In honor of Father’s Day, we are thrilled to be able to share an exclusive interview with Daddy Clay of the hugely popular video blog DadLabs.   This revolutionary online community is “Taking Back Paternity” in an entirely new way:  through dialogue, creativity, humor and a passion that has been missing from fatherhood for a very long time.  If you haven’t had the chance to catch their weekly program, check the end of this post for a hilarious sampling that is sure to have you hooked.

Q:  What makes a bunch of talented, educated, technically savvy guys decide to go into dad blogging?

Daddy Clay:  We were all teachers and found the stresses of making the big dollars to be too stressful. So we went into web video.

Q:  Some have suggested that there’s a kind of fatherhood revolution going on right now–dads are both reclaiming and re-defining their traditional roles. Do you think that’s true?

Daddy Clay:  There’s no doubt that the American family is undergoing a fundamental reshaping. Studies and polls send an unmistakeable message: Men are participating in domestic life in a new way. Housework and childcare are on the to-do list of the modern dad.

Q:  What makes DadLabs such a destination site for parents?

Daddy Clay:  We have lots of resources (almost 550 videos at this point) and information, but more importantly, I think the dads are given a little more room to be irreverent than moms, so our site is a little funnier, a little less precious than the average parenting (read: mom) site.

Q:  What has been the most challenging part about establishing DadLabs?

Daddy Clay:  I think new businesses should maybe take on one giant social shift at a time.  We’re new media about new fatherhood. Sometimes it all feels just a little too “new.”

Q:  What has been the most rewarding part about establishing DadLabs?

Daddy Clay:  Conversations with other dads. Hearing people laugh at the live events we do.  The messages we get from viewers. And the free stuff we get sent doesn’t suck.

Q:  Video blogging is still gaining momentum, although you guys seem to have it down pretty good. How do you see video blogging evolving in the next couple years?

Daddy Clay:  The future is all about curation. Who can pluck the gems (like DadLabs) from the overwhelming stream of new media production, and make it available to an audience? Those folks will be the big winners. Content aggregators with a niche and a knack for marketing will carry the day on 2011.

Q:   What are the essential elements to a good video blog?

Daddy Clay:  Attractive female hosts.

Q:  What are the essential elements to a good dad blog?

Daddy Clay:  Honesty and/or wit. It’s probably easier for me to give examples. Check out Dadwagon.com or DadCentric.com

Q:  What advice would you give to new bloggers about how to build a successful blog, regardless of the subject matter?

Daddy Clay:  Depends on how you define successful. If you want money, pick a niche and imagine who the sponsors will be some day. Create 500 pieces of content before you contact them. If you want fame, use curse words and spill your guts.

Q:  What were the responses of your wives/partners when you told them about your intial plan for DadLabs?

Daddy Clay:  At first it was a fun little side project, shooting instructional DVDs on nights weekends and vacations. A little annoying perhaps (not to mention ironic) given that in the early years we all had new babies at home. Despite that, our wives were amazingly supportive, even during the painful and difficult time as we were deciding to leave established careers in education to dedicate ourselves to DadLabs full time. The jury is still out on whether it was the right thing to do, but the wives have been awesome throughout. In other words, we’re all still married.

Q:  What has been the most surprising part of becoming a father for each of you?

Daddy Clay:  I think I was surprised by how much I’ve laughed. Being a dad is funny –hilarious and absurd.

Q:  What do Dads really want for Father’s Day?

Daddy Clay:  I’ve often interviewed moms, asking the same question about Mother’s Day. The most frequent answer: a hand written and thoughtful card. This is not what dads want. At all. A gadget would be great. A steak dinner, awesome. Bottom line: lovin’.

Check out DadLabs each week on Thursdays at 1pm (CST) for their live broadcast, or search through their archives for plenty of excellent previous episodes.  You can also follow @DaddyClay on Twitter.