Clay Millican can drive a 330-mph Top Fuel dragster with precision. But when it comes to pop culture, he recently discovered there was one gear he’d never shifted into — the “More Cowbell” skit from Saturday Night Live.
Millican, now as well known for his online presence as his on-track performances, admitted he had “no clue” what his followers meant when they flooded his YouTube comments with calls for “more cowbell.” To him, it just sounded like they were teasing the little bell jingle in his video intro.
“I see comments all the time on my YouTube videos, and it says, ‘More cowbell, more cowbell,’” Millican said. “I thought they were just making fun of the little riff I got on my YouTube intro. Apparently, I’m the only guy on the planet that didn’t know what that meant.”
For those who missed the reference, the “More Cowbell” sketch is one of the most iconic in Saturday Night Live history. Originally aired in 2000, it stars Will Ferrell as Gene Frenkle, a cowbell player in Blue Öyster Cult, and Christopher Walken as producer Bruce Dickinson. As the band records the hit song “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper,” Walken’s character keeps interrupting to say the now-famous line, “I got a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell!” Ferrell’s overzealous cowbell banging — and Walken’s deadpan encouragement — turned the bit into one of comedy’s most replayed moments.
So while the world laughs at “more cowbell,” Millican was unknowingly living the punchline.
The six-time IHRA Top Fuel champion has evolved into one of drag racing’s most visible personalities online. What began as a pandemic pastime has become a second career.
“I never meant to be a YouTuber,” Millican said. “That was purely boredom during COVID. I’ve had a YouTube channel forever, and there were years of nothing on it. I got bored during COVID — please don’t go watch those videos, they’re horrendous.”
That “boredom” now attracts serious numbers. His channel boasts more than 120,000 subscribers and racks up between 500,000 and 800,000 monthly views. “The watch hours are ridiculous,” Millican said. “Why people want to watch what I’m doing, I have no idea. I get it when I’m at the racetrack, but projects I got going at home — people seem to like watching it.”
His content often includes behind-the-scenes racing prep, garage projects, and road trips — but never inside his home. “That’s Donna’s only rule,” Millican said with a laugh. “She don’t want to be on camera, and she don’t want me YouTubing inside the house.”
Despite his growing reach, Millican resists one label: influencer. “I hate that term,” he said. “But, hey, if somebody wants to send me some money and call me an influencer, we’ll discuss that.”
The word may not sit comfortably with him, but Millican’s mix of humor, humility, and horsepower has built a following that extends beyond the dragstrip. Whether he’s wrenching on a project or talking about racing’s ups and downs, fans see a genuine version of himself — even when he’s catching up on pop-culture jokes two decades late.
After learning what “more cowbell” really means, Millican had to laugh at the irony. “I guess I’ve been giving people more cowbell all along,” he said. “They just had to tell me what song I was playing.”
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