The Real Reason You Don't Hear From Rob Dyrdek Anymore

Rob Dyrdek never wanted to follow the straight and narrow, and the past few decades of his career as a pro skater turned reality TV sensation turned creative entrepreneur have reflected that at every turn. After Dyrdek turned 16, he dropped out of high school and moved to Southern California to pursue his dream of becoming a pro skateboarder. He started experimenting with some business pursuits on the side, and years later, he took his life in a new direction when he made his reality TV debut alongside his best friend and bodyguard Christopher "Big Black" Boykin with the MTV series Rob & Big.

It's always seemed like Dyrdek was living the dream — who wouldn't want to make millions while competing in the sport they love and goofing off with their friends on camera? But in recent years, Dyrdek has taken a step back from the spotlight. Here's what he's been up to since scaling back on skateboarding, and why you won't catch him on reality TV anymore.

Rob Dyrdek and Bryiana Noelle Flores seem to be quite happy with parenthood, and in December 2017, the couple announced the arrival of their second child, a baby girl named Nala Ryan Dyrdek, and expressed their joy at giving Kodah a sibling and growing their family. Now 44, Dyrdek waited until later in life to start his family — for decades, his career was always at the forefront. But it seems like he was ready for a change, and he wanted to settle down and make the most of his time with his family. Celebs, they're just like us — even they feel their priorities changing as they get older and wiser.

Although Dyrdek's life is very different now, so far he seems to be nothing but thrilled about his new role as a father. When announcing the birth of his daughter, he shared on Instagram, "She is an angel from heaven. She is absolute perfection. She is our princess."

Dyrdek partnered with DC Shoes at the start of his pro skateboarding career in 1995 — the brand was actually called Droors Clothing back then. He was sponsored by DC until 2016, meaning that they heavily promoted Dyrdek and his career for two decades. Dyrdek was one of the first skateboarders that the brand actually sponsored, and they were one of his longest-running partnerships. For those who have been following Dyrdek's career since he was a teenager, it's hard to imagine him in the skateboarding world without being associated with DC.

While partnering with DC, Dyrdek began learning about shoe design and marketing, and he also got his first real taste of entrepreneurship. He helped the team at DC come up with ideas for their skate videos, which eventually helped him connect with the higher-ups at MTV. That led to meeting the cast and crew of Jackass, and eventually getting into talks about having his own reality show. Although Dyrdek and DC had a mutually beneficial partnership for over 20 years, things changed when their parent company, Quiksilver, filed for bankruptcy in September 2015. The following year, Quiksilver rejected Dyrdek's contract and prioritized forming partnerships with a different team of pro skateboarders instead.

So if Dyrdek isn't holding down his own reality TV series, and he isn't spending his days skateboarding, then what exactly is he working on right now? Currently, he spends most of his working hours immersed in his venture studio, the Dyrdek Machine. It serves as a legal holding company for all of Dyrdek's different ventures, and he describes it as part branding agency, part venture capital firm.

The Dyrdek Machine was officially launched in 2017, and it's basically a business incubator for new companies. He's typically involved with more than a dozen different companies to varying degrees, while working with others that are still in development. Although he's picky about the brands he takes on, he dabbles in a wide range of industries, and says he's particularly passionate about working with other entrepreneurs who get as excited about brand building.

When it comes to business, it seems like Dyrdek is willing to try anything once. However, he also has no shame about playing favorites, and there are certain brands that he's super enthusiastic about working with. For example, he's a co-founder of Black Feather Whiskey, a bourbon company based out of Salt Lake City, Utah. Their whiskey is currently available in Utah, Texas, California, Colorado, and Florida, and they have plans to continue expanding their sales operations across the country with Dyrdek's assistance and guidance.

Dyrdek is particularly excited about working with this particular company, and he maintains an involved advisory role in the business. Not every company he partners with gets the same treatment. "I am incredibly selective about the companies I partner with," Dyrdek told The Spirits Business. "However, Black Feather immediately rose above, due to the innovative and passionate group of individuals driving the brand that embody this 'do-or-dier' spirit."

You could say Rob Dyrdek definitely has his hands full these days — he's also getting into the supplement market and the growing plant-based snack niche. With so many people interested in "clean eating" and finding out exactly where their food comes from, it's only natural that an entrepreneur like Dyrdek would want to get in on this major trend. These markets are only expected to keep expanding, so his endeavors in this area definitely seem promising.

Dyrdek helped launch the supplement brand Momentous, which he's referred to as "the premium Ferrari of supplements." He's also working with Outstanding Foods, which is putting exclusively plant-based snacks on grocery store shelves. Their offerings include "pigless bacon chips." From whiskey to virtual reality to vitamins to snack food, Dyrdek is getting involved with all kinds of fascinating companies — the Dyrdek Machine just doesn't stop.

Overall, it seems Rob Dyrdek has allowed himself to fade out of the spotlight by choice. He clearly prefers to work behind the scenes rather than competing in front of crowds or performing for the camera. Although he has fun on the set of Ridiculousness, he isn't looking to be the star of the show anymore —he'd rather be the guy pulling the levers behind the curtain to make it all happen. "Anytime an opportunity presents itself, really what I'm trying to do is put an infrastructure around me to creatively operate at a very high level and be able to have the people who can execute the idea," Dyrdek told Forbes. "I operate best on big vision and creative detail."

If you still want to see Dyrdek on your TV screen these days, you'll just have to catch him hosting Ridiculousness. But who knows? He could also be the genius behind some of your new favorite brands and products. Nowadays, he seems to be doing a little bit of everything — and he's loving it.