Earlier this week, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick sat down with TheGrio.com’s Mara Schiavocampo. In it, Vick–who served jail-time for running an illegal dogfighting ring–told Schiavocampo that he wants to own another dog someday:

“I would love to get another dog in the future,” he told theGrio. “I think it would be a big step for me in the rehabilitation process. I think just to have a pet in my household and to show people that I genuinely care, and my love, and my passion for animals.”

The interview went viral, spread across the web and on traditional mediums like cable news and sports radio.

There is a good chance that for many of those readers, viewers and listeners, it was the first time they had heard of TheGrio.com, which is a venture of NBC Universal and NBC News. For a new website, especially one with a unique perspective like theGrio, it is interviews like these that make brands.

Check out the full interview below.