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It’s make or break for McBee Farm and Cattle on the new docuseries The McBee Dynasty: Real American Cowboys. This new reality series centers on patriarch Steve McBee and his four sons Steven Jr. (Joe Millionaire: For Richer or Poorer), Jesse, Cole, and Brayden as they run the family biz together. A venture capital firm deal of more than $100 million could transform them into a billion-dollar business or their high-stakes approach could lead them into financial ruin under a mountain of debt.
Cameras also capture the dynamic between the brothers who are working to impress their dad in hopes they’ll be next in line to run the company. Outside farming and ranching, Steve, a recent divorcé, has gotten back in the saddle of dating. However, things get a little dicey with one of the women being Galyna, McBee’s CFO. And we haven’t even begun discussing his kids’ love lives.
Here Steve gets candid with us before the Yellowstone-like drama unfolds.
How did the opportunity for the show come about?
Steve McBee: My oldest son Steven was on a show Joe Millionaire For Richer or Poorer which aired during COVID. They brought the final six girls to the ranch. The production company thought we had so much going on that we were a walking reality show. Through the boys and all our personalities, they thought we would be perfect. It all just grew from there. We had four different production companies reach out. Myself not being familiar with anything like this, Steven vetted them. We ended up with Jeff Jenkins Productions to get the ball rolling.
Pictured: (l-r) Jesse McBee, Steven McBee Jr., Steve McBee, Cole McBee, James “Jimmy” McBee — (Photo by: Emerson Miller/PEACOCK)
Was the whole family on board or did it take some convincing for anyone?
My youngest son Brayden is still very reserved about it. He is in a young relationship. The girls can be very jealous. Steven started the conversation. When he talked to me about the opportunity, I had reservations, too. I deal with probably, no exaggeration, 30 different banks. I’m like, “What are my bankers going to see when they see me over here with my personal life?” I have been trying to keep a separation from that. I went through a divorce, which was the hardest thing. It’s one of the biggest challenges and hardest parts. Then the banks are getting on us anyway. I don’t want them looking at me just partying, dating women, and asking, “Is he focused on business? Should we really be loaning him $10 million?” I had reservations for sure.
You’re in a sticky situation where you made it business and personal with Galyna. Then you’re also dating someone else in Brooke, complicating matters further. Do we have a love triangle here?
I was really worried about looking like a complete jerk here. I’ve been very forthcoming with Galyna. I think she only hears what she likes to hear. I don’t think, I know. She is one of the best humans I’ve ever met in my life. I mean that sincerely. I will do anything for her. I told her I was married to the boys’ mom for 28 years. I had four boys, young men now, all from the same mother. To me, at this point in my life, after going through what I went through, I’m very adamant about not getting married again.
There is no purpose for it at my age. I told that to Galyna. We basically go through this once a week. I’ve been very open with her. She has very selective hearing. When she asks me if I’m talking to other girls, my answer is always the same. It’s either yes or don’t ask me a question you don’t want the answer to. One of the things I told myself when I got that divorce is I would never lie to another woman. If they ask me what the situation is, I will be very candid. I’ve been like that.
Pictured: (l-r) Steve McBee, Brooke — (Photo by: PEACOCK)
How would you feel you’ve grown from this experience?
Filming brings out a lot of conversations that are real and truthful. People tend to avoid tough conversations. I always say I embrace controversy in business. If someone is not doing a good job, there are those tough conversations. It seems like I’m the only one who has those with people. Whether it’s moving in a different direction or having someone not work in the company anymore, I’m the one who handles that. With my sons, when we’re cooking dinner, we have a lot of talks. A lot of the conversation is just circling around.
What the show did was bring these candid conversations. The crew is very good at drilling you with questions until you say what you really feel. I learned some things. Here my youngest son Brayden says he wasn’t that close with his dad. That broke my heart. Nothing means more to me than family. We want to have our kids to have more than us and want their lives to be easier than ours. Everyone makes mistakes, but hearing him say that and knowing that’s how he feels. There were a lot of very open and truthful conversations that were eye-opening from everyone’s perspective.
What do you want to say to viewers before they watch this?
Everyone has this perception that if we have all this land and nice cars we’re rich. Like most entrepreneurs who are trying to grow businesses, cash is always tight. When we say we bet the farm on this deal, it’s not figuratively. We started so many businesses and have a lot of opportunities, but to get to where we are profitable, cash-flowing businesses, the stress is real. I see all these people spend all this money to listen to Tony Robbins or whoever. These guys flying around making $100 million a year. You’re going to see this reality here. Real-life struggles, the real situations where we have 270 employees across our businesses. It’s all real. If you want to see what it takes to make businesses grow and the pressures. This is the most realistic reality show someone can watch because it’s happening at a real-time speed.
The McBee Dynasty: Real American Cowboys, Series Premiere, Monday, March 11, 11/10c, USA Network
Stream all 10 episodes of the series on Peacock starting March 11