Why The Gundies Keep Growing (And Why They Keep Doing It)

The Forge Relations team returns to State of the Second for a post-Gundies wrap-up, and this year's show was different in one major way: it went live. Ben and Will explain that Ben had pushed a live stream for years before they finally pulled it off, and the deciding factor was finding the right home for it. YouTube was a non-starter because the platform told them a stream would be cut if a guest said something against its guidelines, and with the level of investment involved, a mid-show cutoff was a risk they couldn't take. Rumble stepped in, set up the account, and gave them internal team support. The result, by their own account, was the best year yet, with just under a thousand confirmed attendees in the room, around 200,000 watching the stream, and a noticeably more senior crowd of owners and C-suite leaders at the Venetian Theater during SHOT. Much of the conversation is about why a marketing agency keeps taking on an event this size. Ben and Will are blunt that the Gundies is separate from Forge and isn't a money-maker. They put roughly 3,500 man hours into it this year on top of running the agency, and every year they have the same internal debate about whether it's worth the headache. They keep going because they believe in the industry and the community, and because the event grows everyone together. A creator who misses top five still gets new eyes from people who'd never seen them, since voters have to look at every name in a category. The hosts back this up from backstage: even Hickok, with 10 million subscribers, was genuinely excited to win, and John says he's watched sub counts climb after the Gundies post. Ben and Will also address this year's drama head on, saying voting has always been organic, that more followers means more votes is a volume game and not rigging, and that they said their piece and won't turn the drama machine on. The episode closes with two forward-looking pieces. First, the Gundies is becoming a standalone brand and will no longer go dark after the show. It's launching its first-ever trivia night at GOA's GOALS event, a 2A-themed game with real prizes from sponsors including title sponsor PSA, and the hosts say they'll also work with Rumble on it. GOALS runs August 1st and 2nd in Des Moines, Iowa, marking GOA's 50th anniversary, and Forge is providing Saturday night's entertainment. Second, in the Soapbox segment, Ben and Will talk about getting new gun owners off the fence and into the community. Their answers center on content: let mainstream outlets show the industry without a political spin, represent the new customer who often doesn't look like the standard gun owner, and for aspiring creators, be authentic, stay consistent, and don't wait for perfect before posting. Questions this episode answers Why did The Gundies finally go live this year, and why on Rumble instead of YouTube? Ben had pushed for a live stream for years, and the show finally went live once they found the right home. YouTube was ruled out because the platform said a stream could be cut if a guest violated its guidelines, a risk too large for the investment, so Rumble stepped in, set up the account, and provided team support. How big was the show this year in terms of attendees and stream viewers? By Ben and Will's account it was the best year yet, with just under a thousand confirmed attendees in the room and around 200,000 people watching the stream. The crowd at the Venetian Theater during SHOT was also noticeably more senior, with more owners and C-suite leaders. How many hours does Forge actually put into producing The Gundies? Ben and Will say they put roughly 3,500 man hours into the event this year, on top of running the agency. The Gundies is separate from Forge Relations and is not a money-maker. Why does a marketing agency keep running an event that doesn't make money? Ben and Will keep going because they believe in the firearms industry and community and want to see it grow, since that growth benefits everyone. They have the same internal debate every year about whether the headache is worth it, and they keep choosing to do it. How did Forge respond to this year's accusations that the voting was rigged? Ben and Will addressed the drama directly, saying voting has always been organic and that more followers meaning more votes is a volume game, not rigging. They said their piece and chose not to feed the drama machine further. What does a creator gain from being nominated even if they don't win? Because voters have to look at every name in a category, a nominee who misses the top five still gets new eyes from people who had never seen them. The hosts note even Hickok, with 10 million subscribers, was genuinely excited to win, and John has watched subscriber counts climb after a Gundies post. What is the new Gundies trivia night at GOALS, and what can attendees expect? The Gundies is launching its first-ever trivia night, a Second Amendment themed game with real prizes from sponsors including title sponsor PSA. It runs at GOA's GOALS event in Des Moines, Iowa on August 1st and 2nd, with Forge providing Saturday night's entertainment. What advice do Ben and Will give to new gun owners and aspiring content creators? For new gun owners, they want mainstream content that shows the industry without a political spin and represents customers who don't fit the standard mold. For aspiring creators, the advice is to be authentic, stay consistent, and not wait for perfect before posting. Chapters 00:00 — Welcome back to Forge for the post-Gundies wrap-up 00:48 — Why this year went live, and why not YouTube 02:04 — Rumble steps in to make the live stream happen 03:09 — Best year yet: C-suite in the room, seven years of growth 04:53 — 3,500 man hours and the entertainment push 07:07 — The grand prize winner and what voting really buys you 09:05 — John and Kaylee's view from backstage 11:48 — Why GOA sponsors its category and never gave it up 13:31 — Addressing this year's drama and the rigging accusations 17:09 — Organic voting and why being nominated still wins 24:51 — Announcement: the Gundies becomes its own brand 25:25 — First-ever Gundies trivia night at GOA GOALS 35:54 — GOALS, the 50th anniversary, and registering early 40:47 — Soapbox: getting new gun owners into the community 45:21 — Advice for aspiring content creators: be authentic About the guest Ben and Will are with Forge Relations, the marketing agency that produces the Gundies firearms industry awards show. The hosts describe them as gun owners first, and they call themselves a marketing agency that also does events. In this episode they describe the Gundies as separate from Forge and built for the firearms industry and community, not as a revenue source. This was around their third appearance on State of the Second. The Gundies is heading into its eighth year, with the awards show held at the Venetian Theater during SHOT. Key quotes "The biggest compliment we got was about who was in the room." — Ben Stacy "We believe in this industry and we believe in the community and we want to see the community grow because that's going to benefit all of us." — Ben Stacy "At the end of the day, we created this event for our industry." — Will Renke "It's not that it's rigged, it's just it's a volume game." — Will Renke "The whole point of the event is to network together." — Will Renke "The only way you're going to get better on camera is just to put the content out there." — Ben Stacy