Insight with Chris Van Vliet - Kayla Braxton On Leaving WWE, Horror Movie Role, Paul Heyman, Cody Rhodes

Episode Date: August 29, 2024

Kayla Braxton (@TheKaylaBecker) is a former WWE host and backstage interviewer. She sits down with Chris Van Vliet at West Coast Creative Studio in Hollywood to talk about her decision to leave WWE on her own terms and why it was time to explore other opportunities, her Madison Square Garden send-off from Cody Rhodes, interactions with Paul Heyman, choosing to bet on herself, being done with professional wrestling, her upcoming role in the movie "Stranglehold" from Director/Writer Clark Duke, advice for anyone looking to get into the broadcasting world and more! Quote I'm thinking about: "Well done is better than well said.” - Benjamin Franklin Complete this survey for your chance to win $500: https://bluewirepods.com/survey Sponsors: FACTOR MEALS: Get 50% off your first box and 20% off your next month at http://factormeals.com/Insight50 BONCHARGE: Use the code CVV to save 15% off your infrared sauna blanket at https://boncharge.com/cvv MAREK HEALTH: Get a 10% discount on Marek Health's Optimization Package with code CVV: https://marekhealth.com/cvv BLUECHEW: Use the code CVV to get your first month of BlueChew for FREE at http://bluechew.com ROCKET MONEY: Join Rocket Money today and experience financial freedom: https://rocketmoney.com/cvv PURE PLANK: The future of core fitness! Use the code CVV to save 10% on Pure Plank which was designed by Adam Copeland & Christian: https://gopureplank.com/ PLUNGE: Get $150 off your Plunge with the coupon code CVV150 at http://plunge.com For more information about Chris and INSIGHT go to: https://podcast.chrisvanvliet.com If you enjoyed this episode, could I ask you to please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcast/iTunes? It takes less than a minute and makes a huge difference in helping to spread the word about the show and also to convince some hard-to-get guests.  Follow CVV on social media:  Instagram: instagram.com/ChrisVanVliet Twitter: twitter.com/ChrisVanVliet Facebook: facebook.com/ChrisVanVliet YouTube: youtube.com/ChrisVanVliet TikTok: tiktok.com/@Chris.VanVliet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hey, welcome back to another one here on Inside. I'm CBV. Chris Van Vlee, hope it's been a great week for you. Thank you for joining us on this one. And thank you for helping to make insight the number one wrestling podcast on the planet. A lot of people think they're subscribed to the show or think that they're following the show. Sad reality is that most are not.

So please do me a personal favor. Hit that follow button on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. or man, if you're feeling really generous, a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple Podcast, that would go such a long way. Kayla Becker, aka Caleb Braxton, is back on the show. And yes, she's back on the show under her real name. She left WWE in June after eight years with the company. There's no story there.

There's no falling out. She's just excited to move on to what's next in her career. And part of that is a movie role in a horror. film called Stranglehold from actor, director, and writer Clark Duke, which you will be seeing soon. Yeah, the same Clark Duke from the office and movies like Hot Tub Time Machine. So great to catch up with Kayla talking about her next move and reminiscing about some of the big moments that she's had in WWE. And I just can't wait to see what's next for her. Snap a screenshot, share this online so we can share it as well. She's at Kayla Becker on Instagram. I'm

at Chris Vanfleet. She's at the Kayla Becker, by the way, on Twitter. And here we go. Enjoy this one with Kayla Becker. Yeah, give it a try. All right. You know, the new little jolt. Not a ton of caffeine. It's like 120 milligrams of caffeine. Like, I think I drink a diet Coke for my caffeine intake, like one or twice a week. Okay. So this is, you know, right around there, I guess. Ooh, that tastes really nice. That's like very sweet. That's the original flavor. Oh, and it's a mood booster? I need that. Look at all the lovely. Look at all the lovely ingredients. Let's see. There we go. That's a lots of BCAAs and Ginkobaloba. Oh, it tastes really. It's like not too sweet. Like, I don't like the energy drinks that are like, I hate those energy drinks that

taste like gasoline. Like, yeah. You know the ones. We're not going to say the names on here. You know the one I'm talking about. I know what you're talking about. Jeez, it's great to see you. Yeah, you too. It's good to be back. Welcome to the new studio here. It's really good. It smells really good too. It has like this like fresh wood smell, like almost like that, you know what I mean? Lumber. Well, it's freshly built. I think that's what you're smelling. Like when you walk into someone's house and they've had renovations, you're like, smells like a new kitchen. Without all the dust and stuff. So it's very good job. Yeah. Is this the longest you've been at home for quite some time? Yeah. It's weird to not have a suitcase to trip over when I get out of bed. I bet. So yeah. It's been nice. Your longest was probably like five days before. A couple of times. A couple times.

in the almost 10 years I worked there, I'd have like a couple weeks off, like once a year. But yeah, for the most part. Do you have a dog? My boyfriend has a dog. So the dog's probably like, what are you still? What are you doing here? I know. She loves it.

She loves it. But sometimes you're like, are you overstaying? You're welcome a little bit, you know. Are there times when you wake up and you're like, wait a sec. I don't have to like rush to the airport right now? Like, I don't. The first few weeks after, it was kind of like that because I had like the schedule because I normally would be on early flights, third.

So it's go to bed, you know, kind of early on Wednesday, wake up early on Thursday. Then, of course, I'm working Friday, then planning my weekends and trying to get back in time to hang out with my friends on Saturday. Because four days in my week, every single week for years, it's been like that. And I'm like, man, like, Thursday gets here. I'm like, what should I do today? Yeah. It's nice. Go lay up by the pool. Yeah. Yeah. So, I mean, how are you feeling in this post-WWE life you're living now? I feel really good. You know, I think anytime, you know, you're somewhere for so long, and it becomes such a big part of your life, it is, you know,

I think it was difficult for me to know how I was going to feel when I stepped away. And I think, you know, I've had a little bit of fomo, you know, when I see the shows on or see my friends posting about their matches and stuff backstage. But I feel really good. Like, I think I made the right decision.

It was definitely time for me to go. There was nothing negative about my reason for leaving. It was just done everything I can do there. I've hit the ceiling. At this time, at that point, I was just kind of wasting my time. and I think everybody else's time. Someone else could be moving into my spot

and then I could be moving on to the next part of my life. So I'm really at peace with it. Did you have any sort of expectations eight years ago when you signed with WWE? Like what this would end up becoming? I definitely didn't think I was going to be there for eight years. I think I came in thinking, all right, this is a new thing, wrestling.

I'm going to learn it. I'm going to get some new skills and then move on. Like that was kind of the idea that I had in my head. But it locked me in way longer than I'm, I thought. But no, not at all. Never thought I ended up hosting like a morning show for the better part of four years. That's grown into what it was and hosting shows with Paul Heyman and becoming part of a storyline with Paul Heyman.

No, but I think every single step that I've had that I had in WWE, I wouldn't have, I wouldn't have changed anything. Also, look at the journey. You went from knowing really not a lot about WWE. Okay? I was being generous to knowing pretty much the ins and outs of it now. What a crazy journey over those eight years. It really was. And I think, you know, people, you know, who don't follow wrestling, it's one of those things that

the first time you watch it, even when I bring my friends to a WWE show and they've never watched wrestling, they're just hooked. You can watch people in the audience. You just get sucked in. So imagine working there and being at the performance center and working with all the NXT talent and being on the road and doing like trips overseas. It's just, it's all immersive. You learn stuff so quickly.

And then I feel like for a while I would be talking to my friends. who aren't in wrestling, and I'd be using, you know, the common phrases that wrestlers use, you know, like, oh, we're going to get over, you know, but, but yeah. He gimmicked that thing. He did what to it? No, pop. What? Snackerel?

I popped for that. You did what? I know. But, yeah, I learned really fast. What went into the idea, the decision of like, all right, I am going to give my notice. I am going to leave this dream job. Mm-hmm. I think it's something I'd been kind of contemplating for a while.

I think once I stepped down from the bump, I moved to Los Angeles. It was very clear. It was kind of trying to find what my next phase of life was going to be career-wise. And I think the company kind of acknowledged that as well. And they were very supportive. Like when I moved out to L.A., they put a studio in my apartment. They wanted me to continue doing the bump until I was like, okay, I think it's time that Megan Morant takes over this role full-time. And you have your studio crew in Stanford.

And then I feel like on Smackdown, it's hard. It's a two-hour show. So there's not a lot of room for backstage interviews on SmackDown. You know, you've got to get the stories in there. So I wasn't doing much backstage at Smackdown. And then I wasn't really doing the kickoff show panels anymore. And so I was just kind of just kind of seeing the writing on the wall a little bit. And just thought, you know, I felt, I felt, I feel good at where my life is outside of WWE.

So I just thought it was a, and while everybody was, you know, getting along, everything was amicable. The company was very supportive of me stepping down to the door is always open. It was very, very nice to hear. But yeah, I think it was just the perfect timing to do that. And what a send-off. I know. Madison Square Garden. Cody brings you out.

The crowd is chanting. Thank you, Kayla. I know. I was getting, so, yeah, so Madison Square Garden, I was going to have, like, this send-off party after their show. So I'm already like, it's 30 minutes left of the show. It's my last day. I've done my interview.

I'm like, I'm in party mode, okay? It's everybody to send-off. And one of the writers came up to me. Oh, yeah, and said, don't leave. No, it was Casama. We love Casama. She said, Caleb, don't leave. I say, why?

She goes, Triple H, don't leave. I was like, are they, like, probably going to have me for the plan B. If the show wasn't short, got to run out there. I'm like, ready for my tequila. And so, and then I start, like, thinking, oh, they're about to, like, do something. And then I get brought into guerrilla. Stephanie McMahon is there. Triple H is there.

I just talked to Nick Con. Like, it was, and then I knew they were about to do something for me. I didn't know it was going to be Cody. And so, yeah, it's still like when I talk about it, it's still kind of surreal that as an announcer for WWE, I got a send-off like that with the biggest star in the company at the world's most famous arena. Yeah, that doesn't happen. I know. It's usually just like you make a post on social media and then that's it. Future endeavors.

Yeah, right. You get future endeavored. This was like, and I think it also speaks to the era of WWE that we're in right now. but like, that, that's really nice. And also it's a good way to, like, close that chapter of your life, too. 100%. I think that's a good way to, like, look at it. It was just a closure.

It wasn't me leaving thinking people were mad at me or it was a bad look or it was going to affect my next career move because I look problematic. Like, I think it just all, it just all just works so, so well. And again, just made me, I walked away to go get my tequila, feeling really good. We're talking shots of tequila? You know, you know. Celebrates, you know, a little celebrate. Yeah.

But not everybody, not a lot of people get to leave WWE on their own terms. Yeah, especially in the broadcast team. I think there's only been, I think, Renee, and I think myself, when looking at all the broadcasters for the last, you know, pretty long time who made the decision to walk away. So I felt really proud of myself, I think, because I realized, you know, it's been really nice to have this, this comfortability with WWE. but it's time for me to start betting on Kayla. And so I felt like that was, yeah, that's what we're doing.

And what does that look like? Well, I mean, I've been doing, you mean, like what I'm like. Well, what's betting on yourself look like, you know? I mean, I just think, you know, having more control over what my, I've always been so career-oriented since I was a little girl. I've always known I wanted to be in a TV space. And I think I've always worked for other people before this. Before WWE, I was working for a local TV station in Orlando, which is amazing and a great experience. But I'm like, you know what?

I know what I want to do in television. I'm not a spring chicken anymore. I have a decade of experience under my belt. I want to start doing things that, like, bring me personal joy. And I feel like the experience I have and the things I want to do, I think will be able to make an impact in the industry. So I just want to take more control over it. The cool thing about what you did in WWE is you get the hosting experience. you also get the acting experience.

Exactly, exactly. And I've, when I've been dabbling and acting a little bit, and that was something that I've talked to even my agents about, the thing with WWE that people don't realize is I'm acting backstage. I'm not, I'm pretending, I'm playing a character, a broadcasting character. However, with the bump, you know, broadcasting work did go into that. I did my research, asking actual interview questions. So, yeah, the little best of both worlds, I think, really prepares people like us for potential

to like Hollywood stuff. I don't think people realize that the backstage interview is it's a skill. It's not just asking a question. It's like you're asking a question, then your face needs to emote something in a certain way that helps to propel the story forward. Exactly. It's a skill that I don't think has talked about enough. Yeah, it is true.

I even, I did a, everyone knows it's got kind of blown up online about me and L.A. night. We had an interview towards the end of my, my days. there. And I don't know what was going on. I think I was just really tired. And he and I were going back and forth backstage. And he kept saying, he's trying to get me to say, yeah. But he also just insulted me on TV. So I felt like my character wouldn't have said, yeah. But whatever my facial expression was, the internet is still talking about saying that I just looked, like, I ruined the entire promo by like my reaction. But that is like the fact that an announcer, an interviewer can ruin

a promo just shows how important the interviewer actually is. So it's a great point. And I I think you see this every time you have any sort of interaction with Paul Heyman, too, where it's like you guys just played off each other so well. He made it really easy for me. A lot of that stuff, we were kind of given the direction of how it needed to go. But everyone's like, well, just do whatever Paul says. And so a lot of times it was just riffing. Like, we would just, I'd just go off Paul.

He'd go off me. I didn't know what he was going to do. And we're alive and that is a terrifying place to be. But it always did well. I feel like it always got a lot of positive reaction. I never got into any trouble. So Paul's like, you won't get in trouble. You won't get in trouble.

I'm like, okay. The way Paul Heyman speaks, it's, I can't even put it into words. It's like he's speaking down to you or anybody, but at the same time also getting a point across and like making Roman rains look great. There's so many layers to what he's doing. I think because he says everything with so much, like, confidence. There's not a lot of time that goes in between each word and sentence. He just rolls through.

He can roll for, like, five minutes and not take a breath. So then at that point, everyone's like, yeah, like, whatever he's saying, definitely sounds correct. Yeah, we'll go with that. That's a good point. Like, there's no ums, there's no pause. No. It's almost like, and I mean this in the best way possible, it's almost like a used car salesman where, like, he just keeps riffing and you're like, the more you're talking,

them. I'm buying this. This is great. Yeah. Yeah. So, like, now you're in Hollywood world, back to auditions, right? Yeah. That's an interesting thing. I know you've experienced this as well. And we were talking about before we started rolling about, you know, the self-tapping. And that's a, that's a little hard. I feel like that's a little difficult because you're not getting to play off anyone. Like one time I was having my friend read on a phone. It's like, so it was reading back to me. I'm like, you can't, it's hard to act that way, you know. Especially when you're reading with someone off camera and they're not really supposed to act that much.

Yeah. Because the focus is supposed to be on you on camera. But then it's like hard to act and react. I don't know. I'm learning. It's a whole new skill I'm learning. But it's been, I've done a few auditions. And that's actually the crazy thing is auditioning is a skill in itself.

You can be a great auditioner and maybe not great at like actually acting, which is a thing, I think a trope that people fall into here. Or the opposite. Did I maybe, I think Nicole Kidman may have said it. Someone said it. They're so terrible auditions. Like if it was just auditions that got her, you know, like she would fail. She's one of the best actresses of our time.

Yeah. So it's like test taking. I'm a terrible test taker. But I got mostly A's in school, you know? Yeah. But those, you know, little multiple choice things, not good at it. So you just did a film. Just did a film.

Stranglehold. Mm-hmm. What role are you playing in this? So my name is Crystal. So it's a film directed by Clark Duke. I love Clark Duke. He's amazing. And he's also a wrestling fan.

Big wrestling fan. So the movie, I don't know how much I think they put out a little bit about it. But basically, it's based in a strip club. No, I do not strip in it, so don't be weird. We have to tell that, okay? I have to say that. Appreciate it. And basically, it's about like what, like this main dancer is Ashley.

Benson. She and her husband, Jake Lacey, when I decide to rob the strip club. And so, like, the manager is played by Justin Long, who I'm a huge fan of. Ron Perlman is there as, like, one of the guys working with, like, one of the main characters. But, um, I mean, it was, it's, it's, it's, it's mind-boggling to even think I was, like, in that. But yeah, I'm just, I'm one of, one of the girls, there were three other, uh, strippers, uh, casts in the show. So I was one of them. and I, again, I don't know in too much detail about my character, but yeah, it was fun. Does this play off Clark's other film? Was that Oklahoma? Arkansas.

Arkansas. Jeez. It's based. Clark, just just cut it out of it. Well, his brother was one of the writers on Arkansas and his brothers who wrote this movie as well. So it's really cool saying the two brothers worked together. But it's based in Arkansas. How was craft services?

You know, WDB could learn a thing or two. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I didn't really eat much because when I'm nervous, I can't really eat. So I think I popped by for some Cheetos a few times. But it looks good. What's your prep when you're getting the sides?

You're trying to figure out your lines. What's your prep? So I spent a lot time to try to my own trailer. So cool, right? I would just, I feel like just read them a lot because I was trying to figure out, you know, trying to create my character. in my head and who I think that or how she would sound. So I did a few, like, takes even on my phone, like, trying to, like, and then I'd watch

it back and try to tweak it where needed. I know, I'm new at this, this acting thing, but. And it's a totally different world. It is, and that's another thing. Being on set in a movie, like, we're back stage at WWE for 12 hours every single Friday, and it's hurry up and wait, and we have that process. Being on a movie set was, like, completely different world, not similar the way I would think it would be at all.

Very intimidating. I was on a set and they said it was basically like, if they can film about a page a day, that's good. And I'm like, oh, it was, it's true. Like that's, yeah, it's very back there. Like seven lines. Like when I was looking at like the sheet, I was like, wait, we're only going to do these three things today. But we would be there until 3 a.m. Like, holy cow.

But it's all the setup, right? It's the setup and getting those shots right. Yeah. Every camera angle, you know. Yes. Did you have a stand in? I did for a moment. You know, you're asking to me questions, Chris.

You're going to get me in trouble. Just watch the movie when I come down. That's not like giving up way too much? Well, yeah, because the reason why. Oh, okay. Oh, now we'll have to really say. Yeah. But did it feel like I'm at home on the movie set?

No. No, no, no, no, no. Even like some of, I was like trying to, you know, bond some of the people. Everyone was so nice. It was so easy to make friends with people on the set. But they would be asked talking about what movies they've done or like, what was the last movie? And they got to me.

And I was just like, Well, have you ever seen Friday Night's Smackdown? Exactly. The movie. Do you know who The Rock is? Exactly. Just use him for a cloud to, like, get over in the movie world. But yeah, it was a really cool experience.

And it did make me want to maybe pursue that a little bit more and maybe get a little more serious, get back to acting classes. But is hosting still the real passion for you? Yeah. And it's because I've done it for so long. I mean, that's my, that's my craft. That's my skill. I don't know if I want to start over.

So yeah, that that's where I'm going to keep most of my attention. I feel you. There's something about hosting. And I think it's, you know, we both have a similar background in broadcasting. And the cool thing about broadcasting that at its core, it's storytelling. And that's what you get to do as a host. You get to guide the audience along in the story and kind of be the narrator in a way. And I feel you.

There's a lot of people that move out here to Hollywood, move out here to L.A. to do the acting thing and realize you've got to start from like, You got people who've been here since diapers acting. So now you're going to, like, jump the line. It's not very easy to do. I think you're going to jump the line. Exactly. Yeah.

By the way, I'm filling the caffeine. Hey. So if I start talking too fast, you'd be like, good. It's very good. I'll have some more here. Yeah. I have energy, guys.

You said that in the least energetic way. I have energy, guys. Before I did a talking smack once, I chugged an energy drink because we had been there all day. It's back when we did the desk show after Smackdowns. Yeah. And it hit me. And I always taught, and they were in my ear like, Kayla, slow down.

I was just like, and then afterwards, you're never allowed to drink an energy drink before you do a show again. So, yeah, we'll see. Can't wait until you're done that, can. I know. Keep drinking it off here. Congratulations on being four foot 11 and a half again. Oh, Wikipedia, guys.

Stop it. Like, you're going to be banned. I'm going to find out. to ban you from Wikipedia if you mess with my height again. They put me down after we talked last time. Well, you were like, I'm 4.11. Yes. Wikipedia has me at 4.11.

Yeah. Can we fix this? And everyone tried to help fix it. I was like, of course we can get this fixed. You did. We got it fixed. And then very quickly, people started to mess around with it. They started to be really mean to me about it.

So I could have even lied and said I was five feet, which most people would do. But I was honest and said 4.11 and a half. Yeah. And they put me at 4.8. That is mean. That is so mean. Then you were, you were 4.11, then you were 4'12 for a little. That's funny.

But as of this exact second, you're 4.11 and a half. Perfect. Let's keep it there, guys. By the time this airs, everybody that first day when it comes out. You know, it's going to change. What height do you, like, definitely not want to be? Don't put me below 411, you know? Sorry, Kayla.

Put me over 411. It's fine. You want to be 5-1? Make me 5-8. Whoa. You know? That doesn't seem believable. Camera angles, Chris.

At least you didn't have to do the split-legged thing when you were standing next to the superstars. You know sometimes they still made me? No. For who? Well, we do have, you know, more vertically challenged. I think maybe your next show is one of them. Oh, okay. Right?

Or their previous show is one of them. Chad Gable? Not saying any names. Oh, wow. So you'd even, I guess you're wearing heels, you'd even have to. Even with like Ray Mysterio, who like everyone knows is short. I'm like guys, but I still looked. And like with some of the girls too, like Thea.

Like everyone knows that I'm taller than Thea, which is a big fight we have online. We're like a half an inch apart. Did they ever say like, you know what, Kayla, it'd be really helpful if you just wore flats. Yeah, but I'm like, it doesn't work with the outfit. It'd be really helpful if you just wore flats. flip-flops. Yeah, I'm like, no, I'm not doing it. No. No, I wouldn't do it. So in heels, you're 5-3. Yeah. Yeah. So we go with 5-3. 5-4. Even 5-4. 5-8. With my stripper heels. Is that a callback to the movie? It was. Wow. Very nice. Thank you. Yeah.

There were, you also had some, like, you had some, like, the fun moments I think were the most fun moments with Paul Heyman. Yeah. What are your most memorable moments from your time in WWE? I mean, I think I just got to go back to the bump. Like, I just think that show, I think that show is the reason I stayed as long as I did, because even prior to that, I remember before the bump, I was already thinking about moving on. Like, and that was three years in. And what was the reason at that point in time? Um, kind of a similar thing. I felt like I was just kind of over being in a mic stand and I just wanted to do more and there just wasn't anything to do. Like, there was no, I mean, I was doing some sit-down interviews that would air. I just wanted to do more. And like you said, like,

we're trained broadcasters. I'm not someone who came in who never did broadcasting before and can do that role. I crave storytelling. And so, I was in that mode of like, what's next. And then I got approached and I said, hey, we're doing this new morning show, it's a new concept. We want you to be the host of it. I'm like, all right. Like, we're strapped in. And I think that show, even getting to do segments on the road where we went to Salem and I got to with Baron Corby and Shotsie and we got to do this whole Salem experience that aired in our Halloween episode or I flew to New York

City to interview Cindy Lopper or I went to Travis Barker's studio and that kind of stuff just really fueled like my energy for my position. So once that kind of stopped and it was my decision to step down from the bump as well. Yeah. But I think I just kind of lost that

you know excitement you know for what I was doing. So, you know, we all have to know when it's time to transition and to move on. And yeah, again, I'm very at peace and glad of that I did it. Would you want to do another morning show? Absolutely. But I also would love to do a late night show. Yeah. You know what's, you know what's the best part about doing a morning show is hosting it? The worst part is waking up at 2.30 the morning.

And so I thought, I'd get in like hair and makeup of a seven. No, that just sounds terrible. I'm do a late night show. Like what, like a Jimmy Fallon type of thing? I think like what happens live, watch what happens live, would be like a dream. And I even try to bring that concept of WW. I was like, let me just hang out with superstars. Actually, I'm not going to tell my idea. Vince McMahon used to host a late night show way back in the day.

So I don't know. I think that would be a really fun thing to do, even on my own. Well, we're living in a time now. I mean, this show is living, breathing proof of it. You can do your own thing now. Exactly. It doesn't need to exist on a network. It doesn't need to be associated with a website.

you could go do your own thing. Yeah, exactly. I mean, it's what McKenzie Mitchell's doing. Yeah, she's killing it. Killing it. Have you been on threads yet? I have not, but I have no reason to be. I don't have any threads.

I did help her. She did, it was sweet. She did talk about it at interview. I helped her come up with that name back when she was working with me on the bump. And she was talking about that idea for a long time. I thought it was a great idea. Just at the time, we don't have like a lot of resources to do shows. So the fact she's gone out on her own and done it.

And it's like, And it's not just thriving. It's very successful right now. It's pretty awesome. It looks great, too. Like, it's very well shot. It's incredibly edited. And again, going back to the storytelling, it tells a great story, too.

Yeah, people want to hear. I actually try to do something like that with Michael Hayes, who's one of my favorite people I've ever worked with. We all know that he has some of the most outlandish outfits that you've ever seen in your life. And right before the pandemic, I had, we all scheduled the bump crew to fly to Atlanta and the raid his closet and had him tell stories about his outfits. And he was down. He was excited for it.

And then COVID happened and we had to cancel. It was that next week that the world shut down. But I would still love to somehow, like, do that with him. The amazing thing about that is he's not, it's not like he's on camera. Who is he dressing up for? Himself? Himself. He, man. He just, he lives the gimmick.

That's it. It's funny to me. He goes, I'll even introduce you to my tailor. I'm like, what Taylor? Like, you're not getting anything to Taylor. But no, he always looks. He looks great. He's so, yeah, I love his, love all of his little outfits.

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is the idea to host a show, or is it to create your own show, or maybe it's both? I think of both, but I want to have a lot of creative control over it. I think whatever I do next, I don't want to just be working for someone and being who I'm being, what they're telling me to be. really just want to be Kayla. It's time to be Kayla Becker. And if that is attached to something else, great.

But I just want to make sure it's what I want to do, whatever that may be. And I think it will be in the entertainment space for sure. I love Hollywood gossip and I love like all the reality shows. I'm just very like in that stuff. Yeah. So I kind of think that's the world. And of course, horror. So there's a lot of opportunities here, right?

There's a lot of red carpets. Exactly. There's movie premieres pretty much every week. You've got award season right around the corner. Could we see you on a red carpet? Hosting something? I don't know. I mean, I go to a lot of red carpets just to walk them.

Yeah. But, you know, just to be seen. No, we'll see. And I've thought about that as well. Yeah, we'll see. I feel like there's a lot of opportunities here. So it's just a matter of time. Yes.

And it's a matter of also letting the world know what Hila Becker is all about. And I think I'm just taking the time to figure that out for myself, too. I think I recognize that I have been go, go, go, go, go for so long. And it's hard for me to just sit. And I've only been gone for, like, a month. And I'm already like, okay, what's next? Like, I need to like right now. I'm like, no, like, let's just be and enjoy this time to chill out and sleep and think and create.

So that's what I'm doing right now. I've been working on producing a little bit. Like had a pitch meeting to, um, about a new show that I want to, you know, maybe produce. Um, so yeah. Just trying to like, I call it my spaghetti against the wall face. I'm all about throwing spaghetti at the wall. Yeah. One of those pieces is eventually going to stick.

Exactly. How did you get the last name Braxton? I don't know. You know, I have no idea. Is it a Tony Braxton reference? No, and that's what people thought. People thought I was related to them. But no, when I was getting hired, they're like, okay, we need a new last name for you.

can you help us choose one? At least they let you keep Kayla. I know. That would have been a harder thing to transition out of. But I was okay, I just want to keep my initials. I want to keep K-B.

So I gave them like a list of 10 B names. And they didn't choose any of them. They said, all right, you're Caleb Rackson. I'm like, what? Like,

why did you even ask my opinion? But I know, it's a good name. It's a strong name. Yeah. I know, I definitely don't hate it. But it's hard.

Like, even now I catch myself saying, I'm Kayla Baxter. Like, like, Kayla Becker. It's so hard to, like, to it. Well, for eight years, you were Caleb Braxton. Yeah. And now you've got to figure out Caleb Becker now. How did you get the social media stuff so quickly? You mean, it's transferred over? Yeah. I had some help. Okay. But like, that's, that's a big part of it.

Yeah. It took a while. It was hard to do that. But the Caleb Becker thing was funny. Like, okay, so I posted about this in social media. Did you see? I don't know. This was wild. So I was trying to get Caleb Becker on Instagram, just Kayla Becker. Was it taken? It was taken. But like, of course it would be. Instagram has been out for so many years or a random fan has done it. Sure.

It's okay. I can be like the Caleb Becker, Caleb Becker TV, but I was just, I was sad about it. Yeah. So I reached out to my friend who was going to help me transition it over and he sent me a screenshot if you had it. He goes, this is the person who has your page. And I was like, that's my page too. When Instagram first came out, like literally first came out, I created a page and never

thought about it again. didn't know the login. It was yours? I've owned it for since the beginning of time. So I was able to get them to just switch it out. Oh my gosh. It's like Kayla 15 years ago just knew

that one day I was going to need my name again. What are the odds? I know. So yeah, it's crazy. You know how many people have to be like, it's Chris Van Vleet, the Chris VanVleet, Chris underscore Venn underscore Vleet?

Caleb Becker, a little fresh senior in high school, did it. That is some real foresight. I know. That's amazing. Oh, yeah. So, yeah. So on Twitter.

I'm the Caleb Becker. That's fine. I'm going to delete that app anyway. It's the worst app out there. Why is it so bad? The people on there are just disgusting. I don't understand. I don't either.

I like how you hit back at some people on Twitter. And now that I'm unemployed or not, sorry, now that I'm not employed by a giant organization, clapbacks are coming back. I mean, you had. I used to get in a lot of trouble for doing that. Oh, really? I mean, I'm representing the company.

I can't be saying those, you know. But now they're coming back. But you were never rude about it. I was funny, right? You were funny. You were funny. You also. put people in their place.

Yes. Like, just because someone has a nameless, faceless little egg account doesn't mean that they can say whatever they want. Exactly. So, and I have enough, like, positive fans who typically will take care of them for me. And it's so fun to see them, like, support me and respond for them. But every once in a while, I get, like, a little itch to, to be funny and come back at them. So.

How often would you write out a response and then be like, I have so many draftsress. Like, the amount of drafts of that is insane. I should go back and re-through them. I'm sure that. That could be an episode on a podcast. Just read through all Kaylee's drafts. I just don't understand why someone who is so unhappy in their own life. I know.

Feels the need to publicly try to bring someone else down. It is mind-boggling. Why stop trying to understand it? Like, I had a lot of, like, dark days because, you know, I know we're not supposed to care. I're not supposed to read it. But these fans are so vile. Yeah.

And when we're open about our lives, they'll leach onto those and then use that against you. It's impossible, A, not to see it because they love to tag you in it. And then it's a lot of times things that you already struggle with internally. And so when they're adding, shedding light or magnifying it, of course it's going to suck. But it is, it is crazy to me that people, but I mean, that just means that they're that sad, you know. Yeah, it says a lot more about who they are. Exactly.

But it's still, it's just so. It's weird. It's dumb. I don't get it. And you could have 999 comments that are talking about how. great your work is and how good you are at your job. That one comment. That one comment is really just like, you're going to be like, wow. Can I turn this person? Can I make them see the good in me? I know. And the answer is, no, you can't. Yeah. They're just unhappy. They're not happy.

But I always appreciated that. Sometimes those would come across my timeline and I'd be like, hell yeah, Kayla. Thank you. I'm glad that you appreciated it. Good. I don't know. Should you bring him back? Isn't that just kind of feeding the trolls then? I'm not actually bringing them back. It would be nice, though. Yeah, just ignore the trolls, right? Yeah, I'm going to delete that app. I hate it so much. X.

I'm going to delete X. Has anyone ever actually call it that? Do you call it X? No. Okay. Because then what did the Twitter tweet, right? It makes sense. I'm going to send an X.

That sounds like you're going to send like a dirty photo. DiJack told me the correct term. It's a Zete. Of Zietz? Of Zeez. He's like, yeah, they're called Zetes. I'm like, who is, I zeded you? That sounds disgusting.

Like YX. Right. Idiots. I do. I'm a big domain nerd. This is going off a complete tangent here. But I often search for like, oh, is this.com taken? And the answer is like 1,000% always yes.

But the fact that Elon Musk got X.com however long ago and then bought it back, like that story is amazing. I'll never call it X. But the fact that he owns one single letter.com, that's pretty incredible. Yeah. Yes. Okay. Let's switch here to horror here.

Give me your Mount Rush more of horror films. Oh, God. I think The Shining is always up there. I think the OG scream. Oh, my gosh. I think like classic horror, right? Whatever you want. Let's see, I would say,

Freddy versus Jason. Definitely loved. The original It. That's it. That's four. He has that four? Okay. Okay.

What's the movie? movie you put on to scare the, like, the poop out of you? Hmm. I don't get scared. At all? Not really. I mean, I think Gore, I will be sitting here like this, like, with, like, gory stuff. So, like, the saw movies?

Yeah, but I think I like it. Like, I'll get, like, jump scare. Like, my boyfriend makes fun of me sometimes when we go to, to scary movies, and I'm, like, jump, jump on the entire time. But I was just to make him feel like a man. I'm not actually scared at all. So there's nothing. that no movie scares you?

A long time ago, I'd say like paranormal activity. The paranormal stuff is what gets me. Like monsters and like slasher's don't get, like I saw talk to me, A24 made that movie. One of the better horror films I've seen in a very long time. And that kind of like, I laid awake at night thinking about that.

But I wasn't scared. I actually bought them bombed hand and it sits on my shelf. What? So, yeah. I agree with you. There's something about the paranormal act movies where it's like this feels like it could actually happen. Yeah, exactly. And I, yeah.

And when you turn off all the lights in your room, yeah, what is going on here? And I, I believe that my place is haunted. I think there's a ghost in there anyway. Are you serious? I mean, I think whoever it is pretty cool. I'm convinced my place is haunted. What happened? Well, once I heard, I thought, I'm pretty confident my keys were thrown because I put them in a very specific place and they were like over here. So like, they didn't, they couldn't have just fallen off and they're thrown. So they went from like a counter to the floor? But like not let, but not in a place. It just falls off.

Like it was like a far place. And I heard it. Like middle of the night? Yeah. Whoa. And then you know that little app on TikTok? You know, it's like the AI and you put it up and maybe like a creepy person comes up. Okay.

Okay. Well, one time I was doing that and like there's girl kept popping up. And then I was like, let me test this out. So I said, if you're in here, go into my bathroom, get into the shableness. hour and hold your hands up. I went in there and did it and there was a girl holding her hands up like this. So I think we're haunted. See?

Okay. Do you live in an older building? No. Oh, what? We're on this big plot. So I wonder if like, you know, maybe something before that was there. Oh, yeah. Who knows?

Ooh. I said they haven't bothered me yet. I don't know. Probably because they send some like, one of us. Like, one. You know. That, I don't know. that scares me.

Yeah. That type of stuff. You know, like the, are you a horror fan? Yes. And also, like, it scares me. Yeah. Like, I remember, I was young when I know what you did last summer came out. It was like 13 or 14.

We went to see to the movie theater at the mall. It's like 10 minute walk from my house. The movie ended at whatever, 10. I remember sprinting home because I was just so scared. I thought I was being followed. Not like there would be a man in like a rain slicker with a hook. But I just remember sprinting home from that. I remember seeing The Exorcist.

Oh, yeah, that's one. That's that. I couldn't watch 90% of that movie. It was re-released in theaters, however many, on whatever anniversary it was. And I was 16, 17, whatever it was. And I just looked at the floor for most of the movie. Really? And my friends are like, what's wrong with you?

I'm like, it's too real. Like, that felt too. I grew up like in a religious, like, family. So like stuff like hits. I saw, without going too deep into it, I saw some stuff that felt very exercising. When I was going to church growing up. So when I saw the movie a few years later, I was like, A little too close.

Yeah. So, yeah, no, I love horror movies. In fact, I did the junket for the most recent Saw movie. Oh, yeah. And, like, everybody's sitting next to me is like, oh. And I'm just sitting there, like, eating my popcorn and they're like, what is wrong with you, dude? I don't know, it's kind of, like the way they shot the scene. So I'm into that stuff.

And I also remember seeing Saw for the first time. Like the very first one? The very first. I saw that in theaters. I didn't know much about the movie, but I just went to see it at that time. And when that movie ended, I went, what? I'm not trying to give anything away if you haven't seen the movie. But that ending came out of nowhere.

And that's the thing. Those movies aren't scary because it's not going to happen to you if you're a good person. Because that's kind of the base of the entire thing. It's a great point. Jigsaw's only out to, he's only out to like kind of help you. right your wrongs. Yeah. You know,

like he's trying to put you back on the path. If you're a bad person. Yeah, he's like a life coach. One way. And actually, Jigsaw's never killed anybody. Yeah,

not like, yeah. Jigsaw always gives you a way out. That's the whole. And then when they, when they went on later in the movies, they were realizing these traps weren't made by Jigsaw

because they didn't give you a way out. Yes, yes, yes, Jigsaw always gave you a way out. That's very true. And then you end up getting killed or deciding to get killed. But yeah, I like horror movies.

I appreciate how they're made. Yes. But I, great, great Mount Rushmore for you. Thank you. So Halloween must be your time of year then. Oh, yeah. Are you already planning it out? Yes.

So I'm getting a custom costume made currently. Oh, that's extravagant. Yes. So I'm not going to tell you what it is or anybody what it is. But last year I did like a big photo shoot. I was like a creepy clown girl. And I'm going to do it again this year. But oh, yeah.

This is getting planned. planned out. Wait, if someone's not following you on Instagram. You better follow me now. At Kayla Becker. Caleb Becker. That's right. The account that you didn't even realize you'd have. Have a need for. Amazing. So I know. I love that. Are you done with working and wrestling for now? Yeah, I think so. People, that's one thing about our fans too. They think, oh, you leave W.E. You must be going to A.A.W. or only fans. Like, it's like the only two, like, option that they think that you have. I'm like, actually, I'm doing neither. No, yeah, I think wrestling will always be like a love of mine and always be a family of mine, but I just, I think I just really didn't want to pigeonhole myself as like a host and a broadcaster and just see what else I can do out there. I mean, there's always possibility that maybe

I pop back in for like, you know, a fun cameo or something down the road. But yeah, I think, my time is done. Well, you're going to do some signings and conventions. Do you? I think you have a signing coming up here pretty soon. You're going to be around those fans again and they're going to be like, Kayla, we want you back, we need you back. That's going to be the true like challenge. Yeah. Of like, that option, I feel like it's always going to be right there. Yeah. But there's a lot of people who have been in the position that you were in that are now doing all kinds of huge things outside of the world of wrestling. The precedent has been said. Yes. And that's a thing. There's, I mean, gosh, wrestling is such a massive part of the entertainment industry. I mean, I

there's wrestling airing, I think, every single night of the week pretty much on television. Yeah. But also, there's so much more outside of it, too. And so I think that's what I'm, that's what I'm going to, you know, focus on for the time being. Isn't it so interesting finding those closet wrestling fans? Like, especially with all the celebrities that would come back stage to WWE, I know. You'd be like, wait a second.

I know. You like wrestling? And that's pretty cool. And I think this new era with Triple Age kind of, you know, running ship is. is opening those doors more where they weren't before into Hollywood and like hopefully going to mesh the two a lot more than before. Who's the biggest celebrity you met because of WWA? Or the one that you went, oh my gosh, I can't believe.

I got to do that interview when I went interview. We weren't in person, but with Matthew DeConnor. And I freaked out. Like that was just crazy to me. So I'm going to watch it back. I'm like, he said my name. Well, he called me Miss Braxton. I got to ask him to do it again.

Or maybe I'll dub it. I'll dub Braxton and Becker. But that was really cool. I'm getting to fly in New York to interview Cindy Lopper. Like that was pretty massive for me because my mom was such a fan. And so like realizing I get to go and, oh gosh, I'd have to think about that. And of course, The Rock, he's one of us. But getting this, you know, say The Rock was my co-worker.

It's pretty wild. Mr. The Rock. Mr. The Rock. That's right. Mr. the Rock. Did you have another meeting with him after that? Because when we talked last time. Yeah.

You had done that bit with him on smack or saw him at Smackdown. You were like, I called him Mr. The Rock. Did you get to make good on that? Well, I made sure I didn't say Mr. again, but I just said, The Rock. Like, I don't know how to, you know, address him. It was really nice to me. Do most people call him DJ? I don't know if the wrestlers do.

Like, maybe his, maybe, yeah, rock. Rock. Just say rock next time, Kayla. Not the, not Mr. Johnson. Not Mr. But, yeah, he was, he was really nice. trying to set up an interview with him. And so he promised me that he would do an interview with me someday.

So I hopefully, even though I'm not with WWE anymore, that, you know, is still true. I think he has a place out here. Yeah, just, what, staying outside of his door? Yeah, if you can find it. Sure, it's not far from here. Figure it out. We'll figure it out. But it's cool seeing how many people, like mainstream people would be sitting

ringside or would be backstage taking those photos. That's, I mean, wrestling's in a totally different space now than it was. years ago. Yeah. What's the biggest thing for you as a broadcaster that you know now or you feel comfortable with now that you didn't have eight years ago? Just in broadcasting? Sure.

Whatever. I think I gained just a lot of confidence, like being on the fly. And even like when we have the celebrities backstage, like, Kayla, we need to do a grab an interview of so-and-so. Even if I don't know who they are, do a quick, like, wiki search. and I have like five minutes and then I run in there and we just riff. And so I think that was a skill I didn't have before. And I think that just goes along with like confidence and in your ability and your skill.

And that's why I do think I am like not trying to like, you know, put myself over wrestling terminology. But go ahead. That's why I do think I am like a really good host. Like I think I could be put into any situation given minimal information and be able to help people open up. And I've even had, I did that long-form sit-down interview, maybe with Edge or with someone, with with Sina even, they commented on my ability just like, oh, this was, didn't even feel like an interview. And, like, we just sat and just talked for an hour. And so that's just a really nice thing.

And you know that. Like, you're very good at that, you know, if you're just talking to your guests and you're not interviewing them. Thank you. And that's a skill. It is. And I think that, I heard this a long time ago. I think it was a Ryan Seacrest quote. If someone watching thinks that they can do your job because it looks so easy.

Then you're doing something right. Yes. That's why I always talk about the ring announcers. I always put over the ring announcers because that's the job. I dabble in when I first got to WWE and did not like it because it was terrifying and it was hard. But look at Samantha, look at Alicia, look at Mike Rome. They do such a good job and make it look so easy, but that is not easy at all. What didn't you like about it?

It was just nerve-wracking. It's one thing to be in front of a camera and the red light comes on. Another thing to be in front of 10 to thousands of people and having to demand the entire arena and not mess up the names, the weights, the monocers. Like, it was just a lot of information. Worin my voice would crack. I tell a story about I did a war games match maybe. And in the beginning of what I had to say in the ring was you, the only way to win is to incapacitate your opponent.

And I said, decapitate. And it's live and you can't change it. Technically, that is correct, you know. I mean, if you decapitate your opponent, you probably would win. Exactly. But yeah, it was hard. But I'm glad I got that experience, you know, being in front of a live audience like that. Especially when it's like you need to memorize everything, too. You have to have to, we have when I first got to WWE, we were given charts with every wrestler's name, wait, where they're billed from, their moniker. And then you have to memorize that. And then beyond that, you have to go talk to the wrestlers and be like, okay, when do you want me to start your entrance?

when or what is the cadence that you want. It's just so, like, AJ Styles is very specific. Sure. A.J. Styles. You can't be like, AJ Styles, you know? So, like, stuff like that. Yeah. And then stuff changes.

On fly, yes. And when stuff, a lot of times someone talks in your ear, you can't hear. It's so loud. And then, oh, I'm getting anxiety talking about this because I'm getting PTSD for what it happens. But yeah, they do a very good job. Were the breaks, the commercial breaks there, like, to the second they needed to be taken? Like, is that how they were done?

Like, yeah, pretty, I mean, pretty much. Like, was it like, we need to go to break at 8.17.30? No, it's pretty much, yeah. You know what I mean? Like, so this, this block is 17.5 minutes. We're going to break at 8.17.30. And then that break is going to be two and a half minutes. We're back on the air at 820.

Yeah. Would that be how it was? Yeah. To the second? It's pretty much like there, you know. Whoa. That's why they're so good. The fact they can time a show like that to where it goes off air exactly when it's

supposed to be right when that finish happens and then it's, you know, got the, yeah. The amount of moving parts that go into that with the referees saying like five minutes to go, four minutes to go, three minutes, like. That's another hard job. They're responsible to like keep things, you know, if, you know, the wrestler doesn't want to do what, you know, wants to do what they want to do. It's still the referee's fault if things don't go the way they're supposed to go. Like, that's another very underprenuous.

appreciated jobs. They're the ones. Yeah. And to get the show off on time. And then like if the match ends, but you also have to have some stuff happening after the match, you got a lot of moving parts there. And then it's crazy to me that these wrestlers go out there

and do a 20-minute match with all of this stuff. Then they cut a promo. How do you remember it after that point? Like that's, whew. Yeah, we've got some talented people. Maybe it's time for you to start training to be a wrestler. Yeah, I think not. Yeah, that's absolutely.

never going to happen. I mean, never say never. I'm telling you never. Never is never going to happen. You have taken bumps before. I took a bump before. I took a bump, yes. It was very difficult.

And I crawled away. I told, yeah, I wore the tough enough hat or helmet. And I even did it in the soft. Yeah. Like the crash mat? The crash mat. But I didn't tuck my neck and you have to tuck your neck when you take a bump. Otherwise, you're going to get whiplash.

And then whiplash is what I got. I was like never again. running the ropes. I think I did one little bounce. Like, that hurts. Like, running the ropes is very painful. And I mean this with great respect. You can reach the top rope.

I mean, that doesn't matter, you know. Because for most people, the top ropes, you know, right under their armpit here. Well, yeah, when you see Zalina Vega or Liv Morgan do it. Like, if you watch for it, it is pretty funny because they're my size. Yeah. So you're like reaching up for it. Okay, I get it. No, we're not reaching up for it.

Look at this guy. Four eleven and a half. Come on. A short joke. I said with great respect. I trained for quite a while. I had the wealth across my back. How long until you get used to that? Do you ever? Ask someone who has much more experience than me. I trained for a few months. I don't know. It still takes the wind out of you. Yeah. Oh, crazy. And I think you, I'm sure a lot of people would tell you if they've been out of it for a few months or they're coming back from an injury. First time you hit the ropes, first time you take a bump. Yeah. Oof. Oh, more power to them.

Yeah. So you're probably safer with just a microphone in your hand. And you've got, I mean, you've got the world in front of you right now. And it seems like you're in a great place, both personally and professionally as well. Yeah, I feel, I feel really good. And I think the next few months, I think you're going to be seeing a lot of things rolling out that I am working on. So I'm really excited. I'm really thankful for, you know, the last eight years.

If it weren't for the last eight years, I wouldn't be able to be doing what, I'm moving into now. So many skills, so many people. So yeah, but I'm really excited for the future. And I hope people continue following along and may not be wrestling, but it's still going to be, you know, a fun phase. This episode is brought to you by Timeline. Timeline is a Swiss-based life science company,

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Timeline.com slash insight. Hey guys, it's Chris. Would you like an extra $500? Go to bluewirepods.com slash survey and complete the bluewire audience survey there about you and your podcast listening habits for your chance to win a $500 gift card. This survey is going to help create a better advertising experience for you

and in turn help the show. That's Blue Wire Pod. dot com slash survey and all you have to do is answer a few simple questions for your chance to win five hundred dollars make sure to read the full terms and disclaimer plus complete the survey for your chance to win blue wire pods dot com slash survey the link is also in the show notes of this episode the united states soccer federation present the u.s soccer podcast my name is david goss and i'm joined by my co-host megian clenembert and now we're giving people an inside look at the World Cup. Times ticking.

I think you can feel the intensity. All the guys are wanting to really take their claim, and they want to be on that World Cup roster. There's no doubt about it. Hosting the World Cup on the home soil comes with its pressures, but we're just really excited just as the people are. The U.S. Soccer Podcast, presented by Hencoe, follow and listen on your favorite platform. There's a lot of people that would love to have the job that you had in WWA. What's the advice you have for an aspiring broadcaster that would want to be in that position?

I think learn the business as much as you can outside of the business. Definitely be very respectful because, you know, it's a culture. Like, W.W.E is such a culture. Don't overstep. Oh, that's something I'll definitely say. Don't overstep. Don't keep harassing people in the office about wanting a job. But come to shows, you know, shake some hands.

And, I mean, yeah, I think if you're the right fit, it'll be seen. There are very few spots for what we do. And they definitely spend time deciding who's going to fill those spots. So if you're meant to be in that spot, you will be. But otherwise, you know, just keep at it. Do you do interviews on your own? You do something that Chris is doing, you know, like really hone in those skills because we've seen many times we hire someone getting that spot and they don't last a month

or two because they don't have the interview shop. So I'd say, yeah, Jeff, just work on it. I think that's all great advice. We're excited to see what's next for you. Thank you. It sounds like you've got some irons in the fire. Yeah, like I'm not letting on to stuff, because I can't. But, yeah, just keep an eye out for the next few months.

We've got some cool stuff. Okay. We did this at the end of our last interview. Maybe your answers have changed. I don't know. But first of all, thank you for coming in here. Thanks you've having me. So good to see you.

Are you going to move studios again the next time? I don't think so. I think we are at West Coast Creative Studio for a while now. I mean, look how beautiful this looks. And I said, I can walk here. Ish. I mean, are you technically in a different city? Yeah, but I can still walk here. I have two legs. I guess technically I could have walked here. I would have had to start yesterday, but I could have walked here. Gratitude is such a big part of my life. So what are three things, Kayla, that you're grateful for as we sit here in this moment right now? I think first and foremost, just having the ability to have this time right now to transition. A lot of times people can't do that.

You know, you move from one drive, you have to immediately jump into the next to survive. And I feel like I'm in a good spot where I can take time and just really make sure that the next step is something I really want to take. I have friends and family around me who have been super supportive, which I'm very thankful for. because when you tell your family, you're going to a business like this, initially, sometimes they can be very skeptical because it's so wishy-washy, but always just being like, you know what, you're going to be fine. You've always been fine. So very thankful for that.

And I'm very thankful that Haldon Hora Nights starts next month. You're going to be there on opening night? I might. We'll see. That place freaked me out. Helvin Hora Nights? That's the least scary thing. I went on opening nights or I went on media night.

It's like it wasn't that busy. And all I was trying to do was get from the entrance to some ride. And they're coming up to you and breathing in your face. Like scaring you. I don't. Go to the Orlando one. That one is ten times of scary. Scariest than this one?

Scarier. The one in Universal? Yeah. It's scarier. Universal City. Oh. I just don't like people being up in my space. I get it.

Have you been to screamers in Niagara Falls? No. So it's this one of the scariest. haunted houses in the world. They have a sign outside of it of like the amount of people to ticker of how many people have chickened out. And it's like, I don't know what the actual number is like, 270,000 people. If you get in there and it's too scary, you say the word screamers and they like rush in,

they get you out of there. And like apparently like hundreds of thousands of people have not made it to the end. So if you're, I would never do that. If you're around Niagara Falls, Ontario. No, I'm not doing that. Too scary? That's, that might be too scary. I don't want anyone touching me.

I don't think they touch you. Oh, no? No. Then maybe. I think it's like Halloween Hornite's like where they're right, you know, right in your face like this. I'll have to look into that. Look it up. We'll look it up right.

Maybe our next time we talk, we can do it there. I'll meet you in Canada. My home and native land. Well, Kayla, cheers. Cheers. Great to see you. You too. Thanks for having me.

Thank you for coming in. Congrats on everything. Thank you. Next time I'll have a little more update for you. Love it. There we go. go so good to have Kayla back in the studio. I feel like we could do a whole podcast series on horror movies there. Actually, maybe she should host a podcast about horror movies. I would definitely

be tuning into that. Can't wait to see what's next for her. Can't wait to see Stranglehold. When that comes out, there's no release date yet, but I'm sure we'll be hearing one soon. She's just so talented. And there's so many opportunities out there for her. And like we talked about, She's in the right city to make that kind of stuff happen. Snap a screenshot. Tag us. She's at Kayla Becker on Instagram. She's at the Kayla Becker on Twitter.

I'm at Chris Van Vleet, and I will leave you with this quote from Benjamin Franklin. It is so simple, but it is so direct and to the point. Well done is better than well said. Be great. Be grateful. We will see you on the next one for some more insight. We've got Ask CVV.

Number 46, tomorrow. We will see you then. Jim Rome takes on sports. Why? Because I have a job to do. With rapid fire takes. So I don't want to hear from you lava pigs on this notion today. No idea what you're talking about. You're complaining more than you like to breathe air.

It's like you get up in the morning only to complain and cry and moan on social media about things that you don't even understand. He's the spitfire of sports smack. Take advantage of it. I've been here. The Jim Rome Show podcast. What should be? Follow and listen on your favorite platform. You've been warned.