, family, legacy.
  • Chose Jerome and Tiffany Davis as podcast hosts for authenticity after ruling out young bull riders with “priorities” elsewhere.
  • Initial content was a documentary series before podcasts launched.

“There’s something really pure about it… a love of the land and the love of the automobile seem to kind of come from the same place.” — Mike Davis [12:34]

• Authenticity matters: “At the end of the day, we just go chase real authentic people. For Dirty Mo Media, you gotta be true to yourself.” — Mike Davis [18:36]

Business Risk, Authenticity and Evaluating Success

• Risk-taking and experiment mindset: ([25:11])
  • Mike openly discusses missed shows, owning failures, and letting data dictate decisions over emotions and social media reactions.
  • Success is judged over at least two years—“I need two years… I can’t just start something and expect people to drop everything.” [26:00]

“If it’s not [a show for you], great. I’m not asking you to listen to them all.” — Mike Davis [27:14]

Relationship with NASCAR: Benefits, Tensions, and Independence

• It’s complicated: ([29:44])
  • Dirty Mo’s relationship with NASCAR is both competitive and symbiotic.
  • “Dale Jr. Every single week is going to say his opinion, and he ain’t taking cues from anybody but himself… that doesn't always align with what NASCAR wishes.” — Mike Davis [30:00]
  • Mike stresses the cost: losing business opportunities to maintain authenticity and never scripting hosts for clickbait or conformity.

“I’m not going to sacrifice our authenticity and our opinion. A lot of people go, 'you’re just trying to be clickbait on Door Bumper Clear.' I promise you, if I were… I’d be telling them what to say.” — Mike Davis [34:15]

Company Values, Leadership, and Scaling Strategy

• Philosophy over formal business planning: ([51:40])

  • Early Dirty Mo “strategy” was just “don’t lose Dale [Earnhardt Jr.] money.”
  • Evolved into structured scaling with clear branding, bringing in strategy consultants, and staying true to culture.

• Scaling and team-building: ([62:31])

  • Growth from a small, side-team to a major content company.
  • Adaptable team members thrive; “We operate lean but big.” — Mike Davis
  • Noted examples: versatile producer Travis Rockhold, and the importance of instilling both autonomy and a team mentality.

Notable Pet Peeves and Leadership Lessons

• On criticism: ([55:51])
  • “I don’t really like hearing people’s criticisms when I would never talk to them about advice.” — Mike Davis
• On distractions from strategy: ([57:14])
  • “I’m very strategic… When, you know, like Dale is more instinctual… That’s authentically him. So I’ll never ask him to be anything different, and I don’t like it when I get asked to be different.”

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On the company’s DNA:
  • “I want Dirty Mo Media to be a… diversified sports media platform that happens to do racing better than everybody else… we’re still an Earnhardt company.” — Mike Davis [46:09]
• On the cost of authenticity:
  • “We have lost business… to stand on that principle. But it’s one that I can sleep at night.” — Mike Davis [34:15]
• On honest business discussions:
  • “Business and Motorsports is digging into what doesn’t work, what risks are there. Talking about your failure, talking about… the good things, talking about wins and how you got through all of that.” — Kelly Earnhardt Miller [39:52]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Introduction of new show strategies and risk — [04:24]
• Rodeo connection, values, and podcast launch — [12:03]-[19:20]
• Business risk and experimental mindset — [25:11]
• Podcast audience, show longevity and data vs social — [26:00]-[28:40]
• Complicated relationship with NASCAR — [29:44]-[36:05]
• Prioritization and handling criticism/feedback — [55:48]-[59:10]
• Building company culture & team — [61:44]-[67:05]
• Reflections on accomplishments and future goals — [67:38]-[71:23]

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The Future of Dirty Mo Media

• Vision:
  • “I want Dirty Mo Media to be a diversified sports media platform that happens to do racing better than everybody else… Racing is going to be something we do very well, and it’s going to be even a priority. Doesn’t mean that we’re not going to try to do other things well…” — Mike Davis [46:09]
• More new verticals (lifestyle, football, F1) in the pipeline
• Staying true to roots: Even as they expand, racing and the Earnhardt identity will be central.
• Continued attempts at collaboration with NASCAR despite past friction

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Conclusion

This episode offered a candid, in-depth look at how Dirty Mo Media built its reputation and audience—by doubling down on authenticity, embracing risk and failure, and fostering a passionate, lean team. Host Kelly Earnhardt Miller and Mike Davis gave listeners a rare behind-the-scenes view of operating a media company in the motorsports (and now beyond-motorsports) landscape, including the real costs—and rewards—of remaining unfiltered and honest in a competitive and sometimes cautious industry.

Dirty Mo isn’t done innovating, but it’s clear: "As long as we stay who we are, I’ll rest easy," says Mike Davis ([53:12]).

Transcript

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[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Welcome to the business of motorsports. It is yours truly, Kelly Earnhardt Miller. You know one thing that I really hope that this series does is open up people's horizons.

[Mike Davis]

I got in a lot of trouble and I got challenged. I don't know why you're coming here.

[Starlink/Cash App/FanDuel Advertiser]

You don't trust us.

[Mike Davis]

I said no, it's not. I don't trust you. I'm running a business. A lot of people kind of feel like, well, we're never getting back to where we were. Why did we ever get to where we were?

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

There's so much more involved in decision. I mean, I want to rip somebody's head off every day.

[Mike Davis]

I say yes to him.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Oh, you say yes on the phone?

[Mike Davis]

Well, he made me say yes.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Welcome back to Business and Motorsports. We had so much to talk about with Mike Davis, so there was no way we could fit that all into one episode. So here's part two of that conversation. In part one, we talked about how Mike got started in the sport of nascar, how the Dow junior Download and Dirty Mo Media came to be, and why he eventually decided to step aside from the Dow junior Download and focus on building the company. Now we're getting into where Dirty Mo goes. From there, we'll talk about how Mike decides show fits the risks that come with growing beyond nascar, the bets that the company is making, and what he wants Dirty Mo Media to be in the years to come. This episode of Business and Motorsports is presented by Arby's. Don't forget about Arby's. New meat in three box. Get more meal for your money. At Arby's, we have the meats moving into kind of the shows. And you know, your lane has been building shows within our NASCAR industry and landscape. You know, a lot of those shows, and I don't know if there's any shows you want to talk about in particular, because we have. We only talked about business of motorsports. But you, you know, how. What kind of risks were there? How did you think about that process when you're introducing new shows as it relates to your relationship with nascar. Obviously they have podcast that they do. And we also. Dirty Mo Media relies on NASCAR in a lot of ways for content that you produce or if you're working on original, you know, television programming, different things like that. You know, you've got to work alongside the sanctioning body for. For some of those things. So talk about, you know, making those decisions, your shows, that background and that relationship with NASCAR and where your head is in kind of that space.

[Mike Davis]

Well, let's, let's move the relationship with NASCAR all for a second. That's its own whole conversation. And I'm happy to talk about it. But in terms of shows, every show, as I said, has a purpose. Let's just start from the top. Dale Jr. Download, the what is the purpose? It is back to my old philosophy of access to the Dale junior World. What's going on in his mind, what did he think about the race? What did he. And by the way, when he has conversations, I think there's a real, real truth going on that Dale Jr. Still learning about his dad and your dad. Right. I think that there's been not every guest, but there's certainly guests throughout the year that he's still like feeding into those stories and hearing and listening to that. The download was that it's just the Dale world. And by the way, it's still our number one show. Yeah, of course it is. Actions detrimental. I needed a vantage point from a driver, Dale Jr. When he was no longer a driver. We lose that vantage point. Denny Hamlin, one of the old or one of the last, if not the last of the. I'm going to just say things. What's on my mind that may not be true anymore. After watching Zane Smith and Carson Hosvar have their back and forth this past weekend in Atlanta.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

So people are coming out.

[Mike Davis]

I think people are finding comfort in their opinions again. But like Denny, you know how I'm real proud of what actions detrimental has become because again, we get access into a list driver that just wouldn't have. And that was an ambitious jump for Dirty mo Media because we really didn't know what it was like to work outside of the Dell Junior orbit.

[Arby's Advertiser]

Right.

[Mike Davis]

You know, Denny's got his own sponsors, his own interests, his own stuff.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

And.

[Mike Davis]

And yet we were able to start actions detrimental door bumper, clear vantage point from a different group, from the team side, from spotters, from team managers. And that's not always the same as the driver and it's certainly not always the same as Dale. So now we've got this whole thing covered. Okay, well then how can we expand it further? Well, what about Dale junior's life beyond the race? Well, bless your heart, here it is. And that's funny because we had been talking with Amy for years about doing a show and it just. We couldn't ever find the right thing. So it was clear to us, looking at the data and everything, that there was a better way to use Amy. And bless your heart, emerged. Tear down vantage point from the media. The people covering it also debate. Also Jordan Bianchi and Jeff Gluck do an amazing job with that. We've even done a spin off with Gluck cast. It's awesome. Speed Street, Connor Daly, same vantage point, IndyCar, you know, and by the way, Connor Daly's a grinder, man. I mean, like, nobody pours more into the creation of their podcast. And Connor Daly he's amazing guy. Herman Schrader vantage point from the old guard. Right. And by the way, I just wanted to always work with Kenny Wallace and Ken Schrader right now. Just a note on that show, like that one, when we talk about running its course, that one is going to sunset at the end of this year. Kenny Wallace has taken a step back. Ken Schrader's taking a step back. We always knew that, like, hey, look, let's just work together. Let's do two years and see if that feels right. They this will be their second year and then after this year they're going to hang up. Herman Schrader. And by the way, we're all good with that. Kenny says he's right sizing his life. He's right sizing it. And I think that that.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

And you know what it at where he's at in his life. He deserves it so much because I want people to be able to do that.

[Mike Davis]

Yes.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

In their life. Right.

[Mike Davis]

Have that type of control. When you're ready to step away, you don't need to be tied to things. And I think the world to him and it's been awesome. So Herman Schrader will go away after 2026 and we'll find something else to do. And I like, you know, do I do a Jimmy Spencer show? Do I do it. You know, whatever it is. And. Right. Something to make them talk. But so like, all these different shows serve different purposes. We're now getting into some lifestyle shows and getting a little bit outside the racing part where Rare Breeds. Rare Breeds was a big ambitious step for us. I, I would still say that a lot of these ideas are in the experiment phase because I'm not. I, I'm no Fortune Taylor here. I don't, I don't know what audiences will reply. Respond to, especially our audience when we get outside. But I think our goal is to find new audience, not just ask Dale Jr fans to care about Carson, what Carson does when she's on a date or when she's right. Like, I think that's just a different audience. Right. And so Rare Breeds, we've had, you know, we. I don't know how many episodes we've done 20 or 30 of those. Sons and Daughters is a new show. I love Sons and Daughters. This is a new show. We're experimenting on this. But I had this premise several years ago of just a show about origin stories and about how, you know, normal, ordinary people become extraordinary and what those transitional points of life are like. I can point back to, like Some significant things in my life that got me to where I am today. You can look it back at things that happen. Not all of them are good, some of them are bad, or maybe it's relationships that happened along the way. And I always had this idea of telling or having conversations with people in a very vulnerable state where they can talk about their, you know, what decisions they make, good and bad. Shannon Spake's doing that right now with Sons and Daughters. I love the show. I hope people find it.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

I hope people find their way through it. And I think to that point too, you have to have the right person to be able to go there and get there. I think that's one of the things that when we're talking about business motorsports, it was just that honesty piece of it, of where you can tell the good and the bad. And I'm thinking of it as you talk about these shows. And that's what I love about Denny is that he just tells it like it is, you know, and he's got the owner hat, he's got his driver hat, he's got so many different hats that he can throw in. But he's not scared to challenge all sides, you know, and where he sits in for that. Because I think that's, that's a lot of the things when you are having these conversations is you have to be able to talk about the risk. You have to be able to talk about the not so good that got you there and all of those different kind of things on a podcast because I think that's what's. That's part of the journey and what you're learning, you know, and why you're listening and what's compelling and all those things you talked about, new shows and so this is a great time for us to talk about the rodeo world and this cowboy life and Dirty My Rodeo, which we. Which you now have. And walking into that space. So you've got a new podcast with Jerome and Tiffany Davis. Jerome is very well known, very well well known North Carolinian in the rodeo world and has persevered through an injury very early on in his career where he was, you know, just top of his game. And really going to, if you, if you recall in the radio world the days of Ty Murray and Tough Hederman and those names, that was where Jerome Davis was headed. And and so you, you started this podcast. Let's dive into to kind of where that came from and how that idea came because rodeo, right. A lot of similarities to racing though, actually when we think about it.

[Mike Davis]

When you get down and start unpacking values, you have to go like. Because on a surface level, you're like, I don't see the similarities. You know, you're riding bulls and driving race cars. What's. What's the similarities? No, but if you start unpacking and getting down into the values, you see a lot of patriotism, you see a lot of faith. You know, racing and rodeo are still, I think, the only events that I. Or the only sporting events where they start off with prayer and they lean into it and family.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

The connectiv between all of the people that are involved in that world.

[Mike Davis]

Exactly. You see a lot of legacies. You see a lot of it. I mean, and so. And there's something really pure about it that I honestly myself didn't even realize until I actually started, you know, paying attention. And there's a purity about it. There's a, you know, like the love of the land and the love of the automobile seem to kind of come from the same place. It's like kind of part of that American soul. And when we started really kind of exposing ourselves to that world, it felt there was a natural. There's something natural about it now. One of the natural things about it was that I'm talking to Austin Dillon last year and, you know, the Childress team and Richard Childress himself, they own a PBR team. And so they were really just educating me and it's like, wait, so you're telling me this is how that's done? And wow, all this stuff. And they're like, you need to come to an event. So we go to event. Colby Bass and myself go to an event, and at the time we were going to look at actual bull riders to be the podcasters, and we even had some picked out. It occurred to me that bull riders, again, another similarity is between bull riders and race car drivers, especially 19 and 20 year olds, is they. Their priorities aren't exactly in podcasting.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Right. Communications.

[Mike Davis]

Right, Communications. And, oh, you know, our friend Andrew Giangola used to be, he used to be in NASCAR pr, but now he runs PBR Communications, Pro Bull Riders Association Communications. And he said, I asked him in New York, I said, what, what is it like to try to go, you know, get media interest and pitch stories? And he's like, you know, usually the biggest challenge is, I'm trying. I got a good story, I got a cover of the New York Times or whatever, but I'm competing with a fence post, because there's a fence post somewhere in Texas or Oklahoma that needs to be replaced. And so that's what's keeping me from having this big space. And I laughed, and I'm like, that's so true. Because, you know, priorities are this. I. These bull riders are chasing buckles. Probably some girls that, you know, you know, here and there. But, like, that's what they're after. I did not think we'd get much off the ground if we were relying on the bull riders themselves to be our first podcast for Dirty Mill Rodeo. But in the corner of my. I see this guy and his wife, and that's Jerome and Tiffany Davis. And I didn't know them, and they seem to have an influence and an aura about them in this space that I'm like, they.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

So you're just getting this from watching. You're just watching. You're at the event and just observing. This comes out.

[Mike Davis]

I knew of them because of Austin.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah.

[Mike Davis]

But I just, you know, Jerome is the coach of the Carolina Cowboys, which Childress owns, and Austin's the general manager. But I needed to see them in my. Because, again, they weren't on my radar in terms of doing a podcast. But I'm like. I remember being in a coffee shop the next morning with Colby, and I said, you know, I feel like those are. That's who we need to be looking at. They're adults. They're grown people with grown priorities, and we need to learn. We need to meet them. I did not know that they lived an hour from where we sit right now. I did not know that. Sure, they're with the Carolina Cowboys, but most of the bull riders in Carolina for the Carolina Cowboys do not live in Carolina. So I hadn't. I did not know this. Within a week, we are sitting at Jerome and Tiffany's table in Archdale, North Carolina, at the Davis Rodeo Ranch, and we're introducing ourselves, myself, Colby and Tiff Powers. And we just. Their world was just like. We just like, I love this. Right? We were still not thinking about them as podcasters, but we were just learning about it. And I just was enamored by the whole thing. It didn't take long for us to go. They're the show. I'm telling you. They're stock contractors. They raise bucking bulls. They're also the coach, obviously, of the Carolina Cowboys, and Tiffany is. Has every title, and he also happens to be a Hall of Famer. He also was, like, the top of his game when he got injured. And by the way, the story, the Jerome Davis story, it became clear to us immediately. That's like Wait a second. Before we start doing a podcast with them, we need to introduce our audience to who they are. Because that story, I was captivated by it. The man was at the top of his game and they were just. They were engaged. And he suffers his injury from that wreck. And the ensuing months tested everyone's resolve, including their own. Tiffany had every chance to walk. They didn't have to get married. Jerome even tried to run her off because this is not a road you want to go down. And she stuck. And now you wonder, like, why did Tiffany does this? Like, why was. Why would God do this? Well, to me, it's clear you didn't know it at the time, but you think about their story, their testimony, it's still being played out right now. I love their story. I said to them, I said, hey, I'm gonna. I would like to do a podcast with you guys. I think you're. The show being who they are, they're like, we're gonna have to pray about this. And they did. And turns out we were able to make it happen. And you know this because we had several variations of this bull riding show before we actually landed on this Cowboy Life and with Jerome and Tiffany. So we just started this show and I love it. We've had such a good response from the rodeo community. One of my biggest concerns was, do we have the credibility? Well, that's. Jerome brings the credibility, Tiffany brings the credibility. But it's like, how will that community respond to it? Turns out they've responded big time. Big time. And I think that there's real opportunity for us to add on shows into the Dirty Mo Rodeo vertical. And, and, and we'll see. Is it an experiment? Yeah. Still. Because again, what does a Dell junior Media company look like in rodeo? None of us know. But I like a lot of the similar values. And at the end of the day, we just go chase real authentic people. That's what for. For Dirty Mo Media, you got to be true to yourself. That's kind of what we pride ourselves on. I don't think you can find more authentic people than them. And I hope, I hope our audience, I hope the audience finds that show to be as gratifying and as informational and all that as I think it is.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

It's just getting off the ground. Your first episode was last week, or

[Mike Davis]

we started off with a three part documentary and that. That came out a few weeks ago. It's on YouTube.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

People can do that.

[Mike Davis]

But yeah, the first podcast, which is available everywhere, it just started last week. Yeah, in Fact. What is today? Today's Monday. Yeah. Wednesday we'll go back out to the ranch and take the second episode.

[Starlink/Cash App/FanDuel Advertiser]

So.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

So you're doing it at their place?

[Mike Davis]

Doing it at their place. Built. Built a set right there in their downstairs.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

What are you learning about bucking bulls?

[Mike Davis]

I want one. I knew that's what I've learned about it. You know, I got a funny story.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

There's much money in bucking bulls as there are in racehorses. Probably not, no.

[Mike Davis]

No. But that's that. That makes it more my speed. Right? Yeah. Like racehorses are another level out of your league. But you know, I don't know, we've been taken aback by. I don't profess to be any type of expert in that rodeo space or whatever, but we have a good time. You and I wanted. You should really think about this. Jerome was an founding investor of the pbr. When they sold, Jerome made some money. Well, what is a. What does a cowboy do with money? He just happened upon. He builds himself a huge arena right in his front yard. So they basically, they have a full on grandstands press box, this whole thing right there in their front yard. And they hold rodeo events every other Wednesday. They call it Wild West Wednesday. And so in the summer Wild West Wednesday happens. It's happening, happening again this, this coming Wednesday and people can show up and watch a legit rodeo. And Jerome's up there on the microphone and Tiffany's down there in the microphone and our families have just loved going to them. Tiff Powers kid, he was doing a mutton busting thing just, just a few weeks ago. And so it's, it's just fun. It's family fun.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah.

[Mike Davis]

And, and they're just awesome people.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah, I, I know a little bit about the radio world when I was younger and, and then of course you know, Taylor's participated Kayla Earnhardt, Carrie's and also it is, it's a, it's a, it's a great world. I mean it's a. There is a lot of similarities. Like you said, after you unpack, kind of the foundation of, you know, what they, who the people are and what their values are and all of those things.

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[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Why rodeo? Why go outside of motorsports? What's in it for dirty mo media?

[Mike Davis]

Well, this. Look, I mean, the space is crowded. We can acknowledge that you mentioned NASCAR and we can talk about nascar, but like, yeah, you know, look, there's, there's new podcasts starting every day. I think that for us to be able to see out the vision for dirty mo media, we were never going to just be racing. In my opinion, we never were. Dale. I'm not asking Dale to put on chaps and boots, but others can and I'm not. You know, we're also going to get into football. We're talking right now and finalizing a deal with the new football podcast. And so getting into dirty mo football and dirty, you know, dirty mo lifestyle stuff, these are all new verticals that I think that we can, we can play in. Dale Jr. Transcends NASCAR. Always has. I think that if we do it smartly and look at and stay true to who are, what our core values are, which is passion, authenticity, agenda, less. We're not going to get into politics. You can pro. I can say right now with 100% certainty we're never going to start. Politics shows that's not who we are. But there are things that we are getting into that do make sense for us. By the way, I say when I say get into them. I'm not asking our race fans or our Del JR Download fans to all of a sudden be hit with a bunch of rodeo stuff or football stuff. We start new verticals, new social channels that if that's into your thing, if that's you, you'll find it. If not, you're not going to be hit upside the head with it. And that's kind of like. So nothing really changes in terms of our long term fans. We're trying to just go look and find new audiences.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah, you've mentioned this already, I think, but maybe you can expand just a tick. But. Because I know these things have been on your strategy list. You know, different verticals, different sports, different areas. You explain this from the rodeo perspective. But like what, what makes it right? You know, when, when do you know? What do you know what makes it right?

[Mike Davis]

Well, this is all.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yes, that's what I say. What's all the things you've talked about authenticity, which is important. But yeah, talk about, you know, how you know a situation is the right situation as it comes together or the right experiment because like you said, you don't always know how they're going to pan out.

[Mike Davis]

Listen, I don't mind. I'm humble enough to know when I've missed on stuff I've missed on some. I've, I've started shows that did tell

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

us about a miss. Well, I mean and why it missed. What do you think?

[Mike Davis]

Well, timing sometimes matters. Commitment is a big one. Sometimes we just, you know, we, you know, people are in different seasons of life that you, you thought you were. You better aligned on those things. That can be one sometimes. Again, I like I use it. I mentioned that we're still not sure if Rare Breeds and Sons and Daughters are going to be successful. I don't know until I've tried. I don't mind swinging and missing. I just, I'm going to swing at it. Ultimately, if it's successful, audience finds it and they react to it and they respond to it and they come back and it takes time.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

That's what's. How long, how long does it take for me?

[Mike Davis]

I need, I need two years. I need two years because again, for like I can't just start something, expect all of a sudden people to drop. I think that the statistics show that a person will have about three to five podcasts. Podcast listeners, they'll have three to five that they, that they will find, find, you know, during their week. Doesn't mean they're hitting them all the time. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. But they look, you know, if you were to pull poll, people say, if you're a podcast or. Yeah, there's three, usually three to five. Well, when I start a new one, I'm asking someone to drop one and go back in. And it's so funny. Like, I don't, I don't listen to a lot of what social media has to tell me as much as I used to. But like when I, when I did, I'll see people like, you know, you'll start something like, I ain't listening to that. I'm not listening to that. Well, I'm not trying to ask you to listen to it. I'm trying to go create something that somebody will be important enough to them and they can decide if that's one of their three to five.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah.

[Mike Davis]

And if it's not, great, again, yeah. People are like, yeah, you've started so many shows, I don't have time to listen to them all.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

That's okay.

[Mike Davis]

I'm not asking you to listen to them all. I'm asking you to find something. If my job is to find one thing that you will be served, that you will find to be a value of your time, to give that hour or hour and a half, whatever it is that you'll find value in it, whether it be entertainment, information, whatever it is you're seeking. So I don't need to hear, I don't like Denny Hamlin. So I ain't listening to actions detrimental. Somebody does, and we got the numbers to back it up. If we don't have the numbers to back it up, I promise you I won't keep doing it. That means that it didn't work. And we've had shows that we tried and they didn't work. And so. And we have also started shows that they always had an end date. Like, you know, one of my favorite shows that we did was the Burton Continuum. That was an editorial show. It wasn't a talk show. It had a very clear beginning and a clear end. It was like eight episodes. There was never intention to go to nine. Right. And there's going to be shows like that. So we listen. I got a team that thinks ambitiously, we take swings, we have a vision. I'm very strategic. I operate off a strategy and I believe in the strategy and in that strategy. I have room for Mrs. And I think you have to. Right. And, and then if you are okay with the misses. The ones that hit feel that much better.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah. And should make up for the ones that miss, you know?

[Mike Davis]

Yeah. I can tell you this. Before we even got to the first episode of this Cowboy Life with Jerome And Tiffany, our YouTube channel on Dirty Mo Rodeo had already already had a pretty good following, more than we'd ever had at any other show's launch. So, like, I. There's signs that say, yeah, this is going to work. Right. And by the way, I've already had advertiser interest on a show that just started. That never happens. Usually I have to have, you know, 10, 20 episodes in so people know what they're listening to. But, you know, there's. There's a lot of interest in this Cowboy Life already because you're hitting a different audience, and that's what I think we're able to do.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah, let's. Let's talk briefly about nascar because we. I teed this up earlier and we got into a different conversation. But, you know, your relationship with nascar. Are you competing against nascar? What does your world look like that's different than theirs and so on and so forth. I know you've had an opportunity to work with NASCAR in a lot of different areas and things like that.

[Mike Davis]

So, yeah, listen, the relationship with nascar, if it was a Facebook profile, I would say it's complicated. And I think I say, do not

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

worry with what you. You can't control. That's on my Facebook, and that seems to apply, too.

[Mike Davis]

Yeah, that's a good one. Yeah. So listen, you said it. We compete. But at the same time, when your competition, you need them to succeed for your own success. Well, then that's where the complicated part comes in. I need NASCAR to be as healthy and as prosperous as they can possibly be. And I also think that they need the same thing from us because you know what? We have an audience and we have Dale Jr. Go back to the Dale Jr. Download. I mean, like Dale Jr. Every single week is going to say his opinion, and he ain't taking cues from anybody but himself. Right. We don't even know what he's going to say about a particular thing. And that always doesn't align with what NASCAR wishes he would say. But, but listen, Dale Jr. Is a integral part of the NASCAR community. I think he's the most valuable commodity even to this day. He's a hall of Famer, he's a broadcaster. He has a ton of influence. Even to this day, his relevancy still is very high. I think the DALE jr. Download Excuse me. The Dale jr. Download keeps that wick lit.

[Starlink/Cash App/FanDuel Advertiser]

Right.

[Mike Davis]

In terms of the relevancy in the brand. So we need each other to be successful. But I think our, well, our. Our goals are different. Right. I'm radically honest. I like my philosophy to content is come as you are. We own our flaws. And also I am very. I not only am not afraid of different opinions or diversity of thought. I embrace it. That's pretty intimidating and scary for a lot of other companies. I won't even just put that on nascar. I like, you know, any, Anybody probably even Junior Motorsports.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Well, that's what I was going to say. How do you. How. I mean, how. How do you support that if it affects your own company negatively?

[Mike Davis]

My own company being Junior Motorsports, Dirty Mo. I don't handle it quite well, to be honest with you, and I know that to be the case.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Listen, I think a lot of people struggle with that. That's a, that's a, That's a fair thing. I think that's a fair thing from a business perspective to understand when you can lay it out all on the table. It's hard these days. It used to be a lot easier to talk about your strengths and weaknesses. It's hard these days because of, I feel, because of social. Because of everybody else's rhetoric. That's what rhetoric. Whatever the right word is. Right. And I hate that.

[Mike Davis]

Yeah. So listen, I hate that. I've been trying for 10 years to figure out a way to work with NASCAR in a very productive, you know, collaborative way. We almost got there this year. We almost got there. I really thought this was it. I thought this was it. I'm like, we're about to make history. We're about to work with NASCAR on something, and it's going to be a way that benefits us both, which again, we spent a lot of time working on that. And yet right at the last minute, gone. And. And it's hard not to take that personal. And it's hard to sit there and go, okay, well, maybe this just is further indication that we're not aligned in what our. Our end goals are. Dirty Mo is going to stay open for business. If there's new ideas that we can pursue in nascar, we'll try. But at the end of the day, we've not been very successful in figuring out ways. And I don't. Listen, I'm. I think we're good partners. We, and I have receipts. We work with IndyCar. We work with a bunch of other entities. PBR and the PRCA have been awesome to work with. And so I think that we all. It just goes down to the fact that. That I'm never going to tell my host what to say or what their opinion's got to be. I want their authentic opinion. I don't want to tell Denny Hamlin what he's got to say. I don't want to tell door Bumper Claire. I'm not going to tell them what they're going to say about a race just because it's good for business. And we have lost business. It wasn't just this year we've lost business to stand on that principle. But it's one that I can sleep at night. I'm not going to sacrifice our authenticity and our opinion. A lot of people go, well, you're just trying to be clickbait on door bumper clear. I promise you, if I were being clickbait, then I would be telling them what to say to be better at getting clicks. I've never once done that and I never will do that. Freddie, Tommy Carson. They'll say what they want to say and if there's things that get are problematic, then we'll have conversations about that. But at the end of the day, like, we are free thinkers and we have diversity of thought and that's sometimes that doesn't align with other people.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah. Going back to thinking about the things you've said, it's timing, it's commitment, it's alignment, it's authenticity and all those things. And if they're not working, it's not working. So there's definitely things on the NASCAR side that you just haven't clicked. I haven't clicked together.

[Mike Davis]

I won't stop trying. I won't stop trying. We're always open for business. We're always coming up with ideas. I'll give you one. I think Dirty Mo would do a good job being at track, doing live shows. We've done live shows at tracks. We do them in Daytona every year. We do it through our partner SiriusXM. We do other things. We've done them. I think we do them well. I've tried to talk about that with not just NASCAR but smi and we're still working on that. But I do think that Dirty Moe's presence at there. We did a really successful ultimate experience program with the suites. That was something else. I'm real proud of the race.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Fans love that.

[Mike Davis]

I think that our rapport with the audience and the fans means that we should always continue try because I do think that there's something that NASCAR could gain, hopefully by working with us. I also know that NASCAR needs to also go find new audiences and new people as well. Just the same way I'm doing that with rodeo. That still can exist. But I don't know. Maybe I'm not as easy to work with as I think I am.

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[Mike Davis]

I want to ask you, and you'll be honest with me, is is Dirty Mo, you also have to have a relationship with nascar. You guys operate. You're the most successful team in the O'Reilly series. Does Dirty Mo's existence ever complicate that?

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

I have not had a situation where it has complicated anything with G mar Sports to my knowledge. And I say to my knowledge because I, you know, I don't know if, if, if I don't think they would say, oh, we're looking at your race organization in a certain way from a tech capability or anything like that. That would suggest anything. But no, I've never had an, an, an issue, you know, I think on the side of Dale. You know, obviously I think there's been conversations sometimes about the way Dale may talk about certain things on the download and what that looks like. And look, you know, I do have a saying of, you know, let's don't pee in our own pool, right? Like that' something that comes to mind whenever I'm thinking about how we all make something better. And the Cars Tour has kind of taught me this, you know, in thinking of running the sanction and you're dealing with the tracks and you're dealing with the drivers and you're dealing with the teams and you're dealing with all the different individuals that make up what you're trying to make great. And you know, there's opinions that are said here or there, somebody doesn't like something and all that. And I'm like, I just go back to thinking about how can we make this great together, you know. But that's your, that's your point with nascar, that there, there should be opportunities to work together, to elevate the whole ecosystem. Not just dirty mode, not just nascar. And so yeah, I, you know, I Don't. I don't know of any particular. Particular instance. And, you know, I think they've been. I know we want to have, you know, some guests. We've had some guests. We want to have some more guests, like on the business and motorsports part. But that's kind of where I go to. Also on back to talking about business and motorsports is like, who can talk honestly? Who's gonna. Who's gonna talk honestly? Honestly is the good and the bad. I just don't want to sit here and talk to people for a nice commercial. Right, right, right. I want to dig into. That's what business and motorsports is. Business and motorsports is digging into what doesn't work, what risks are there. Talking about your failure, talking about, you know, the good things, you know, talking about wins and how you got through all of that. That's what our audience appreciates.

[Mike Davis]

I agree.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

And so when I think about guests that cannot deliver that. Now, I don't want the whole show to be negative, you know, but, you know, our sport, it's. It's hard to talk about our sport at times because there is. There is issues with the business model and the plan and how we take it to the racetrack and how we do all of that. And so, you know, sometimes I get lost in my own thoughts about, you know, those challenges and how they're perceived by our fans and people who listen. You know, me and Heather were sitting there talking about our challenges when it comes to our margins and things like that. And, you know, we're. We're thinking of it from a real conversation. I know that anybody gets in business to sell widgets, they want to make money selling widgets. Who doesn't want to make money selling widgets? I want to make money running a race team. I want to make money doing whatever. You want to make money having a podcast. And so if you're only making 2% on this widget, you know, what can you be doing different? What's wrong with the business model? What's wrong with the plan? So, you know, just going back to kind of that honesty. But, no, I've not. I've not. I've not had anything direct. My. My last run in with NASCAR was like, 2007 over Adidas. And I'll never forget that run in.

[Mike Davis]

Oh, that's right.

[Starlink/Cash App/FanDuel Advertiser]

We.

[Mike Davis]

We left that out of our 2007.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

In that conversation.

[Mike Davis]

We left that out.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Oh, gosh. Yeah. Which I didn't know I was causing a problem until later, but, yeah, when. Yeah. So just for the audience, we were. We were working on a deal with Adidas and a lot of Adidas and a lot of people will, will remember that for, for Dell Jr. And our company not knowing that, that the sport was working on something with a competitor that would encompass all of the drivers and whatnot. And we were kind of going on our own to do something and I didn't read between the facial expressions or something from a meeting and got called out about it later. But again, that's just, you know, it's about if, if you're clear on what you're doing, how you're going to involve your constituents in what you're doing, I think that's super important, that communication. Where do we all fit into the picture? Then something like that doesn't happen. But yeah, that was my last, my last hands on.

[Mike Davis]

Didn't it kill that deal too?

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

It killed their deal. It killed their deal. It killed their deal. I don't know what was in it for us. I really don't. But it killed their deal. Yeah.

[Mike Davis]

Well, listen, you know, when you talk about the business of motorsports, you mentioned the business model. I can promise you I have never envied you or anybody that has to operate on the racing business model. It is so hard. Yeah, it is so hard. And Junior Motorsports does an amazing job given how difficult this business model is. And by the way, I probably don't even know, I probably don't know a tenth of how difficult that actually is. You're probably thinking in your head, oh yeah, like you actually know anything about this. I'm not thinking about it. I, I, I know that the business,

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

you've been in enough meetings and conversations.

[Mike Davis]

I also know that running a media company is hard. There's a graveyard full of race teams and media companies around us all over the place. And there's new ones all the time. So we didn't pick, maybe, maybe that says more about us. We didn't pick the easiest thing, but at the end of day, you follow your passions. The thing I always love about your conversations on business and motorsports is that given how difficult the business is, the business model is when you get with other racing executives almost just kind of comparing battle wounds, you know what I'm saying? I mean, the, Heather Gibbs was, was such an amazing conversation, but you had a lot of amazing conversations. And it's like, I know that they can start to feel repetitive or you might be asking a lot of the same questions, but at the end of the day, I, I do think that everyone has a little bit of a different story. The challenge Is will they actually come out with it?

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah. Tell their story.

[Mike Davis]

And most of them, to be honest, and this is. I shouldn't say this to you. Most of them probably don't. Right. That just.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

It goes back to that vulnerability that you talked about. People don't want to. You know, it is easier to. In this atmosphere to get people to talk about things that maybe they wouldn't. I mean, Del junior Does a great job of it on the download. I can remember that from fast lane family. And I'm pointing over there to where I used to sit on the couch and do that. You know, you get comfortable and you get comfortable with people that you, you. You know and know of and so on and so forth. And you're talking about intimate things. You know, especially when you think about Dale and, and talking and learning about my dad and our dad and, and all those things that he really enjoys. You know, you can lose sight a fact that thousands of people are going to listen to this, you know. Right. But that's good. That's good stuff. That's when the, the. The real honest and the real heart comes out and, and talking and that makes that it. It ends up being great, you know.

[Mike Davis]

Am I doing a good job of encouraging you to keep going?

[Arby's Advertiser]

You're.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

You're doing a good job. Let's talk about Dirty Boo media and its future five years from now. What's the, what's the, what's the percentage of. Of racing or other? And what does dirty mode look like, do you think?

[Mike Davis]

Yeah.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

What's your strategy say it's going to look like?

[Mike Davis]

Listen, a lot of people ask me about, you know, what are you trying to be. Are you trying to be. Are you a racing platform or are you. Now you're getting into dirty mo rodeo and, and football, F1 those different things. Listen, I want Dirty Mo Media to be a, A, a diversified sports media platform that happens to do racing better than everybody else. I kind of already think we do, to be honest with you, because we got Dale Jr. And we got Denny and we got these people and I just don't think, I don't see anybody else replicating the, the, the cred. The street cred that we bring. So I like the way we cover the sport of racing. I think we, as I said earlier, we hit it from a bunch of different vantage points. So it's not like any one of them is right or wrong. You know, like Jeff Gluck and Jordan Bianchi's vantage point is as important to me as anybody else's. They just see the world differently. Jeff Gluck had, I think it was last week he had a he has on his Gluck cast, which is the Thursday episode. He'll have interviews and he had one with Tommy Joe Martins last week. And it's just like I didn't know anything about Tommy Joe Martins, to be honest with you. But man, I just thought the conversation was amazing and that you and I and you know, I really get do feel a sense of pride when I go, we produce that, we produce that and Jeff Gluck, because we had the wherewithal to get Jeff Gluck on our platform. He went and got, he had the

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

ability to go get that.

[Mike Davis]

And that was an amazing conversation that I learned a lot from.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah.

[Mike Davis]

So, like, yeah, I, I think that we, I have a vision, I have a strategy. It's I, I always want us to do racing better than everyone else. I say this a lot. We're still an Earnhardt company. Earnhardts do one thing. They race. That's not changing. So if, if, if this is a, a Dale Earnhardt Jr company, I can promise you that racing is going to be something we do very well and it's going to be even a priority. Doesn't mean that we're not going to try to do other things well. But, you know, knowing who we are and who are again, being true to ourselves, I think that there's room for all of that.

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[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

You mentioned earlier about not having a business plan. When we talked about, you know, Dirty Mo Media and kind of its roots. And I'm asked that all the time, you know, what's the business? You know, did you and Dale set out to do this? You know, what did you and Dale set out to do? And you know, I go back to thinking about our Hooters pro cup car and our late model car and how that turned into Xfinity because an opportunity came, timing, you know, all of those things and opportunity came. A Busch car at the time and then now being four cars in the O'Reilly series. And we've never had a business plan. You know, we, we don't have a written business plan. We do have a philosophy on how we operate.

[Mike Davis]

We being Junior Motorsports, he is in

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Junior Motorsports, me and Dale, et cetera. You know, we have a philosophy on how we operate and we, what we want to do. I don't think a business plan is always necessary. You know, I think that you look at, you know, you're having conversations, you look at opportunities just like the opportunity with Rodeo, you're having a conversation with Austin. You learn about this other sport that's out there and then you, you figure you're thinking that you're going to do something with it and then you figure out the right thing to do with it, right? So I think that's kind of how our business has been built. But the philosophy kind of, I feel like always stays the same and the principles and you know, who we are, what kind of people we want to work here, the culture of the company and all that. When you set out for Dirty Mo Media, is that philosophy. How's that philosophy changed?

[Mike Davis]

I remember the day it changed how you set out. I remember the day it changed. You're right. I didn't have a business plan for dirty Mo media. What we had was a brand plan of Dell junior content continuation of what we started early in the Junior motorsports days, and it just kind of grew on us. I remember the day. I don't. I remember the day. I don't remember the date, but I do remember you and I talking and then me and Dale talking, and it's like, hey, I'm. I'm on the brand team. Dirty mo's a side project. I don't have a business plan. I think I might have had even one or two employees. I don't even. It was probably one. And it's like, I'm not doing a good job on the brand or on dirty Mo media because they're both. There's a tension and trying to keep me in all these things. I'm not doing either one of them right. What do we want? Do we want to get serious about this or do we. Are we okay with it just being on the side? Dale Jr. Says, let's get serious. And I'm like, like, do we want to, like, get after it?

[Starlink/Cash App/FanDuel Advertiser]

Serious.

[Mike Davis]

Like, like, get after. He's like, let's get after it.

[Starlink/Cash App/FanDuel Advertiser]

It.

[Mike Davis]

I said, okay, well, if we're going to do that, I can't be on the brand anymore. And you and I had already talked about this, but it's like, again, us going to Dale about it. I can't be on meetings about whiskey river or, you know, books and these kind of things because my heart is actually, I think. I think we have opportunity here, but we don't have a plan, and we certainly haven't figured out we've made it a business. But the business plan at that point was don't lose Dale money.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah.

[Arby's Advertiser]

Yeah.

[Mike Davis]

Don't lose Dale money. Don't cost Dale money. Don't cost Dale money.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Don't make it where we have to ask Dale for money.

[Mike Davis]

That's exactly right. That was our plan.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

The same plan on Junior.

[Mike Davis]

Okay.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Don't ask Dale or Mr. H for money.

[Mike Davis]

Right. If you can make them money. But that was. That was not in the vision at that point. It was just, don't cost Dell money.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Right.

[Mike Davis]

So if we're going to get serious about it, well, then let's figure out a way to make the money. Right. Or let's wait to do it. One of that meant I need to come off of the brand team and I need to start hiring people and a team around me. So I think this was around 2018, 2019. I know that I hired Tiff Powers in 2022. So it was this, you know, manifestation of building up a team around us to really kind of get after it. A key part of the business strategy was getting with then Silver Tribe. Now they're called Initial Digital. Michael Klein and Jack Rose were really helpful for me in turn into building this into a back actual strategy. And they continue to this day to be an asset to me. And I left a meeting with them, both of those guys before I came here today. So in there, listen, the thing I loved about them is that they never try to change us. You think of Los Angeles agencies and stuff like that, you know, that they're not trying to become, trying to make us la ified and we're not trying to be. We know who we are. But they were able to help author a strategy for us to make this into a viable business. And it was when we started turning this into a viable business that I started becoming really protective of the business itself, the biz, the identity of who we are. And it's still a work in progress, frankly. But, you know, like, that's, that's one of my things. It's one of my pet peeves is like, you know, when we aren't treated as a business that we are. I understand why, because we didn't start out that way, but we have evolved into that and, and so that's kind of like what we are. So our business strategy now is starting shows, bringing on clients, being the best at what we can do to serve brands in the branded content business. We had a really successful San Diego where we activated for Arby's in the US Navy. We did two live shows out there. That's when it's working well because the business responds well to that.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Well, you talked about your pet peeve. You got another pet peeve in there?

[Mike Davis]

Oh, I got a lot of pet peeves. Yeah.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah, Give me another one.

[Mike Davis]

Well, okay. One of my, One of, one of my pet peeves is I. I don't really like hearing people's criticisms when I would never talk to them about advice, like when I never would seek people's advice. I certainly don't care about their opinions or critique. I've never been. There was a time I wasn't that good at that and I would let that fester way more than I needed to. But at the end of the day, listen, I'm about to turn 50 this year. So in my old days here, as I turned 50, I've started to prioritize my time and the things that I would waste my time on, I don't do that as much anymore. I let it go. Or again, I can count on one hand how many people I really care about their advice. You're one of them. So it's like if you come back to me and you say something to me, I'm gonna listen to it. But if there's people that I would never take their advice for.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah. Why?

[Mike Davis]

Listen, I'm not going to let it in my day. And my pet peeve is the people that do let those things, they get caught up. Also a pet peeve of mine. And you'll know this because this is one of our fun little things with Dale Jr. I'm very strategic. If we operate off of a strat or get away from a strategy, I don't know what to do with that. And so when, you know, like Dale sort of is more distinctual.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Basketball league.

[Mike Davis]

What's that?

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

When you had to film the basketball league way back in the day.

[Mike Davis]

Basketball league, yeah. Well, listen, that was getting off strategy. Well, yeah, that was off strategy also. I lost an ACL in that one one too, that we needed to get back. But, but you know, Dale is very instinctual. Today's baseball cards is tomorrow's brisket, and then tomorrow's brisket is, you know what, it's, it's whatever. And by the way, that's authentically him. So I'll never ask him to be anything different. I also don't like it when I get asked to be different. And that is, I need. Look, I, I operate off a strategy here. It's a business strategy. It's a vision. It's, it's, it allows room for some maneuvering and some, some fun time and stuff like that. But at the end of the day, I do got to of it. And that's a pet peeve of mine. When we go, hey, Reddit says this. Reddit says this isn't working. The data. The data says it is. I'll sit there with the data and then let Reddit, you know. Yeah, critique it in their own space.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Exactly.

[Mike Davis]

And that's not me trying to call out Reddit. I'm about to get roasted from Reddit now.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

No, but that's important. The data. I say that all the time to people. The data is what you need to lean in on. Like, you know, it's not emotions. It's not what you think people are going to do what's working, even if you're not doing it. So therefore you can't define what's working there. You can look at other things to decipher if it could work or what the roadblocks are going to be or what's going to trip you up or things like that. There are things that you get to look at. But, yeah, I'm the same way. I don't like always how many people said that or, you know, whatever the situation is that we're working on, you know, it often reminds me of dealing with people. And if you hear a complaint and is it one complaint or is it 10 complaints? You know, if it's one complaint out of my employees, you know, maybe I need to look into it a little bit, but it's probably not that significant. If there's 10 complaints about the same thing, maybe I need to take it more seriously, you know?

[Mike Davis]

Yeah.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

So.

[Mike Davis]

Yeah. But how do you. Again, I wonder from you. You have. You run an entire operation. So, like, when you. How do you decide between what you go spend the next hour of your time when it comes to complaints on. Maybe you have multiple complaints.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah.

[Mike Davis]

How do you decide? All right, I'm going to stop what I'm doing and I'm going to go fix the. Put out this fire.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

I think just priority on, you know, thinking about that from. From, you know, business stuff going on every day. Obviously. I get lots of emails about we're working with this, and here's the request that we need to get approved by you or whatever. Or if I've got a fire going on between people or something that's brewing. I mean, I just. Just prioritize by which one can affect me the quickest that I need to get in front of it.

[Arby's Advertiser]

Yeah.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Seriously.

[Mike Davis]

Yeah, I got it.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah. I mean, what. What's gonna. What's gonna turn sour the quickest? What's gonna be an issue the quickest?

[Mike Davis]

Or.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Or what's gonna be helpful? You know, what's gonna be the best? If I give this answer on a partnership, does that get us that much closer to the finish line, you know, or whatever that looks like. But sometimes you just have to wait. I mean, I have to. You know, we. A lot of things that we do go through Dale and, you know, he's busy on the weekends broadcasting. He doesn't. We. What we know about Dale is we need a clear mind where he can focus on something or we need it to be coming from him to us. Right. And then you get into this conversation about wherever he's at, or if he calls you and says, hey, what do you think about xyz then you've got the platform to talk about that and maybe something else, you know? Yeah, because that's important that we, you know, Dale's involved in so many of our things, but it's important for us to find that opportunity where we can get a. A clear moment of his time. Because he's in a lot of different directions. Right. So, yeah, I'm prioritizing what's going to benefit me the most, if it's putting out a fire or if it's benefiting me to. To something good. So those are decisions that you make every day. We talked a lot about your hiring process. You've grown your team. I think you're 17 strong. Where are you? 16. 17 strong. Somewhere in that neighborhood. Yeah. You had to move out of our building for. Because you're growing so much. We're growing. You're growing. Got a great space right here up the road on our. If we want to call it our campus, so to speak.

[Mike Davis]

Oh, that's right.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

We're officially a campus campus now. I know. I didn't realize that we're a campus or campus.

[Mike Davis]

Take that, Mr. H. We got our own campus now.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

But, you know, you. One of the things that I've seen about you and your people are how people grow within your organization, and you give them opportunity to grow. You have people, you know, that have started on your team. I can think of a couple. You know, Travis Rockhold, Alex. Think of a few that have. Have grown into new roles and new positions. You know, how. How do you bet on people like that? What are you providing that. Giving them. Them opportunities? And what are you seeing that's working from your perspective as a leader?

[Mike Davis]

All right, let me think about this one. That's a good question. All right, well, I go back. Okay, so not everybody's story is the same, but I think we can find some commonality in here. First of all, the. The people that are like, let's.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Let's.

[Mike Davis]

Let's start with some of the. You mentioned Travis Rockhold. He came to us a few years ago, but, like, we've got people that have been in the organization for more than 10 years, right. James Brosan, who's integral part. Stuff like that, he was at Hammerhead before he came here. So, like, we got employees that came from Hammerhead, right. At the end of the day, the people that are able to Thrive@dirty mo media are ones that bet on themselves, understand their. Understand their role, work as a team. Because again, our.

[Starlink/Cash App/FanDuel Advertiser]

We.

[Mike Davis]

We do run at lean. You mentioned 16, 17, people, but like, we operate bigger than that. And I know that the people that we compete against, and I say compete in air quotes, but like the people that, you know, have other things. Let's just take Fox, for example. Yeah, okay. All right. I, I bet you Fox has a lot more resources than we have. And I bet Happy Harvick's podcast has a lot more resources than we have. Have, by the way. That's fine. That's who they are. We run it differently. We're, we're leaner and we, we have people that know how to fill gaps in lines better than the rest. I think that there's an efficiency about that. I think that also there's leadership. And I'm not even talking about myself. I'm talking about, you know, the executives that we have in our team and the department heads. You mentioned Alex and Travis. People know Travis Rockhold as being the producer of Denny show and, and the Dale jr. Download. But what Travis is, is the most versatile, well rounded producer that we could possibly have in the. Think about Denny. Just last night he didn't get home till 4:30am well, their plan was to, the plan was to tape actions detrimental today at 10am Turns out they're not doing it till 5pmI would not be able to keep that schedule. I got a family and I've got to pick up this and pick up that and do this and do that. Travis just Johnny on the spot and is able to do that. He's also able to go to Sons and Daughters and do stuff for Shannon Spake and that kind of stuff. That, that, that, that's a team mentality that, that if you don't have it, it isn't going to work at Dirty Mo Media. So I think there's a commonality between that. I think that when I brought Tiff powers on in 2022, this was the second time she'd work for us. That was a big step. I needed somebody that I knew that could hold an iron fist but also have compassion and empathy. She would say she doesn't have empathy but like, but understand and, you know, how to make decisions in different areas. She works well. Colby Bass is amazing energy and ideas and she's able to work with the producers very well. Everybody knows their role. Not everybody has. And they don't really last very long at Dirty Mo because again, you know, that, that's like, you know, if it becomes sort of about yourself and about that we want to take care of people, but we also have to understand why we show up to work every day and the people look, the hours are not going to be normal. There never are. Not in our business. We operate off deadlines and they're daily deadlines and the grind. And by the way, we also have a high standard of quality and we go through these things and so that also adds time to it. And so we try to be quick and nimble but also good and quality and all these hard to do all this stuff on a set schedule and yet people still show up to work. They show up like Mr. H says, with their game face on. They show up on time and that's what we ask of them in return. I try to give them leniency and latitude where they need it.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

It.

[Mike Davis]

Right. I do believe in a work life balance that we got families that we want to be there for. Right. I got my own. And so it's a balance, it's a daily intention intentionality to, to commit to that type of thing. But at the same time I think that's what I see to work well for us. I don't know if it changes. It doesn't work that way for everybody else. But for us, you know, up in our build new building on campus here,

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

that's what works for us on the northwest quadrant. I don't know where you are.

[Mike Davis]

Oh yeah, we should come up, we should come up with some directional type stuff there to make us seem important.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Well, you know, I was thinking leading off of that question, I mean, you know the, the, the old saying, it does start at the top and I believe in that. I mean I believe that, that you, you provide that work environment, that opportunity. You know, they're, they're taking the lead from what you put out, you know, and, and taking the lead from, from, from what you're giving them. So. And it's, it works well. It works really well. You got some great, great, great people. When you look around. Dirty Mo Media what makes you most proud besides your new building?

[Mike Davis]

The new building is up there. Yeah, for sure. I love the new building.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

I love the new building.

[Mike Davis]

I do, I love it. And by the way, that's another whole conversation. I'm not, I'm going to answer your question but I will say that like it's also taught us that when you're not in part of the, you know, the, the what do you call it? The center part of like you know, not being in your orbit every day like you, you do lose some of that stuff. And so, you know, can we. It's, it's required us to be, you

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

have to be more intentional.

[Mike Davis]

Absolutely, absolutely. So listen, I am proud, when I am proud of the shows that we've created and what I think that they're doing from a historical standpoint and also from a personal standpoint. I, I see, see, I see real. I see Dale Jr. In a different place than he was when we started the download. I mean, this was the guy that was the introvert. He could never have held a long form conversation. He wouldn't have wanted to. Yeah, I've, you know, I was with him. You've been with him when he tried to get him back in the day. I mean, like that you would never bet that he was going to be a podcast host, but here he is and he thrives in it. He's so good at it. I think it's a real value to the industry. I take pride in that. I take pride and bless your heart, I take pride in the fact that Amy's come out of her shell and they get to, they open us up to their lives. It's. I don't take it for granted. I'm proud that we've been able to develop that thing. When we did Lost Speedways, that was, that was, that happened to be right at the time when the COVID situation took root.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

And, and yeah, you guys were operating under Covid.

[Mike Davis]

We were not just operating under Covid, but we were under contract to provide Peacock to, you know, a batch of shows. And we were one of only four out of all the, the shows that they were going to launch Peacock with, we were only one of only four that actually came through. With our commitment on time and the way we did it, we had to get real creative. Like our, our track was the last track. The last episode we were going to do was in San Francisco, the same place that they couldn't even park the big cruise because of a Covid outbreak and nobody knew what the heck was going on and all this stuff. So our plans got canceled and we got together our little team and just said, how do we go make our commitment true to Peacock and still do it? And so we got creative and we still. And I'm proud of that. I'm proud that we've been able to build this into a business. We're able to serve partners in a way. I hope we add value to the other parts of the Dell junior Orbit, like the Brand team and the Race team. I think that we've certainly given people additional things to consider on how to activate within our, our company. All that to be said, it's hard for me to sit there and pinpoint, like, things, because I feel like we're still so early in our story.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

You're still growing, and.

[Mike Davis]

And I. And I don't want to be like, I, I. I don't really want to check up and go, oh, let's start taking. Let's start counting our wins. I don't. I don't. I'm not really in the wind counting mindset right now. I'm like, you know, we got new shows to make. We got new verticals to start. I really want to see this f. The F1 show start. I want to see a football vertical started. And. And I want to continue evolving, and one day we'll come back and look and see all the things that made me proud, But I do think that it'll exceed some of the things that we can see right now. Again. In hindsight, it's a lot easier to look at that. I hope that we have a big, flourishing partnership with NASCAR one day to talk about how that worked, because so far, I've not really. I'm not succeeding in that one. And so I don't know. That's my answer to that. I think that's awesome.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah. Well, Mike, it's been a great conversation. You know, we. We've talked a lot about where. Where you began, where you're going, what you're doing, how you've grown. You've grown. And dirty My media has changed. You've stayed true to what you built Dirty Mo Media on, which is fantastic. You got a lot of Runway ahead of you, lots of ideas, a lot of great people. I hope people have enjoyed hearing about the business and its growth. I hope they've enjoyed, and I hope they have a better understanding now of maybe why you left this table originally. And you're not let. You want to one last kick your feet up on the table. Kick your boot up on the table and. And lay back from the download days. Come on, do it.

[Mike Davis]

You know, they told me, they said, don't be leaning back in your chair. But I'm like, I don't know any other way.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Yeah, don't leave me alone.

[Mike Davis]

These mic arms move with me so I can get comfortable.

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

Oh, yeah, I forgot. I got to move this part. My shoes are in the way.

[Mike Davis]

This is how we do that, right?

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

This is it. One last good hurrah, because I'm going

[Mike Davis]

back into my shell like this. I said, I'm gonna come talk to Kelly and we'll talk about this company, and this is the way we'll do it and then I'm gonna go right back behind the cameras where I believe

[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

along it's going back behind the curtain. All right, Mike, it's been super fun. I appreciate you sitting down to tell the story. We've definitely taken up a lot of your time in my time and I hope everyone enjoys it and has enjoyed this episode of Business of Motorsports. This episode of Business of Motorsports is presented by Arby's. Don't forget about Arby's New Meat and three Box get more meal for your money at Arby's. We have the meats.

[Arby's Advertiser]

Check out DirtyMomedia on Instagram, Facebook X and TikTok.

[Starlink/Cash App/FanDuel Advertiser]

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[Kelly Earnhardt Miller]

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[Mike Davis]

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