Club 520 Podcast - Club 520 - Booker T on WILD Hulk Hogan moment, Steve Austin supermarket brawl, WrestleMania

Episode Date: April 21, 2025

On the Season 3, Episode 52 of Club 520, six-time world champion and legendary WWE wrestler, Booker T, joins Jeff Teague and the squad LIVE FROM THE MAIN STAGE at WWE World in Las Vegas for WrestleMania 41. Booker T talks about his viral moment calling out Hulk Hogan and his take on the beef between the two of them. B Hen asks Booker T about him recently being in a clip with Sexyy Red, and how he’s been changing with the times. And years after the epic supermarket fight with Steve Austin, Booker T admits he watched it for the FIRST TIME just six months ago. Plus, don’t miss Booker talk about his time in the WWE’s LFG show, losing to Triple H, his wrestling origin story, and so much more! #Volume #ClubSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. able to change or grow through the thing that you refuse to identify. The thing that you refuse to say, hey, this is my mountain. This is the struggle. Listen to Made for This Mountain on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops. They get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun?

Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on good company. The podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next.

In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi. We dive into the competitive world of streaming. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. There are so many stories out there. And if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Listen to Good Company on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott.

And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Last year, a lot of the problems of the drug war. This year, a lot of the biggest names in music and sports. This kind of starts that a little bit, man. We met them at their homes. We met them at the recording studios. Stories matter and it brings a face to them. It makes it real.

It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Volume. WWE world, please welcome to the stage. Your hosts, Jeff Teague, DJ's going on? How y'all doing? We go by the name of Club 520. We come from Indianapolis, Indiana. We out here in Vegas with it. WWE World. WrestleMania, man. It's a blessing to be out here, man. I got my same Vegas with it. WWE World. WrestleMania, man. It's a blessing to be out here, man.

I got my same co-host with me to my far left. I got my dog, Bishop B. Henn out the prayer leaves. How you doing, Nasty? What's up, baby? What's up, WrestleMania, Las Vegas? Yes, sir. See my guys out there.

What's up, boy? For sure, we locked in to my far right. We got my dog, Young Nacho, Young T. How you doing, brother? I'm cooling, bro. We got my dog, Young Nacho. Young T, how you doing, brother? I'm cooling, bro. Happy to be here, man. I'm excited. We got a great show for you guys.

Everything should be lit. Man, we are excited, man. Shout out to Tom for providing us this wonderful opportunity, man. But listen, man, it ain't just us. We got a wonderful guest for y'all, man. It's the Tom. One of the best to ever do it. Hall of Fame.

One of the best. Booker T, man. Bring him on out. Can you dig it, sucker? Yeah. Yeah. Can you dig it, sucker? Come on, man.

You hear the chants five times, five times, five times. Feels good. Feels damn good. Yes, sir. Man, first and foremost, we want to say thank you, man. We are honored to have a legend in our presence, man, on our platform. We talk about you so much, especially Young Nacho over here, man. So for you to be up here with us is a blessing, man. We appreciate you sliding on us, man.

Already, dog, already. It's WrestleMania. Happy Mania, everybody. Yes, sir. Oh, yes, man? Already, dog. Already. It's WrestleMania. Happy Mania, everybody. Yes, sir. Oh, yes, man. A consummate professional, man. But listen, man, we're going to start

the episode off right, man. Shout out to Chum. It's called Making the Milestones. Now, listen, we know you're very successful, man. You've done a lot of things

in your career. But I want to ask you, what's that first time where you were just like, all right, I made it? Maybe nothing crazy. Maybe not the home or the house, but it's just just like all right i made it maybe nothing crazy maybe not the home or the house but it's just like all right i'm established now no i never really thought about it like that uh but i remember um i think you know it was actually

like in 1991 actually it was when i first got started and i I started in this company called the Global Wrestling Federation. And I was on ESPN, you know, every week on television. But I was only making like a hundred bucks, you know, to do the show. And I remember going to the Virgin Islands and everybody, all the brothers on the island knew me.

I was like, oh shit, I'm here, you know what I mean? What's up, Quinn? Exactly. You know what I mean? I was like, I think maybe I need to quit my job. You know, I was working at this warehouse, and I was like, maybe I need to quit my job and really, really pursue professional wrestling.

And I think that's when the light bulb really went off. Man, that is dope, man. And listen, man, we know everything is expensive nowadays. Prices are going up for everything. But listen, these are some of the things that Chomp can benefit from you to help you with a credit card, secure credit card for sure. Listen, all you got to do is tap in with this because you can help you plan for some of those vacations

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Man, build that credit up and get it right so you can go on a trip like Booker T. You feel me? Use it for all your everyday purchases. Start towards your financial success, financial goals with Chime Secure Credit Card. Man, tap in. Make some noise for Chime one time for bringing us out here. So.

And y'all know we got to read these declaimers to make sure y'all don't get no troubles with them. Listen, the Chime Credit Card filter is Visa Credit Card is issued by the Bank Corp.

N.A. or Shrive Bank N.A. Spot me eligibility requirements and overdraft limits apply. Chime credit account required to apply out of the network ATM withdrawal. Y'all know them

ATM fees get crazy. Yeah, check on those as well. Time depends on submission of payment file. Late payment may negatively impact your credit score. Results may vary. Go to Chime.com slash disclosures for full detail. One more time for Chime, man. Go pay the bills, man.

Go to Bob, baby. I got a question. What's your question, Doug? Man, where's your first name come from? Blackstone, bro. Oh, man where'd your first name come from? Black snow, bro. Oh man. Black snow, man. Actually,

uh, I went to this, uh, uh, hotel downtown, uh, the W hotel. I think it was downtown Houston.

And, um, I went to go see the spoken word and, um, it was just brother and his name was black snow. Yeah. And he did this awesome, awesome,

um, poem. And, did this awesome, awesome poem. And it was about Miss Jackson and her three boys. Okay. And I was so enthralled with this dude, man, because he totally captured me. And I say, man, one day I got to bring Black Snow to the big stage. You know what I mean?

So that's all it was. I was just paying homage to a brother who inspired me man okay love bro hey man that's fire Booker T orders you was woke early on big dog I also heard you

was a drum major too man in high school bro yeah man I was a dancer big stepper I was a dancer man I never played sports or anything like that

and uh but I used to be you know part of a crew we used to be called the know, part of a crew. We used to be called the Remote Controls. We was bad, man. We was bad.

Excuse me? That's a hell of a name, too. Yeah, right. A hell of a name. That's when the Remote Control first came out. What year was it? Hold on, Book.

What year was it? We ain't gonna even talk about it. What year was that? Black Snow, Remote Control Crew. Y'all got some names for y'all in this book. No, man. You know, but yeah, I was a Trump major in school, man. I was kind of like a nerd.

I used to make my own clothes and stuff like that. You know, but kind of like scoped me into the person I am today, though. Oh, okay. That's where the Spinneroonie come from. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I was breakdancing on my auntie's front porch, man. We had to cardboard box, man. It used to be cold out there.

I remember, that's what I remember most about, you know, the Spinneroonie. Those cold, cold nights. You know, working, trying to figure it out on the patio. Because we couldn't do it in the house, you know, on the patio, man. But, no, man, great memories. What music was y'all dancing to? figure it out on the patio because we couldn't do it in the house you know the patio man but uh no man great memories what music was y'all dancing to um uh craftwork man craftwork numbers

okay that's the song called numbers was one of the hottest songs back in the day this group called craftwork i think that was from japan and uh bad bad man so if y'all ever get a chance, check out some Kraftwerk. You millennials. You millennials. All right. Listen, we got a lot of questions about your origins, but I think for B.H.M., myself and T,

and probably the fans as well, we have one question that we got to start off with. Come on, man. Hulk Hogan. We coming for you. Man, what happened right there iconic moment in wrestling history

what happened right there man hey man I'm from the neighborhood I'm from the neighborhood and that's a word that that you know just to educate just to educate everybody

that's a word in my neighborhood that was used on a regular basis. But I can tell you, other than that one moment, that's the only time that any of my peers has ever heard me say that word. And the reason why I feel like that was perhaps the most memorable moment in my career from a negative standpoint, because I got so many young black kids looking up to me.

And if they see Booker T, they say if Booker T can say that word, it's cool for them to say it. And my thing is with young black kids, i always try to teach them that you got to know how to change your levels you know what i mean when you're going for a job interview you got to know how to conduct yourself when you're on television in front of millions of people you got to know how to conduct yourself and for me that word i feel like uh should be eradicated from all of our our vocabularies as black folk. Because we are the only ones that look at ourselves and look down on ourselves. That's why I feel like that moment for me was one of the worst moments in my career.

Because so many young black kids, as well as white kids, Mexican kids, Bad Bunny, Bad Bunny. You know, as a kid, Mexican kids, Bad Bunny, Bad Bunny, you know, as a kid, hooked up to Booker T. So I just want to make sure I represent properly. Most definitely. Now it's interesting

that you say that because, you know what I'm saying, a lot of us love that moment obviously just because we've all been there from a mental standpoint and just seeing it happen is like that.

No doubt. But then we look at other situations like with Kirk Angle and saying his preferred choice of a name, saying, I know you guys revere that

but that's something that hurts me. So for here you said it was like you know yeah you guys love that but that's like not one of my proudest moments. That's just an interesting

perspective from that situation for sure. I mean like I said I'm from the neighborhood. Yes sir. But like I said I wouldn't have made it this far in this business.

35 years guys. Make some noise for that. 35 years. I know I still noise for that. 35 years. I know I still look like I'm in my 30s. I get it. He only 35. It's the hair color.

I'm 35. You've been in the business since I was a kid. Exactly my point. But you don't make it that far by osmosis. You don't make it that far by slipping on a banana peel.

I mean, preparation is the only luck you're going to have in life, by osmosis. You don't make it that far by slipping on a banana peel. I mean, preparation is the only luck you're going to have in life, let alone this business. No, for sure. But we got to take it back.

So I'm a fan fan. I've always watched some wrestling since I was a little kid and I remember you back in the WCW days and I fell in love with you with Harlem Heat

and Stevie Ray. You and your brother, y'all came out with that theme song and that music. And like you said, as a young black kid, I seen y'all on TV and I'm like, Oh shit. Like they wrestle.

Like, yeah. Yeah. That moment right there made me fall in love with wrestling. So when they said we had a Booker T on the show, I'm like, nah, he was,

I was fanned out and they make fun of me cause I lift weights and he called me Booker T on the show, I'm like, nah, I was fanned out. And they make fun of me because I lift weights and he called me Booker T. Nah, man, representation, man, is very, very important. You know, when I was coming up, I got a chance to watch J.Y.D., the Junkyard Dog. He was my guy that I looked at and said, man,

I want to be like that dude, man. I want to represent like that dude. And for me and my brother, we got that chance. We say, let's just get our foot in the door. That's the only thing we need. Just let us get our foot in the door and we'll do the rest. And man, we had a hell of a run. Ten-time WCW

Tag Team Champions along with our sister Sherri Martell. Man, and we beat the hell out of Buff Bagwell and the Patriots. The Nasty Boys. The Steiners. Man, we beat the hell out of Buff Bagwell and the Patriots. The Nasty Boys, the Steiners. Man, we beat the hell out of all those guys, man. And it felt damn good being able to go out there and, you know,

put ourselves in a position where, like, young people like yourself was watching us, but so many others around the world to inspire, to be able to inspire, to be able to be the best that you possibly can be in this world, man. But, no, I appreciate that. Did you introduce your brother to wrestling? No, no, my brother introduced me to wrestling, actually. I came home, everybody know my story.

I came home from prison, but my brother, he always wanted to be a wrestler. And he knew this guy opening a wrestling school a guy by the name of Ivan Pusky who was a WWE Hall of Famer as well and he was like hey man you want to go to this wrestling school

and I was like man I'd love to but it was $3,000 and I didn't have the money to go to the school and my boss that I was working for sponsored me to go to the school and my brother and I didn't have the money to go to the school and my boss that I was working for sponsored me to go to the school. And my brother and I, we went at the same time, but I always say that I'm living my brother's dream. This is something my brother wanted to do.

And then my brother had a tryout and I just followed my brother to the tryout. And one of the guys by the name of Hot Stuff, Eddie Gilbert was there and he said, who's this guy? And he goes, that's my brother. Is he a worker? He goes, yes, but we're looking for a tag team. Boom! There it is. The beginning of the

M&E experience which came out later on to become the Harlem Heat. Yeah, man. Great time. Yeah. From the play of games all the way to the finals. Now is the time to back your favorite players and teams as they chase score. Ready to place your first bet? Download DraftKings

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This is the thing that's in front of me. You can't make that mountain move without actually diving into that. May is Mental Health Awareness Month, a time to conquer the things that once felt impossible and step boldly into the best version of yourself to awaken the unstoppable strength that's inside of us all. So tune into the podcast, focus on your emotional well-being, and climb your personal mountain. Because it's impossible for you to be the most authentic you.

It's impossible for you to love you fully if all you're doing is living to please people. Your mountain is that. Listen to Made for This Mountain on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley

comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st

and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glod. And this is season two of the War on Drugs Podcast. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players

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We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real.

It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on good company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming, how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen.

What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there. And if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, man?

You gotta know their first name, though. What? Ebony. Ebony Experience, man. The what? The Ebony Experience. Bad, man. Booker T and Stevie Ray.

The Ebony Experience. That's just like the remote controls, man. That's what I'm saying. That's elevated. You know why we would say the Ebony Experience? It was this black wrestler back in the day. He used to wear a mask, and his name was Mr. Ebony. And he used to get

his ass whooped every time. We say, we gonna represent for Mr. Ebony properly. And that became the Ebony experience.

All right, that's hard. Because I got something called the Hendrix experience. That's all. So we want him the same. All right. That might be two different programs, though.

Definitely two different. Word. Most definitely. Listen, man, so many questions about historic career. I know we talked about this. When you kind of had first transitioned over from WCW to WWE, now you're part of one of the most historic matches. We see a lot of these people on Instagram now.

They're doing the independent wrestling type situation where they're out in the airport with it. They're out in the most historic matches. And we see a lot of these people on Instagram now, they doing like the independent wrestling type situation where they out in the airport with it, they out in the streets with it, but y'all was one of the first to go to the supermarket with it. Yeah, yeah. Please talk to them about that historic match situation, man. Nah, man. The grocery store fight with Steve Austin.

You know, it was an iconic moment. I never imagined it, you know, weathering the storm and, you know, lasting more than 20 years. I never imagined that or anything. Steve and I, we were just going out and creating, you know, work, creating some magic and doing what we do best. And that's entertain the fans. At that point in time, that was called the payoff, which it was time for me to put Steve Austin in the proper position

and for me to do it to the best of my ability. I watched that video literally six months ago for the first time. Wow. All right? Six months ago,

the first time I watched the Stone Cold Steve Austin and Booker T in the grocery store. And I swear to God, I cried real tears from the beginning of it to the end because it was that damn funny. I did some of my best work because I was crying. I was begging. I was bargaining. I was pleading. I was doing everything to get out of that ass whooping. But at the end of it, man, it was some really, really beautiful work

and one of WWE's most iconic moments to where they play it every year around this time. Right. I know we skipped over to WWE, but I like to take it back to WCW when you actually won the championship. And I know it was over to WWE, but I like to take it back to WCW when you actually won the championship. And I know it was in a controversial way with Vince Russo and Hulk Hogan when they did what they did. But Jeff Jarrett came out and lay down. But then you fought later that night and won the championship.

Like, what was that moment for you? You know, that that night. With when I won the championship. You know, the stuff went down with Hulk Hogan and Vince Russo. I really feel like if that wouldn't have happened, my championship win wouldn't have been as big. I think I've really needed all of that chaos in order for people to really understand what was really, really going on when I finally won the championship. But it was a great moment. It was a great moment. I had about literally five to ten minutes to prepare

for winning the World Heavyweight Championship my first time. But I thank Jeff Jarrett more than anything. I thank Jeff Jarrett because, man, he was such a professional. And he went out there and made me feel so comfortable and put me in the perfect position to go out there and become the World Heavyweight Champion for the first time. If it wasn't for Jeff Jarrett, I don't know if it would have

ever happened. So I really thank that dude, man. But what was going through my mind was I tell you it was a surreal moment because winning the World Heavyweight Championship was a moment that I never thought about. I never put myself in that position.

I always just wanted to be the best damn wrestler in that locker room. I always used to tell the guys, go follow that. You know what I mean? I'm top five in the world. That's what I used to say. And then when it came time for me

to actually win it, I questioned myself because I wondered if the fans would actually, you know, take me being in that position as world heavyweight champion. And I remember winning that night and I went to my hotel room and I sat on the edge of my bed for

I don't know, maybe an hour. And I didn't even go out and I didn't party or anything. I didn't have one drink that night. And I went to sleep and I woke up the next morning. I had TV for Nitro. And man, I realized everybody had partied for me that night. Everybody was so freaking glad I won the World Heavyweight Championship. And man, that really put a stamp of approval

on that moment for me. It really did. For sure. You talk about it being one of the most celebrated wrestlers around, not even from the fans who obviously love you, but from your peers. Because what people don't know is

that's a grind. If you could, could you tell us what a day in the life as a professional wrestler is like? You know, well, actually, it's a grind. A day is really hard to explain. Maybe say years. I never, like throughout my whole wrestling career,

every time I was watching football on sunday it was in an arena it was never at home all right so i was on the road constantly i remember when i when i joined uh and signed with wwe i used to have a boat in wcw and I used to go on my boat every weekend. I'd be out fishing, hanging out, drinking a beer, having fun. Then I signed with WWE. And I worked, grind, grind.

And one day I went to go fishing on my boat. All right? So I had to go get a new sticker put on my boat. And I realized it was 2005, four years later. That's how much I had been working. I hadn't been out on my boat in four years. So it's a grind. It's a constant grind.

You got to have blinders on. It's one of those, when you hear no days off, That's a true statement. I remember watching the documentary with Jake the Snake Roberts, Beyond the Mat. And he said, you know, when you signed that WWE contract, he was talking to his daughter. He said, when you signed that WWE contract, baby, you are obligated to work every day. That's the grind. So for

me, I never took any vacations or anything like that throughout my career. My wife and I, we got married. I didn't take a honeymoon. All of that stuff came later. It was all about getting through this thing, finishing it properly, and getting

to the other side and then enjoying the fruits of the labor like I'm doing right now. I'm living my best life. Just turned 60. And I feel good. Happy belated, bro. Looking good.

That's something you can relate to, Jeff. Obviously, with being a professional athlete, y'all schedules are so crazy. People don't understand the sacrifice that goes into that for your craft yeah you definitely sacrifice a lot especially your family time but it's nowhere near being a wrestler i mean like he said it's every single day we get almost six five to six months off in the summer to have that time to spend with your family and stuff like that but for him to do it all year around and for the fans we really appreciate it

because we're fans we love it but man that's unbelievable no way in hell i could do it well it's you know it's it's about managing down that time too because you know it's not a matter of if you're gonna get hurt it's just a matter of when you know so for me i always thought about you know working a certain way on the house show working a certain way on tv overseas you, working a certain way on TV overseas, you know what I mean? Pay-per-view. Everything was different.

Structuring, you know, the workouts, you know, like on the road, I would just do push-ups in the rubber bed. A lot of baby oil. No diddy. No diddy. No diddy, man. Come on now.

Come on, Booker C. Hey, why y'all clapping for Baby Boy? Y'all out of pocket. My fault. No, no. My fault, too. No doubt. What hobbies you got now, though, post-retirement, man?

What you pick up? What you doing to entertain yourself now? Retirement. Retirement? Retirement? He's talking about retirement. He ain't retiring. He ain't retiring. I'm talking about

from the ring, though. I'm sure you got a little bit more down. I just had a match like two months ago. I just beat the hell out of Zillow 5-2. The next big star

coming up in this business. Are you wrestling? Nah, I'm busy with my wrestling school, Reality of Wrestling. If you guys haven't tapped in to Reality of Wrestling Make sure you subscribe You know what I mean

Click, you know, all that stuff We're trying to get up to a million YouTube subscribers Right now we're at 850,000 subscribers But I'm working with my own television show Working with my students I've had my school now for 20 years. Wow. Congratulations.

I love playing golf. You know what I mean? Getting out on the golf course, you know, hitting the links, you know, just to, you know, stay stress-free more than anything. Staying in the gym, that's one of my all-time hobbies that I hope to have as long as I live. I ask God, you know, just give me my, give me my health more than anything. I don't ask for money, you know, man, make the money.

You know what I mean? Just give me my health and I'll get the work done. I ask God, you know, just let me finish my work, you know, and then we'll meet in the middle. You know what I mean? So, but nah, man, I'm all about, you know, retirement is not something I think about. You know, when I retire, I think I'll be six feet under. It's about, you know, staying on the grind. It's about what's next. It's not about the past.

You know what I mean? It's truly about the future and what's next, you know? So I'm thinking about my 10-year plan, man. I'm working on my 10-year plan. What's going to happen over these next 10 years? What can I create over these next 10 years? More than anything. Now, who does Booker T model his golf game after?

Um, probably, uh, definitely not a Tiger Woods or anything like that. I'm way on the top. I'm way down. All right. All right. I'm way on the down. I'm way down here. All right. Tiger and Charles Barkley. I would say Charles Barkley. Ain't that far down. I'm in the middle.

I'm in the middle somewhere. It's Charles and Tiger. I'm in the middle. Nah, I wanted to ask. Like I said, I'm a huge fan your first Wrestlemania moment when you came over from WCW and you had your chance

to be at Wrestlemania we here Wrestlemania weekend what was your first moment like man it was it was surreal being in Canada going against edge um i remember uh walking out the curtain and i mean before i walked out to kurt i remember undertaker he was sitting in what we

call the gorilla position they say make sure you take it all in and i really didn't think about that before he said that and then i walked out on stage and I stopped and I just looked around. It was like 70,000 people. And I was like, wow, man, this is freaking, this is awesome. Because you got to think about it, 70,000 people coming to see

that 20 by 20 square foot. That's all, that's it. That's it. You know what I mean? It's not a football field or anything like that. It's 20 by 20. And for them to come

to see you, the ones that have those signs up, you know what I mean? It's awesome. It's the most, you know, adrenaline rush you're ever going to have. Nothing is ever going to top that moment. So get that out of your head

when it's all over with. Take it and savor that moment and hopefully you'll get a few more of those moments, you know? And for me, you know, I definitely got a chance

to have many more of those WrestleMania moments. But for young people that's getting into this business, that's, you know, that think about it and wonder about it, I say, man,

go out there and work your ass off to really make it happen, to have that WrestleMania moment at least just one time. Trust me, Ed, something you'll remember for the rest of your life. All right, definitely. I ain't going to lie, I'm still mad. I know you won a chip before here.

You became champion one time, but at WrestleMania when you fought Triple H, you were so over. Like, you was champion one time, but at WrestleMania, when you fought Triple H, you were so over. Like, you was supposed to be the champion that night. You know what? A lot of... So many people. A lot of office guys told me,

man, you should have won that night. I thought you should have won. You know what I mean? And with the angle, yeah, perhaps I should have won that night. For sure. You know... But honestly, I never really

I never really I never really lost any sleep over it or anything like that. I always looked at wrestling a certain way. I always looked at it as a performance. I always say, guys, I always say,

if they give me that damn check every time, I'll take the hill. Okay. Because that was a monster check, man. You feel me? Hey, he took the sunglasses off. That's real. But I need that chicken. Run that back for sure. I feel that chicken. Run that bag for sure.

I feel that. I definitely feel that. All right, but you did win the championship. No, but I tell you what, I left everything in the ring that night.

No, you did. I went out and performed my ass off. I didn't win, but I still won. I still won because I'm a kid. I'm a kid from South Park, Texas who dropped out of school in the

10th grade, went to prison. Got locked up. Came out and found myself in the main event of WrestleMania. All right? That's a win. That's a win.

Any way you look at it, that's a win. That's a win. Nah, for sure. Any way you look at it. Any way you look at it, that's a win. Nah, for sure. That's definitely a win. But you did win the championship and you won it in my hometown,

Indianapolis, Indiana. I happened to be watching, but I was sick. I couldn't be there, but shout out to Chime. I'm able to be at WrestleMania now, but I was mad

I couldn't be there for the Great American Bash, but I'm glad you won that championship. It was overdue for us, WWE fans, Booker T fans. I was mad I couldn't be there for the Great American Bash, but I'm glad you won that championship. It was overdue for us WWE fans, Booker T fans. I was excited. Glad you had that moment. What was that like? You just said something

earlier, too. You said at WrestleMania 19 against Hunter, you said, I was over. I should have won. Well, shit. In 2006, I was way more over the edge bro King Booker

King Booker I mean come on I mean the greatest king of them all the most revered king of them all you know what man

that was that was like some of the best time the best time in my wrestling career with my lovely queen Charmelle at at my side, where she actually won Miss Black America in Indianapolis, Indiana as well.

That was a moment for us, man. Rey Mysterio, I give him big props, man, because what a worker. What a worker, man. I couldn't have did it without him. But that moment, that was my crowning moment. That was the moment for me that really put the icing on the cake as far as my career goes. Made for This Mountain is a podcast that exists to empower listeners to rise above their struggles, break free from the chains of trauma, and silence the negative voices that have kept them small.

Through raw conversations, real stories, and actionable guidance, you can learn to face the mountain that is in front of you. You will never be able to change or grow through the thing that you refuse to identify. The thing that you refuse to say, hey, this is my mountain. This is the struggle. This is the thing that's in front of me. You can't make that mountain move without actually diving into that. May is Mental Health Awareness Month,

a time to conquer the things that once felt impossible and step boldly into the best version of yourself to awaken the unstoppable strength that's inside of us all. So tune into the podcast, focus on your emotional well-being, and climb your personal mountain. Because it's impossible for you to be the most authentic you. It's impossible for you to love you fully if all you're doing is living to

please people. Your mountain is that. Listen to Made for This Mountain on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun?

Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced

it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened

when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts.

I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glod. And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives.

This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug ban. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. Got B-Real from Cypress Hill.

NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working and we need to change things. Enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does.

It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on good company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything The podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary.

We dive into the competitive world of streaming, how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Get a front-row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets.

Listen to Good Company on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I don't know if you guys know the stats or anything like that, but out of the history and the annals of times, as far as the King of the Ring tournament, I'm the only King to ever win the heavyweight championship. I'm the only one. And that wasn't by accident or anything like that. That was by design. I said, after King, Booker,

they're going to have to break the damn mode because there'll never be another King like me ever again. And I proved that. I proved that. I proved that. So, nah, man, it was a great time in my career. I wouldn't change it for anything.

Most definitely. I want to ask you this question because, you know, as a fan, we see everybody about to come out. First thing we do, we hear that music. How did you settle on your theme music? Because we all know, obviously, when you came out, you know what I'm saying, we got the flares going, everybody geeked

about it. What's that moment you were just like, nah, this is it. This is what I'm about to pull up to work every day with. I remember back in 91, late 91, when they first moved. There it is right there, too. When they first approached us with this sound right here, it was just out of an abundance of music

that we just had to pick from. And as soon as we heard it, man, I was like, man, that's it. That's the song. Just because I wouldn't... It's very, very important as far as the music you have, your name,

such as Booker T and Stevie Ray, championship names, championship names. We wanted championship music as well. And I wanted everybody, all of the fans, to have an experience when they heard that music.

And that music was so unique. It wasn't rap. You know what I mean? It had its own feel, its own flavor. And when you heard it, you go, oh, man, here come them boys. And they about to come out here and do some work. You know, so now, man, that music still to this day, man, it hypes me up, man. My wife got that

on her phone so I gotta hear it every day you know but it's awesome it really is that's why I say every time you call

wifey that's what you hear that's tight but what was it you dig it sucka the only thing I hear in my house what was it like though

when you changed it when you came King Booker well nah the royal music it was, when you changed it, when you came King Booker? Well, no, the royal music, it was majestic, man. I couldn't even call myself Booker T. I had to be King Booker. It had to be royal.

It had to be majestic. When I became King Booker, I had to believe it. I had to believe it 100%. I had to believe that somebody I had to believe it at 100%. I had to believe that, like, somebody hit me on the head, and I had amnesia and really woke up believing that I was a king. For two years,

for two years, after I was King Booker, I could go to a restaurant and I would never pay for a meal. I would never pay for a drink because somebody would say, King Booker, please let me get that for you.

You know, every time, I still to this day. I'm about to change my name. Right, that's far. That's far. You know, so, no, man,

it was so cool playing that role. Plus, I was thinking about Hollywood at that time and I was thinking about, man, some director, some producer,

they got to be watching this. They got to be seeing it. Oh, man, you know, this is, they got to be watching this. They got to be seeing it. Oh, man, you know, this is some great work. What's your most memorable moment in the ring with your brother? Man, most memorable moment with my brother,

along with Sister Sherry, would be Sturgis, South Dakota, against the Steiner brothers. And the reason why, we was the only black guys in Sturgis, South Dakota. It was crazy. It was the stupidest thing in the world.

I kept asking myself, how did I get here? It was like freaking being in the Wizard of Oz. I'm serious. It was that crazy. Because, like I said, we was the only brothers there who was going against the Steiner brothers. And circled around the ring. Everybody was on motorcycles.

And they rode out on their Harleys. And we beat the hell out of the Steiner brothers. We almost started a riot, man. They started throwing rocks at us, man. And the security had to get us out of there. I remember telling the fans, like I say, it was nothing but bikers. And I remember getting the microphone and I said, listen, I don't like rednecks. You people are rednecks.

Booker, you out of pocket. You out of pocket. Well, you was asking for it, Booker. Man, what? I had to act tough. Just to see if it would work. I swear to God. I don't know what I was thinking.

I really don't. But it worked. Got those guys that were so riled up, man. It made that match so freaking awesome. Just getting out of there was the problem. I can't imagine. The real match happened after the match. For sure.

I'm sure they didn't pick up the tag in here. Now, I want to ask you this question, obviously, with the wonderful progression. Listen, we live at WWE World. What's it like

as you see the progression with the company and then you start seeing yourself getting branded so many different places, especially like with video games? I know for all those going up playing video games,

like, it's some classic wrestling games. What's that like when you were part of that now? Because now you got a whole different market. Nah, Like, it's some classic wrestling games. What's that like when you were part of that now? Because now you got a whole different market. Nah, man, it's awesome. You know, seeing how far

we've come, especially from a video game perspective. You know, I was, I ran into a guy last night who was like, man, I used to play you in a video game, man.

You know, it was just so cool seeing that. I just got an email just last week, you know, about Pratt being a voice, you know, from a competition perspective. So never in a million years, just like from an action figure. You know what I mean? I remember my first action figure.

It was like a cutout, you know, just like a plastic cutout. You know, I thought it was so friggin awesome. They have something like that. And now I got maybe, you know, 40 action figures, 40 now i got maybe you know 40 action figures 40 different action figures you know so nah man to see the progression of wwe you know just from a talent perspective it's been like so freaking awesome for me having a a handed you know working with a lot of that talent and you know trying to put a little bit of light like on trick williams you know working with trick williams like you know get a little beat you know you know ad libs you know when he come out you know, get a little beat, you know, ad-libs, you know,

when he come out, you know, to add a little bit. You know, Stephanie McKeer, she's doing so awesome, but with a little ad-lib on some of her stuff. But, no, seeing the growth, man, of these young guys and the talent, you know, it's been awesome, especially in NXT, with Shawn Michaels and his team, working with that next generation of stars. Man, I'm so living my best life right now

because I think teaching is like my wheelhouse. You know, coaching is like my wheelhouse. I love, you know, being able to work with the young guys and try to get their full potential out of them. You know what I mean? So for me, man, awesome, awesome time right now. Wouldn't change for anything most definitely especially when you talk about the rw work like you say using all your

experience with me and being able to pour it back into the next generation it's definitely dope to see because like yeah a lot of people who get older in the situation they're like i don't care you can tell your energy is really still there for those people you know what uh when i started my wrestling school 20 years ago i wouldn't hire hire nothing but young kids. I'm the oldest guy on my crew by design because they give me a lot of energy. I got a lot of young kids and

just say, for instance, you get some bad apple, some old head in there that want to tell some stories from back in the day that's just bitter from the business, the way it treated them. We create new stories. This is a different journey. This is the way you guys are going to remember it.

So for me, having a part in that is so freaking awesome. My right-hand man at Reality of Wrestling started with me when he was 18 years old. And now he runs Reality of Wrestling. My partner, Brad Gilmore, on my Hall of Fame show, my podcast, started

with me when he was 18 years old. Now he's 33 years old, a grown man, graduated from college. These guys are going to take over the reality of wrestling one day. Long after I'm gone over reality of wrestling one day. You know, long after I'm gone, reality of wrestling is still going to be here,

all due to the way, you know, we've created it. You know, the young guy going to learn from this guy, and he's going to keep passing it on and keep passing it on. And forevermore, reality of wrestling is going to be a staple here, hopefully, on this earth. Just because, man, for me, it's all about the young guys. I've had my time to shine.

But the thing is, I'm still having fun. I'm still having fun. One of my kids, he went to Japan last year. It was his first trip to Japan, and I was able to help facilitate that. Just to think, from my perspective, man, he's going to be running around

Roppongi, you know what I mean? He's going to be at the Kiyo Plaza. He's going to go to the Hard Rock, you know what I mean? He's going to get on that bus and go around, just like I did. And see the same things I did back... This life don't stop, man. It don't stop. It keeps

going. And for me, to be able to pass it on, man. It don't stop. It keeps going. And for me to be able to, you know, pass it on, man. It's awesome. You know what's so dope about this? Because like, even now we got my man B. Hinn. He now tapped into the restlessly heavy. Man, when he saw you with Sexy Red, man. Oh, man. That's what got me back into it.

I had sent it to Jeff. I'm like, nah. He got sexy after Booker clowned it. That's why I thought you retired. I thought you was done. After if it was Jeff. I'm like, nah, he got sexy after Booker clowned it. That's why I thought you retired. I thought you was done. After Fulu was sexy. How was that, man? Oh, man, I'm telling you, man. I told my wife, I'm just acting.

So that's my boy right there. Like, I literally call Jeff Booker T all the time, bro. So to see you do that, bro, that really turned me on for real. That showed me that you still tapped into the youth. Oh, man. If you don't know how to change all the time, bro. So to see you do that, bro, that really turned me up for real. That showed me that you still tapped into the youth. Oh, man. If you don't know how to change

with the times, the times will truly pass you by. You know what I mean? So for me, it's all about... I quoted... I quoted Lil Baby last week. What you saying?

I don't call myself a goat. I leave that up to the people. That's a bar. That is a bar. That's a bar. That's a bar, boy. I'm scared because he got a lot of lyrics. I don't know if you can repeat.

No, my boy. He was like, you just quoted little baby. That's hard, man. That's hard. And I know the kids that you're around and the youth, like, appreciate that, though,

that you can still be relatable to them, too. You know, you know why, man? It ain't about me. It really isn't. I swear, I love what I do. I love who I am. I love, you know, everything about what's going on, but it ain't about me, man.

I've had my time, you know, and for me to see the young guys doing it, but for me to still be here, I did not expect to still be doing this 35 years later. I did. I thought 15 years ago this thing would have been over with and I would have been doing something else. But for some reason, I'm still here. God put me in this position for some reason.

And I'm going to just keep doing it, and I'm going to keep doing it to the best of my ability. But it's just like working the NXT with Vic Joseph. Vic Joseph, I'm his right-hand man. I'm his co-pilot.

He's the guy that's running the whole board. You know what I mean? And I'm going to try to make that dude look as best as I possibly can. That's my job. You know what I mean? And I appreciate the young guys, man, that know why I'm here, know what I'm doing, and know that I'm here for them 100%.

Know that they can come to me for anything. I'm going to be there for them. So, nah, man. Like I say, this is a great time in my life. Seriously. I wouldn't change it for nothing. Nah. I'm tapped in, but I've been watching LFG.

Yeah, yeah. Legends and Future Greats. It's a heck of a show but like you said you tapped in with the youth and you know seeing you on that show and how you relate to the wrestlers

and how the guys really embrace you you could tell that you was meant for this you know what those shows man I love doing LFG I'm meant

I'm perfect for shows like that working with Bubba Ray working with Mickie James Undertaker it's been really really cool but perfect for shows like that. Working with Bubba Ray, working with Mickey James, Undertaker, it's been really, really cool. But being able to tap in

to the young guys and really get into their head to let them understand what this thing is about, how big this opportunity really, really is. And an opportunity like this don't come around too often.

It's few and far between. So take it as serious as you possibly can. Look at this like it's a job. Like you're waking up in the morning and you go and do your nine to five because if you're not looking at it like that,

you're slipping, you know what I mean? Because, you know, if you're not preparing, trust me, somebody else is preparing a little bit harder than you. So for me to really tap in on screen

as well as off screen, because those guys, they call me, we do film study when nobody's around, because I'm about winning. You know what I mean? I want my team to win at the end of the day. You know what I mean? So nah, man to win at the end of the day. You know what I mean? So, nah, man.

LFG is something that has been, you know, so awesome to be a part of and I can't wait to season two. Most definitely. Listen, Booker, we appreciate your time

and make some noise for Booker T one more time. Five times, baby. Five times. Listen, we appreciate y'all for coming out. Shout out to Chon for making this

wonderful event happen. It's Club 520. We'll see y'all for coming out. Shout out to Tom for making this wonderful event happen. It's Club 520. We'll see y'all next time. Yeah. The Volume. The Made for This Mountain podcast exists to empower listeners to rise above their inner struggles and face the mountain in front of them. So during Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast, focus on your emotional well-being, and then climb that mountain.

You will never be able to change or grow through the thing that you refuse to identify. The thing that you refuse to say, hey, this is my mountain. This is the struggle. Listen to Made for This Mountain on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

I know a lot of cops. They get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad.

Listen to Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, I get right back there and what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi. We dive into the competitive world of streaming. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. There are so many stories out there. And if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Listen to Good Company on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott. And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir.

Last year, a lot of the problems of the drug war. This year, a lot of the biggest names in music and sports. This kind of starts that a little bit, man. We met them at their homes. We met them at their recording studios. Stories matter and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does.

It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an iHeart Podcast.