Insight with Chris Van Vliet - McKenzie Mitchell On What's Next After Her WWE Release, Favorite NXT Moments, Her Husband Vic Joseph

Episode Date: December 26, 2023

McKenzie Mitchell (@mckenzienmitchell) is a broadcaster and TV host who is known for her time in WWE and IMPACT Wrestling. She sits down with Chris Van Vliet in Orlando, FL to talk about being released by WWE, what she wants to do next, her jewelry brand "Headline by MM", how she started her broadcasting career, getting hired by IMPACT Wrestling, how she landed her job with WWE, favorite moments in NXT, meeting her husband Vic Joseph in WWE, his love for the Cleveland Browns and much more. Find out more about Headline By MM here: https://www.headlinebymm.com/ Quote I'm thinking about: “Your life does not get better by chance. It gets better by change.” - Jim Rohn Sponsors: FITBOD: Get 25% off when you use the code INSIGHT at http://fitbod.me/INSIGHT ZBIOTICS: Get 15% off with the code CVV and have a better morning after you drink at http://zbiotics.com/cvv MYBOOKIE: Bet on WWE! Get up to $200 cash bonus when you use the code CVV and sign up at http://mybookie.ag BLUECHEW: Use the code CVV to get your first month of BlueChew for FREE at http://bluechew.com GHOSTBED: Get 40% of your purchase with the code CVV at http://ghostbed.com/cvv MIRACLE MADE: Upgrade your sleep with Miracle Made! Go to http://TryMiracle.com/CVV and use the code CVV to claim your FREE 3 PIECE TOWEL SET and SAVE over 40% OFF PLUNGE: Get $150 off your Plunge with the coupon code CVV150 at http://plunge.com BONCHARGE: Go to http://boncharge.com/CVV and use coupon code CVV to save 25% 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

All systems are go. Ladies and gentlemen, Chris Van Bleed! All right. So good to see you, my friends. Welcome back to another one here on Insight. I'm CBV. Chris Van Vleet. Hope you had a great Christmas if you celebrate.

Happy Boxing Day. By the way, December 26th, boxing day. And it's always so funny saying that because people, especially here in the U.S. are like, boxing day. What are you even talking about? Like, do you go out and have boxing matches? the day after Christmas. And I guess like the easiest way to explain it is it's a huge shopping day. It's, I guess it's like Black Friday, but after Christmas. So I guess all of the things that

didn't sell before Christmas go on sale the day after Christmas, like huge, you know, massive sales. People would like line up outside the stores. I guess they still do. And I guess you can spend the money that you got for Christmas as a gift for things for yourself. So, So happy boxing day. Thank you for being with us. And thank you for making insight, one of the top wrestling podcasts in the world. I appreciate you for being here.

Although when I look at the analytics, I'm just blown away by how many people listen to the show but aren't following the show. So can I make a deal with you right now? If you just hit that follow button, wherever you're listening, I promise to put all of my effort from now until the end of time into making insight even better. So with your support by just hitting follow,

or I mean, if you're feeling really generous, you can leave a rating or review on Apple Podcast or Spotify. Just by doing that, this show will keep getting bigger and keep getting better. And for this one today, I had the pleasure of sitting down with McKenzie Mitchell in Orlando. This was one of five interviews that I recorded there last week. If you follow me on social media, you know what I'm talking about. I rented an Airbnb and we set up the cameras, set up the lights, and it was just a revolving door of great conversations that you'll be seeing over the next bunch of episodes. And if you didn't see the news, McKenzie was released from WWE on December 1st after four years with the company. We would see her just crushing it on NXT every week. And as she tells

me here, this news came out of nowhere. So we talk about what's next for her, which includes her jewelry brand headline by MM. And I had heard so many great things about McKenzie from her husband Vic Joseph, who I go way back with. We worked at a radio station together. I was on one side of the hallway. He was on the other. I was at a music station. Cleveland's new 102. WD.OK. He was on the other side at 923, the fan. And we're talking like 10, 12 years ago. So we go way back. I'd heard so much about her. Vic, by the way, is the voice of NXT doing commentary with Booker T. He was also the voice of Raw for a little bit. So I'd heard so much about her, but this was our first time actually meeting and actually chatting. And it's such a good one. So if you enjoy this, share this with a

friend. Also, snap a screenshot and tag us so we can share it out as well. She's at McKenzie N. Mitchell on social media. I'm at Chris Van Fleet. And here we go. Enjoy this one with McKenzie Mitchell. Well, I've had your better half on the show. You have. Is it your better half? I'm the better half. What do you mean? Yes, absolutely.

For sure. I've known Vic for so long. Right. And I didn't realize that. I knew you had set down with him, what, in February? It was WrestleMania. Yeah, so that I'm in April. Yeah, in L.A.

But I didn't know the connection. You guys are like Clevelanders a little bit, right? Me and Vic Travely on to go way back. Okay. Way back. We worked at the same radio station in Cleveland. He was on the sports. station. He was at 92-3 The Fan. I was across the hall at Cleveland's new 102.

Oh my gosh. Better music and a lot of it for your workday. He loves Cleveland so much. I don't know if you feel the same, but he's like a Clevelander through and through. That is my, I'm originally from Toronto or just outside of Toronto. Yeah. Cleveland was my first American city. Okay. Yes. It's cold in the winter. Cleveland is my American hometown. It is. Do you not go there in the winter? We do. No, we definitely do. We'll go at least twice a month, which sounds like a lot. But we have two step kids that, or I have two step kids, his two kids live there. So we're in Cleveland quite often.

Yeah, that's a lot. Yeah. And anytime there's a Browns football game, Vic is there, either on the sidelines or he's up in the stands. And I'm kind of, people ask me all the time, like, what's your NFL team? I'm kind of an adopted Cleveland Browns fan, like the Garganos and Vic and Ms. and Ziegler and Dana Brod, like there's so many of them. Yeah.

So I guess I'm just. Join us. I guess I am. Join us. So you're a Browns fan. I am. Okay, there we go. Who was I supposed to cheer for growing up in Toronto, right?

So when I moved to Cleveland, I was like, oh, wow. And as you know, on a Sunday in Cleveland, it's not if you're watching the game. Everyone is. It's where are you watching the game? You're either going or you're tailgating and like, that's it. Yes, yes. I've seen the videos that Vic posts like, he gets very into it. Let me tell you this, when we're watching the Browns games and it's Johnny and Vic and me and

Candice. We have the baby now. So we'll just like play with Quill and hang out in the back, have a drink, have some fun. They actually think that they're the coaches of the game or they're on the sidelines. So if you guys didn't know that Johnny and Vic, they actually think they play for the Browns. And so they're pacing back and forth. And then they're like on their knees. Like it's a whole situation. Well, look, Browns are having a great season this year. And I'm not watching a game. And I think that's probably why. Maybe it's a superstition of it. So I'm not. I'm going to watch. The numbers are usually reversed.

Like, as we sit here right now, they're nine and five. It's usually very much the other way around. They're the underdogs, right? They've not been good for a long time. But Vic said that every game you've ever attended in person, they've won. That's also very true. Maybe you need to go to every game. I don't know about that.

Listen, I'll go like August, September, November, but then when you're in the stadium and the wind is just whipping around in like December, January, it's brutal. I don't know if people realize it's right on Lake Erie. Right on the, yeah, right on the lake. Like the stadium is on the shore of Lake Erie. Yes, it gets really cold. It's very cold.

You have some great browns attire? Because look at you, you're very fashionable today. Thank you. Thank you. I appreciate it. Yes, and I, Vic actually has a jacket. I think it's from homage, homage. And I've still, I've stolen it now.

Like, it's mine. It's my jacket. So a lot of Vicks Brown's gear ends up being mine. And I, yeah, if I'm going to go, I'm going to dress up and look cute. You're a Browns fan now. I guess I'm a Browns fan. Thank you. Let's just leave it at that.

Is this some of your own jewelry? So, yes, I have a lot of my jewelry on. I like to layer a lot of my pieces. Look at all these rings. Yeah. So I have like this, my necklace, my earrings, my spinner ring, which I don't know if you've seen. Oh, wow. So it actually doubles as a fidget spinner and a stress reliever.

So a lot of people that like have stress and anxiety, this is perfect for you. My her ring, I'm really excited about this. It's launching in January. I think it's like so perfect for new year, new her. It's kind of like it works really well with what's happening in my life right now. And so it's almost a renaissance, if you will. And so I think it's really exciting to focus on like the confidence, the positivity, the exciting things that are happening.

So new year, new her. So tell me about your, jewelry line? So I started a headline in June of this past year. My family's been in fine jewelry for 75 years. So the jewelry industry is not new to me. My great-grandmother and great-grandfather started a small local jewelry store. This more fine jewelry in Dexter, Missouri, which is where I'm from. My grandmother and my aunt run the business today. So it's still, still kick in, still alive, but there's no social media. There's no online website that you can go and shop. It's very just like local and small. And so every time I would go home, my grandmother would say something to me like,

can you just take some pictures for Facebook? And I'm like, Grandma, no one's buying a ruby necklace off of your personal Facebook page. Like, it just doesn't work that way. In 2023, you've got to have a website. You've got to have something. And so obviously all of my family lives in Missouri. I live in Florida. And so it's, it's my way to kind of stay connected to my family and, and carry on a family legacy of four generations of women in business. Fourth generation. Four generations of women and business. So this was always something that I had thought about for years and years. And then it just made sense to do it. I was like, I don't know, I thought about it for two years and pondered the idea and when, when's the right time? And then June, it was just like, I've got time.

Let's just make it happen. So where can people see these, the designs? Headline buy m.com is my website. It's on my social media as well. They're edgy statement pieces that when I was, listen, when I'm getting ready for TV, I was on TV for four years. And so I was always finding and having to come up with new outfits every week. So there were some pieces that I'm like, I've never seen anything like that. Oh, I want to make something that feels this way or looks this way or it kind of is a bold piece.

And so I design a lot of my pieces. And it was my creative outlet within WWE as well to be able to have headline, connect to my family, have my small business, and be able to wear my designs on national television. That's really freaking cool. And this isn't just for women. You have men's designs too. Well, I do. And that, you know what? I think for 2024, that's really a goal that I want to check off the list is to make specifically men's jewelry.

I've had my drip and necklace worn by Trick Williams, Seth Rollins, which was really cool. cool. Who else? I've had several men that have just decided like, you know what, we're going to make this unisex. We're going to wear it too. Why is Vic Joseph not on the train? I know. Can you imagine my husband wearing jewelry? He only wears his wedding ring and that is it. I cannot imagine him wearing any of my stuff. Maybe I'll make something that's easy for him to wear and he can kind of put his two cents in. That would be the true test. To see if he'd like it. If you can get Vic to wear Or something. Yeah.

Maybe I'll make that like a movement. Like get my husband to wear jewelry. But I take the wedding ring. So yeah, I really want to create a men's line. I think it'd be so popular. And like I said, men want to support. I've had so many of my friends, wrestlers, just men in fashion. And just men in general say, what do you have for men?

And I typically just have more women's stuff. But some of my pieces can be unisex. That's exciting that you had that going for the last six months. and now you're able to put so much effort into this. It's a blessing, honestly. I was so bummed when I heard the news that you got let go from WWA. Well, thank you. How are you doing?

I'm good. You know, I think once the dust has settled, it's been really, it's a blessing. I think that there's so many new beginnings, and I'm excited to see what's to come in the future. The outreach and the support that I've gotten from friends, family, coworkers, colleagues, production, staff executives in WWE has just been, the fans, most importantly, have just been, it's been insane. That's what made me emotional when I got released was being able to hear from everyone how much I impacted, you know, their opinion in when watching WWE and when watching NXT. That's what made me emotional was hearing from all of

of the people of like their favorite moments in my career and the favorite interviews that I've done and the magic that was created on screen, like that made made such a big impact on me to see what I made on them. How have you been able to process this? You know, I think it's, like I said, I think this is a, as a way to say there's a new beginning and everything and just kind of like, okay, what's next? I know, like I said, I have my jewelry business. And so I've been putting all my efforts into that, into my creativity there. That's almost my full time. My husband still works within the company, obviously. So that's really interesting that he's still there. I'm not. And I think that, I don't know if people know, but we were the first couple on the announce team,

like genuinely, like that are announcer and announcer that are married. So we kind of like really figured it out there. But I'm, of course, still supportive of WWE and NXT. And I still watch him. And I still text him good luck before every show. I've still, obviously, all my friends are still there. So I'm still supportive regardless. Who reached out to you that surprised you the most? So I've had, I had so many messages of people being like question mark, question mark and confused because I think it really took everyone by surprise. It came out of nowhere, to be honest. Yeah. And this wasn't like a round of releases, if you will, where 20 people got released. And I think it's interesting. And I think there's still, I know a lot of people in wrestling. I think people say, I just needed to take a break.

I just needed when they leave WWE and they go and do something else or they leave AEW and they just need a break sometimes because wrestling is 24-7. It's 365. For me, like, working in WWE, I was fully ingrained. I'm watching Raw on Monday. I'm watching Smackdown on Friday. I'm there at NXT on Tuesday. I'm doing the live events on Saturday, Sunday. It's a full, Like you're emerged, you're submerged, I guess I should say, into the business. So for me, it's like some people say that they just need a break. But I never got that opportunity to really say I needed a break. I was in it.

I was like ready to conquer whatever came at me next. But like I said, like there were so many people that reached out. And I am endlessly grateful and thankful for all of that from the fans online and messages I still get today. I mean, we're doing this, what, three, four weeks later? At the end of the month, this happened December 1, and I'm still getting messages and people reaching out. Probably the most surprising of people that messaged me that really took me back. I got a personal phone call from Terry Taylor, which he made me cry and tear up because he's had such nice things to say about me, not about my work, but about my character and my person. And I think that that

speaks, that really spoke to me because it meant that I had an impact on him. him and other people in the performance center and in WWE. And then Becky Lynch sent me like a three paragraph text message. And that was really cool because Becky's someone that I think, she's such a role model to so many people in WWE and then in just that are a fan of wrestling and they're not a fan of wrestling. And so to hear that the really kind words from her and how highly she thought of me was really awesome. Sean Michaels had some really nice things to say. That's another thing is Sean Michaels. I respect to the ends of the earth, Sean Michaels and Triple H. I think they're such amazing humans. And so for Sean to say that in the media presser,

the presser that they had going on was just, that was another thought of like, wow, this, this is really cool. He said the door is always open. Yeah. And hey, never say never. I know that people say that. And it kind of sounds cliche. But it's true. Like I, I didn't get to have my goodbye in WWE. I didn't get to choose to. leave. And that's where I was saying. I think it's some people need to take a break. I didn't get that opportunity to say, like, I'm ready to take a break. I was ready to keep on going and go to WrestleMania and do the Royal Rumbles and all of those things. So it was really, really awesome to hear Sean say those things and never say never.

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your fitness resolutions. You don't need to wait until January 1st to get to get started with this. So you can get 25% off your subscription and get three personalized workouts when you go to FitBod.me slash insight. That's 25% off and free personalized workouts. at F-I-T-B-O-D.m-E-slash insight. You did so much during your time in WWE, but I feel like there was still other things you didn't do. That's right. What didn't you tick off?

You're right. So I really always wanted to be in, to have my WrestleMania moment, just as the superstars do. They want to have their moment of, of all their hard work that's built up to this moment, to this match, to this exact,

huge capstone experience. I didn't get to have that WrestleMania interview or host a kickoff show. That was something I did for NXT, but I didn't get to do that on a larger scale with the WWE main roster. So that's something I always really wanted

to do and to have the Royal Rumbles and go on the road and say, hey, I made it to Raw to SmackDown. So that was a bummer. That's a bummer to say, like, I wanted to do those things and I wanted to do WrestleMania. Yeah.

I feel like wrestling either finds you or you find wrestling. And I think in your case, wrestling found you. Okay. It's just interesting because, you know, the path that you were on, you're studying broadcasting in school, and TNA Impact Wrestling finds you, and look at the journey you've been on ever since. A lot of people don't know that I, well, I have been in wrestling since 2016. So now I don't, I'm really bad at math. I'm better at talking.

So I don't know how many. That's like seven, eight years. But I didn't expect this. I didn't watch as a kid growing up. I went to school for broadcast, like you said, at Ole Miss, and I landed the job at Impact Wrestling. I'd never watched a day of wrestling in my life before I arrived on the scene. How does that happen?

So I was a broadcast major. I worked at the university as their primary MC for football, baseball, and basketball. So I was the girl that was like, hey, we're down in Section C with Chris. if he, you know, guesses this right, he's going to get a free oil change or whatever. I want a free oil change now. I just got one yesterday, actually, surprisingly. But I said I was doing that already. So I had some real life experience in college and then had an interview with my athletic director.

And he said, what do you think about wrestling, professional wrestling? And I genuinely, I looked at him and I said, are you serious? Are you kidding me? And he was like, no, I think it would be. really cool. And I'm like, all right, let's try. Let's do it. So I had a meeting in Nashville with some of the executives. And then I landed the job, but I was not only on camera. I was doing social media. I was writing articles for the website. And I was live tweeting for impact. So we would film all of these shows. And then we would hold them. And then they would go out on a Tuesday or Wednesday or

whatever. And then somebody would be live tweeting. So I was really learning as I went. And just a matter of like, I don't know what I'm doing. I'm figuring it out. I'm writing these articles. And I would, there are several people. One particular that was so helpful in my career. Drake Maverick is what he was in WWE. I call him Rockstar Spud because he was Rockstar Spud in Impact.

I call him James Spud, actually. James is his real name. And I remember he was like, if you have any questions, this business can be interesting. Call me. Call me and ask me. Don't ask anybody. Just ask me. because I will be able to give you a full thought-out answer and lead you in a direction

that you need to be directed to. He was great. Jeremy Borash, which is now still at WWE, he kind of taught me my hosting abilities and how to create a schick, if you will, when you're out there and you're talking to a live audience. It's either sink or swim. They're like, are these people going to respond to me or are they not? How do I keep these people engaged? That's something that you have to learn, you know, as a broadcaster. And Jeremy and I figured daughter's shtick when we were at impact. And then he was like, all right, kid, take it over. So there's several skills that I've learned from him, even interviewing skills because Jeremy did backstage interviews. Jeremy has worn every hat. That's right. And so there's some people.

And now we were, until I got released in WWE, we were still working in the same brand. Like, it went full circle moment. If you didn't grow up watching wrestling, then you're immersed into this world, just thrown into it head first. What surprises you the most about it? So I think the respect aspect of the industry. I think it's so important and it's been passed down from years and years and generations upon generations. And I think that's what took me by surprise. But I obviously respect the respect now that I've been in business.

But it's not just learning like who the characters are and what a heel and a face is. It's learning everything. If you didn't grow up watching it, you're trying to figure out everything on the fly. Oh, listen. I was like writing articles or doing my research. research, it sounds so silly, but I would have like a spiral notebook. And at the time and impact, it was Bobby Lashley, Drew Galloway, which drew McIntyre. And so I was like writing these guys out, like, okay, Bobby does not like Drew. And this is why. And I was like trying to compartmentalize

it in my brain because there's so, there's storylines, there's rivalries. It all go, it's very intertwined. And so I just did the grunt work of just learning and like putting my head down. and just getting to know the business. And I think there's something cool about that. Now to take a look back and go, she knew nothing, absolutely nothing. And here we are. We made it to the majors,

aka WWE, that was always my, it wasn't my goal, but then it became my goal. And it became my life. And how did it happen? How'd they find you? Do you?

So I'm going to be very honest. When I applied to work with WWE, I had a tryout in 2017. I did not get hired. I applied in 2019. I was living in Los Angeles at the time. And I applied online for my role. Wweecareers.com.

I swear, I was like, how does this happen? How am I applying? You would think, like, we're all, the wrestling business is very small. So we all know each other. We all end up seeing each other down the line. If somebody gets released or they go to a different company, we all still connect.

We're all still friends. Yeah. And so I applied for the role online and started in Connecticut. for the digital team and then was there for six months and then got called to NXT. And so then I was on TV immediately for NXT, which was always my goal. I wanted to do television. I wanted to do interviewing.

That's what I had learned throughout the years. You know, many people are so excited going, all I need to do is go to the website and just submit my stuff. Truly. And that was when the bump was forming. And so, like, they were hiring for a new WWE now. They were hiring for the bump. And so it was just kind of like perfect time, perfect opportunity.

and I applied. And when I had the interview, they said, do you, so do you watch wrestling? And I kind of went, yeah. Did you see my resume?

Did you see my resume real? Yes. Half the people that were at Impact were then it, are now at WWE, the Bobby Lashley's, the Hardys at the time. Cameron Grimes, Joaquin Wild,

Chelsea Green. Like there was such L.A. night. Like very close, very, very, yeah, very, very close friend of mine. And it's bizarre. watch his rise in WWE.

And so exciting, too, I still can't look at him and be like, wow, you are a megastar, but he's a megastar. And I'm so proud of him to see what he's done. I was just texting with him before you got here. You were probably friends with him in L.A., right? Yes, yes. I was actually. That place that he lived right off of Hollywood Boulevard, and you're a maniac for living here.

I know, but we had several fun nights there of, like, people in wrestling. I don't know if you ever went to that place. I went to his Halloween parties before. Then we might have met there at a Halloween party in Los Angeles. Maybe Halloween that would then turn into his birthday. Right, right. There was always a party, always an event in Los Angeles. There was a good crew of us when I was there.

He throws a great party. That's very true. Throws a great party. So then you get to WWE. Then I get to WWE. And you're like, oh my gosh, all I have to do is my job. I don't have to do. I don't have to write an article and do social media and live tweet.

And like I would have folders and folders of pictures of like, do you remember when the Hardy Brothers would do? in the deletion stuff. Yeah. So I'd, I have photos. I could probably still go back today because I have 60,000 photos on my phone and find those photos from Impact Days that I saved in folders to specifically tweet out at a specific time.

But with that, like, I think in WWE, too, you have to be very well versed because I'm not a natural ring announcer, but I learned to do that because I think the more you know in WWE, the more the better off you are. And so I love doing the live events. That was really a fun skill I got to tap into a little bit and connect with different people that aren't an XT that are more Ron SmackDown. And then being able to like learn to be on the fly. That's so important in WWE that at any moment, you're live.

And like you can, it's either sink or swim. So you can either do it or you can't. And the show that I did with Alicia Taylor called What's Next? I got, that was probably the best thing I did in my career for me was do the show. We'd just sit down after a TV on Tuesday. It would come out on a Wednesday or a Friday. And we just talked. Like, we just had guests on and got to pull the curtain back a little bit,

which is so unique in wrestling. And I loved it because we got to just go off of each other and feel the energy and, like, talk to talent and see how that felt. Who was your first wrestling interview in Impact? Like, when you first, like, you're thrown into the fire here. Who's the first interview you do? I don't even. remember to be honest.

I was doing Facebook lives with Jeff Hardy and not knowing a thing about the business. Is it explained to you? Like, this is a legendary wrestler.

I think so. We had a social media guy at the time and I think he was like, let's just try it out. Let's just do it. And I'm like, okay, let's see. Like, what do you even ask? If you're new and you don't know

anything about the business, like what do you even say? I think I figured it out. along the way, but I was just like, I mean, a deer in headlights. Like, holy shit, we're doing this. Like, what am I even say? But I don't remember. Like, I'll have to go and find out, but I've had some really cool interviews throughout

my career. I can say that. What was the first thing you did in WWE? Because when you first come into WWE, I don't know if everybody realizes this. You wear a lot of hats. They're trying to figure out, are you a backstage interviewer? Are you a ring announcer? Are you the live event host?

The first thing I did was interviews. Well, let's take it back a little bit further. I was doing WW Now, which is like a... It's like a weekly news show for WWE on Mondays and Fridays, kind of giving the scoop the rundown of what you can see on the show that night. So I was doing that. And then once I got moved to television, I started doing the interviews. I remember very vividly...

I actually think I remember my first interview in WWE. I think it was Austin Theory and Tyler Breeze. There was an interview that we did. there was a show that we did at the performance center. I think it was like a homecoming type thing before COVID happened and before we moved to the performance center. So we were still filming at full sale. I don't remember, but it was something like that.

I did some kind of interview like that. And we had to do it a few times because there was a moment that they took the camera. And I think they said, take a picture to last longer. Theory said that to breeze. But we kept screwing up the photo. And so it's a moment. moment. I'll have to go back and find the interview, but that was pretty fun. I remember that very vividly. With everything you've done, now you have the ability to do anything. So what's next?

You know, I don't know. I think that's okay sometimes to say I don't know. And I think sometimes it's nice to take a break and stop and change direction and go, what is it that I really want to do? Do I want to continue in wrestling? Do I want to do something in entertainment and in music and in media? So there's a lot of question marks, but I also think, I don't know, I'm excited to see what's next. Vic and I have talked about having a baby, and I think that, I know you, I know you're a new dad, so I know you're like, yes, do it. Join us. Listen, I think it's interesting because there's so many of us in WWE that we're in wrestling

in general, so that you come into the wrestling business, you join the wrestling business in your early 20s into your 30s. you get to your 40s, sometimes it's a little bit too late to have a child. You know, it's personal preference for everybody. But I think those are the crucial years when you're in the wrestling business that you want to make the most of your career. You want to have those huge moments. And I think sometimes for a lot of us, it's hard to say, when is it okay to stop and say, let me put my personal life as a priority and starting a family if that's something that people want to do. I think you look at Becky Lynch and you look at Alexa Bliss and Carmella and Barbie

Blank, Kelly Kelly, and all of the beautiful moments that they're sharing with their families now. And I think it's really cool to see these generational talent that are taking their time to they've done it. They've had their moments. And then you start to think about these other women that are like in a different category or a different age range of like the Chelsea Greens, the Raquel Rodriguez, the Ria, the Bianca's, like, we're all in this certain age range, another set of generational talent. And then you think, okay, so if they're having their time to go and like, when's it, when's there, when are they putting their personal life a priority? Then you look at NXT and you look at Cora Jade and Roxanne Perez and all those that are

younger talent that are, they're not ready to have a baby yet. So I think it's a trickle down effect that I don't think anybody thinks about those things, but those are moments that you go, like, when's the right time? And is there ever a right time in your career? Because there's always just one more moment. You want to have one more match. You want to have your WrestleMania moment. But for me, I think I always, listen, I'm 29 going on 30.

My husband's almost 40. And sometimes you have to set aside your professional life and focus on your personal life and have that natural balance to go. Both of these things are important. But what's important right now? Sounds to me like in nine months, we're going to have a new headline here. I don't know about that. Listen, I don't know about that.

That's the start of the Brown season. Oh, gosh. I can only imagine. But yeah, I don't know. That's exciting to think about. I think it's just something to note and something to think about and say, I don't know when the right time is, but if it were to come, it would be a blessing. There is never a right time.

Right. I know. We have a six-month-old. But to even start to think about that means that you're already heading in that right direction. Sure. But there's definitely never a right time. life's never going to line up perfectly.

I know. But you're not being on the road a lot. Would be great. I would allow, not having a contract would allow me to be at home and take this time to focus on a family and to grow our family and then say, okay, now what? Now what am I going to do? So it's a question mark, but we'll see. And then I say that.

And then I may have a life-changing opportunity that's presented in January or February. And then I can say, okay, well, maybe just a couple more years. and then I'll wait and we'll see. Well, when you were still in college, you were doing like feature reporting, right? And you were doing like entertainment stuff? Yes. Is that still a possibility? Is that still an interest?

I really love music. And I think that that's something that I didn't even really realize until I left Nashville because I lived in Nashville for three years. And in Nashville, I don't know if you've been to Nashville. Yeah, of course. And I was in Summer Slam last year. Yeah. And there's the live music.

Oh, Broadway. What a scene. Right. And there's all these opportunities to see live music and to hear new artists. And I didn't realize that until I left that I was like, I miss that. I miss that aspect of the city. It's so it's so hospitable and it's small, but it's big at the same time. And so I think, I don't know.

I may try to dive into something with music. I may do something entertainment related. I don't know. We'll see. Look, I think it's just a matter of time until Vic is the voice of raw. And then I've been like, I'm saying it not you. Okay. And then I just feel like that you're just.

free then to do whatever you'd like to do. Right, right. And I would love to, don't get back to WWE and finish. I'm not going to use Cody Rhodes line here. I was going to say finish the story, not doing that. He wouldn't care if I did anyways. I can say that. I've known Cody and Brandy for so many years.

And he'd be like, good for you, Ken's. Go for it. But to get back and continue to do interviews, but do it on a different stage, I think that's a goal that I never got to check off. And I don't know if I mentioned this, but somebody tagged me in a post and I thought it was really, really nice and really beautiful. I always had this chemistry on camera with Wes Lee. I don't know if you watched NXT. And we would do the high fives.

I've known Wes since we worked at Impact Days together. And the high five was just so natural because that's just who we are as people. So a lot of what you saw on camera was so many of these talent was genuinely the feeling. Like, of course, you turn it up a notch when you're on camera. But somebody had tagged me in the fact that the last thing you see of me on WWB television is Wes and I giving a high five. And he and I say, good luck. And he goes, all right, kids, you go, girl.

And then he goes off screen. So I think that's very poetic. Wow. I believe in those types of things. And when somebody mentioned that to me, I was like, holy cow, that's cool. That's really a nice moment. to have as your last moment seen on WWE television. Yeah, you didn't get a goodbye, but you kind of got a good buy.

I kind of got my own version of a goodbye with a high five and like what we've been doing for months and months that people really, really loved because they felt the authenticity behind it. Yeah. So I think that that was really neat. I think there's such a balance with what you do as a backstage interviewer because you're trying to shine the spotlight on somebody else while trying to not have too much of it on you and it's such a fine balance that you do a great job of. Where, where is the balance?

I think it's, I tried to think, somebody gave me this advice one time. When you're doing an interview, what emotion is there? What do you, what do you want to feel from this? Like, if I'm doing an interview with Grayson Waller, pardon my language, he's an asshole. Like, he's arrogant. He's an asshole. So that's already as he, who he is as a character, I'm thinking, well, this guy's annoying. The majority of the population, pretty much everyone that's watching the television show, they want to feel that from me. Because I feel like my job as an interviewer, an interviewer's job is to help get that emotion across and help across, I should say, and help the character, the WWB superstar have their moment. And so it's not like they're having to spell it out

so much to people. That's my job to help them. So it's almost like you are putting yourselves in the shoes of the people watching. Of the fan. That's exactly. Exactly right. I've never heard it explain that way, but that is, that's so brilliant. Every time I would go into an interview, I would think like, oh, they love Johnny Gargano. Of course. Johnny Gargano is like everyone's guy. Or, yeah, like, I would, I would try to embody that emotion and really almost sometimes, like, write it out on a piece of paper or put it on my phone. So you know, so in my brain, it's like, what am I, what are the fans wanting to get out of this? Yeah.

So it makes the experience more enjoyable for every. That's like an acting practice, which I don't think a lot of people apply the same stuff to wrestling. Probably not. The idea when you're looking at a script is like, what is this character feeling? And that's so interesting to have that explained as a backstage interviewer because I don't think anybody thinks about it that way. They think about it as like, this is the post game interview at an NFL game. It's like, give me the stats. And that's, and that works for some, but like, that's not realistic either.

We're a television show. Like WWB is a television show. And so it's a way to you want your audience to connect with these superstars. And I think that's why I sometimes connected with the audience is because I was giving them their genuine

feelings. I was allowed to and that's also another thing is I remember I asked Triple H I'm like, how can I? Can I, am I allowed to like bounce off of people? Like if somebody says something to me that's just completely absurd. Am I allowed to give my genuine thought back?

And he's like, works for me. And so that was really cool. Like I was, I gave that freedom. They were giving me that freedom to do that. And that's, I think, what worked for me that kind of helped establish who I was on screen. The United States Soccer Federation present the U.S. soccer podcast. My name is David Goss, and I'm joined by my co-host, Megan Clemenberg.

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. What do you wish you would learn? What did you learn in WWE that you wish you had known when you were an impact? I'm really thankful that I started an impact. Really. because I think the WWE is such a,

they're major, they're major leagues. I've said that. Like impact and like all these companies, like listen, TNA is coming around. I love all that's happening with impact wrestling right now. And then,

but I think that I'm so thankful. Like I said, to start an impact and then grow into a person to who I was when I got to WWE. Because I was able to flourish throughout the years. And then go, I know who I am. I've had this confidence.

Now I can be. build upon it and really create who McKenzie is on screen. When you first started in WWE, did they put you with somebody and kind of like, oh, wow. I came again in a weird situation because it was COVID times. So I started in the studios and then moved over to NXT. And they're like, you know what you're doing. Kind of. And then once we went back on the road and we were doing WWW lives, I was like, you guys think

I've learned these things. I've never learned how to do. this. And so then I would go in and just would learn with Alicia Taylor and Vic and like, you hate learning from your husband. Like we talk about wrestling, but we don't talk about wrestling because I think it gets too involved. And people ask that all the time, how do you create that balance? We don't talk about wrestling. We truly don't. He talks about plants a lot. He loves his plants. He loves his plants. He loves his plants. He's such a dad. Like, he's such a dad. But I think you need that in a relationship. I think you need. I think you need

that healthy balance. Especially if you're both working at the same place. You need to be able to go home and have other interests. And turn off. And of course we have our like, okay, let's catch up about the day. Or let's talk about this. Or I actually would go to him for advice and say, what would you ask this person? Or if I was doing the kickoff shows, like, what would I ask Sam Roberts? Or like, what I, you know, like what I just was able to, we're able to bounce off of each other, which I think is really unique too. But I think that people forget that you pointed out it's a TV show, right? I think people forget that a lot. People also forget it's a job.

People forget that even though it's a dream job, even though you love what you're doing, it's still a job. So when you're coming home, maybe there's a bit of a decompression. There's the distance that you need. Yeah, yeah, exactly. And that to talk about plants or the browns or whatever

it happens to be. Yes, for sure. Yeah, so my time in WWE was interesting because I think people assumed I knew these things. And I didn't know these things, but I got to learn and I got to figure it out and just like do the hard work to do the WW lives, to learn how to ring announce to so many for so long, people were saying, you're an interviewer. Be conversational. I'm like, okay, cool, I can master that. Let's be conversational.

Let's talk about it. Let's chit chat. Yeah. But then when you're an announcer and you're doing something like Samantha Irvin or Mike Rome or Alicia Taylor, you're projecting. It's a different level of tapping into a different part of your vocal cords. that you're like, I don't even know that. I didn't know that existed. So I was able to learn that. There's videos of you as a ring announcer on YouTube. Yeah. And I did okay. Right. Pretty good. Thank you.

Yeah. Like there's, you and Ria Ripley have this little, yeah. And then I did an interview or I did, excuse me, I did a ring announcement for Cody and that was really cool. And I was growing in that and people would really say like, oh, you sound great. You're finding your own.

You're finding your own with it. And so right when I was released, I was like I was finding my own in the ring announcing side of things too. I feel like there's going to be opportunities that are outside of WW. Like impact, I feel like is going to reach out at some point. Would you want to go back to impact? I think it would be a homecoming because I was there for four years and it's where I started and it would kind of come back around.

I don't know. I don't know. We'll see. You've got so many other things that you, I mean, we've talked about this entire interview. Got so many other things that you're focused on. Maybe this is a nice little break from wrestling for a little while. Yeah. And I have had some auditions already, which is I'm very, very thankful for, which is great.

I cannot reveal my cards here. But I have had some. auditions already. And then I've got something in the works for January that I'm really excited about that was a passion project that I had pitched for four years and it never really did anything. And so I'm excited to see how that comes out once we get going on it in January. Like you really have like any opportunity here in front of you. The timing of this actually feels like, you know, with the holidays around the corner, you've got a chance to kind of like, I don't know, be with the people you love.

And Deacon Press. Yes. I think, too, I said this to Vic the other day. I think with running a business and my time in WWE, I wasn't sleep. Like, I wasn't sleeping. I wasn't resting. I was just like, go mode. Like, let's just do it.

And then I would have a couple days and I would just like, I would be sick and I would just be in the bed because I was just running myself ragged in like every facet of life. And I think sometimes there are things that are put into your life. There are situations that happen. It almost force you to take a break. And I don't know if this was one of them. I don't know. Or to redirect or to say like your path is going to be a little bit different here.

Yeah. And so I don't know if this is one of them. I'm just really interested to see. I think that especially because the new year is on the cusp here, like 2024 is going to be such a different year than 2020, 22, you know, all the years before that. New, what did I say? New year, new her. I am getting to go. I'm going to a few signings.

And already, and I've got one in February, March, April, and May. I'll be in Los Angeles. I'll be in the Northeast. I think I'll be in Indianapolis. Do you know what it is? J.R.'s collectibles, maybe? Okay. Yeah.

I think that's what it's called. So I'm doing that in February. I don't know exactly. But I have those that are for sure on the books. Russell Con. Russell Con. I'm doing that. Matt Cardo.

I saw you did an interview with him. He's obviously a very close friends of ours. Him and Chelsea were at our wedding in Italy. We had only nine people at our wedding in Italy. And he and Chelsea, John Morrison and Taya. Taya, yes. I'm the only person that calls for Kira. And people go like, who are you talking about Kira Hogan? I'm like, no, not Kira Hogan. I'm talking about my friend, Kira, Taya Valky. So who else makes the cut? There's four of our nine. Yeah. So it was my mom and dad. Okay. Well, it makes sense. Our two best friends from Nashville and then my other friend Clint that lives in Los Angeles.

Wow. So only four wrestlers make the cut. Only four wrestlers. Two wrestler couples. Yeah. And it was amazing though because I highly recommend that to anybody that's getting married. Like we were on television. We were on television. We are on television on a weekly basis. So for me, I didn't need a production. I was like, let's just do something small and intimate. And then you're not having to deal with like, oh, I don't like my makeup. Ooh, I don't like my dress. Ooh, like all the drama. of a wedding day, everybody was there for us and they just wanted to make the day so special for us. And I think that's so cool. Like that doesn't happen half the time. So that was really, that was really awesome. We did the same thing. You did. We got married at a courthouse. Okay. Because we talked about it and we're like, oh, should we have a small wedding? Well, then what's small? Like, yeah, where's the cutoff? Right. Because if you invite this person,

then you got to invite this person. If that person gets invited, then this person else. Yeah. Yeah. There's no, there's no easy limit to cut, to divide. So when you get married to the courthouse, you have to bring a witness. That's right. He's brought two friends. Okay. And it was the greatest day. It's exactly what you're saying. It's a special day because it's just about you. And we actually, like, I don't know, I think I put this on my Instagram. I don't know if I did, but we got married in June of, what did we last year? June of last year. Yeah, I got married in November. Sorry. What did I get married? So we know we got married in June legally. Okay. Because we had the two kids. We had all of our family.

It was like a family ceremony in my hometown in a backyard. My dad's best friend married us. So that was really special. I have those photos. And then I have our wedding photos from October. That's when it was October in Italy. I'm like, everything's blurring together. What day is it actually?

Where are we? How did I get here? Yeah, right? How did you meet Vic in the first place? We met at a wrestling show. He was calling Raw. And I had just started with the company. I was still in the digital side of things.

we met, I think, in Minnesota. I think we're in Minneapolis. And we met and it was like instantly. I knew there was something there. I just didn't know what it was. But you meet lots of people in the wrestling world. Yeah. And I was like, this guy's interesting.

And I don't know what it is about him. But I just felt a completely different connection. I'd ever felt with anybody else. And he was missing meetings to be able to talk to me, funny enough. And so I didn't know that, though, at the time. I'm just like going on about my business and meeting people saying hi, filming the things. I think I was filming something for the bump at the time. And we have a, we have from the night that we met, there's a small little clip of me interviewing him for the bump.

And so it's funny now to think back and to look at that. It was the moment. Yeah. So we met in Minneapolis. And then we went on our first date a month later in Chicago. I was there for Survivor Series. I guess he was there. No, it wasn't just Survivor series.

I don't remember what pay-per-view it was. I was there for an XT takeover. I was shadowing at the time. And he waited for two hours for me because I was like, I got caught up in things. I wasn't able to get away as early as I thought. And then we had a really late dinner. And then from there it was history. What was your first day?

Dinner? We just went, yeah, we went to dinner at EVs. Oh, no, EVs. Yeah, we were in Chicago. Oh, I'm so sorry. 100% we were in, we were into Eddie V's in Chicago. Isn't that the Target Center? I don't know.

I don't know Chicago that well. Okay. So we went and had that and then we went to like a little dive bar and had drinks. It was just very casual. And look, it's either it's, you talk about sink or swim. When you date someone you work with, this is dangerous. You're either in or you're out. That's it.

Right? Right. It's either you get married or it is just treacherous. Yep. You got to see them all the time. And we try to keep it a secret for a little bit. who were we getting? It was the worst kept secret in wrestling. Like, we were always together. We would always end up seeing a writer. Like, we would always see, like, someone from the Ron Smackdown

team. And we're like, hey, what's up? Yeah, we're just, like, grabbing coffee real quick. Like, we tried to keep it low key and it was so not low key. It was the worst kept secret. You guys both seem so happy. So I'm so happy for you guys. Yes. Thank you so much. I appreciate it. And I've said this so many times before, but Vic is so immensely talented for, I've known him for years, but what he's doing on commentary is so, so good. It's really cool to see the dynamic between him and Booker. I absolutely love, I guess I should say this too. I absolutely love Stu Bennett.

What is he on camera, Wade Barrett? Wade Barrett. I can only call him Stu. He's like family to us. So when he was coming down to NXT and we were doing the shows together, we would watch the premium live events at our house and have like a pool day was stew. And so we had so much fun. He's like family, truly. And then when Booker came along, it's just interesting to see the different dynamic. But I love Book. Like, he's awesome. He

always calls me, Em, like, hey, M. And Charmel is amazing. And so Booker will call Charmel throughout the day or would call Charmel throughout the day. And she'd be like, where's my girl? And so I would jump on the phone and we'd talk fashion and purses and boots and all the things. And so it's really cool to see the dynamic between the two and see how they come across on air and watch it from behind the scenes too. It's amazing thinking about all the wrestling couples. Yeah. Like Booker and Charmell are one.

And then Matt and Chelsea, although everyone you've named and now you guys are one. Yeah, of course. And somebody said that to me one time. Like before I had found Vic, it was like, why do you guys all date each other? Like, why do you all date each other and marry each other? And I think it's just because we get the industry. Like everybody gets it. You just get it.

You don't have to explain it to someone. I think too, like some people can get insecure. Everyone is like, for the most part, beautiful. Like you think about the men and the women. Everybody's pretty beautiful. And so it's like, how does that, how does that happen? Like people get insecure around what they're significant other that's there. But if you're married to somebody that's already in the business, you know each other.

So there's no weirdness. And I mean, you're not in the business and your significant other is on the road five days a week, four days a week every week. It's tough. Yeah, it's definitely tough. Yeah. Definitely. What would you say to someone who wants to be in the spot that you're in doing the job that you had? Well, when I was getting my broadcast degree in college, I remember it was like my capstone class. We had a professor that said, listen, half of you guys in this room won't make it. You won't.

And it was very eye-opening that everybody kind of looked at each other. Like, how would you say that? But at the same time, it's few and far between in this business. Not in the business, I think in rest, or excuse me, it's few and far between in broadcast to land a job. It's really hard to do. I mean, you get it. Like you're a broadcaster yourself.

And I've moved all over. over to chase these opportunities too. But you're right. And you know what's funny about that? Because I had a broadcast teacher, a journalism teacher say a similar thing. You look around the room and you're like, is it you? Yeah. Yeah. Who is it? You? Are you? And it comes down to, it's really just a battle of attrition. Like how often are you willing to hear no before finally getting to that? Yes. Yes. And that was me. Like for years, I did that. But for years, I would apply and they'd say no. Oh, sorry. You're not the person for us. You're blonde. We don't want blonde. Like, I've heard that time and time and time again. But I also think there's that little nugget

of, like, hope of, like, you can do it. It's just, it's a lot of work if you're willing to, to put a resume reel together to figure it out and go, like, it might be uncomfortable, but to network and just get out there and, like, figure it out. I also, on my way to my first signing, since being released from WWE, I had a message from my professor that actually convinced me to be in broadcast. So I had one professor that said, half you guys won't make it.

That was at my year four, that was as I was graduating. But as a freshman, I actually wanted to go to school for geriatric physical therapy. That's what I wanted to start doing when I went to school. And then I had my first journalism class

or English class or something. And I had a professor, and she said, okay, and everybody needs to sit, down, whoever you're set with at the table. You need to turn to them and we're going to do an exercise. And you just ask the person beside you general facts about them, where they're from, their parents' name, their information, and then you're going to stand up and you're going to deliver it to the room. And I was like, okay, cake, easy. And so I did that and nailed it.

And then afterwards, the professor pulled me aside and she said, you don't know this yet, but you're a journalist. Wow. She said, you don't know this, but like, I could see it in you and I, you took that exercise and it was flawless. She said the way you delivered it, the information, the facts, well, how you presented yourself, you were absolutely a journalist. And from that point forward, I called my mom, I changed my major and went towards journalism

that next day. And I'm so fascinated by these types of stories where like one little thing happens that changes the entire course of your life. So I talk about things being poetic and I think like really how the universe happens. Yeah. I had messaged her. I went back to see, it's a professor named Millie West. She lives now, I think, in like the Bahamas.

And I'd messaged her back in 2019 and said, I just wanted to let you know how much of an impact you've had on my career. Wow. And at that time I was at impact wrestling. And she just responded when I was on my way to my signing and she said that means so much to me. She just responded four years later. She said, I'm in the Bahamas. I'm doing like, and she's an artist or something. And she said, I'm so excited to see you succeed.

Please send me all your updated stuff. Like, I'm so happy for you. But isn't that crazy? Wow. Yeah. It's like the way the universe works. It's crazy. This is why Back to the Future is my favorite movie of all time.

Yeah. It's just because like this thing ends up leading to this thing that leads to this thing that leads to us sitting here right now. Right. Right. I heard a story. of a, I can't remember which famous person it was, but a professor said to them like, you're really smart. And the person was like, I don't know if they meant that or not, or if they say that to everybody or not, but I believed it. And because I believed it, it changed the entire

course of my life. I believe in that. I truly do. I think it sometimes takes such, you need motivation from somewhere. And I think lately in my life, since starting headline, I've been really blessed to connect with people who inspire me. And in particular, there's my friend Ashley Snell that she owns a small boutique in Orlando called Ashley Snell Collection. But we've done a couple collaborations together. And she's like, she's motivated. She's determined. And I think it's so important to have friends like that that can motivate you and you can bounce off ideas with and that you're both just in the industry, like let's take it by storm and let's face. it out together. And so I've been really lucky to have some really cool people around me lately.

And that's helped kind of soften the blow of the release, right? Yeah. Did you ever think about wrestling? Oh, man. I get that question a lot. I'm sure you do. And I think I'm a better talker than I am a wrestler. I grew up doing gymnastics and cheerleading. So I think I could definitely do it. I can still do a back handspring. So I think I could do it definitely. But I don't I don't think I ever have the desire to do that. Brandy Rhodes actually told me something one time that stuck with me. When she had transitioned from being a ring announcer, she was Eden in WWE into impact.

I said, how did you know that you wanted to change and be a wrestler? And she said, well, let me ask you this. Do you ever have the desire to have your own entrance music and your own like video screen behind you? I was like, uh, not really. And she goes,

well, good, you're in the right spot. Because if you had that desire, you should have, you should definitely try to wrestle. And I was like, that's a good way to put it.

I've never, I've always kind of just taken that. Yeah. And thought it's a really good way to put it. Because a lot of the superstars, a lot of the wrestlers, like they want those moments. I like being a crucial part of their interviews and their development,

rather than being my own. Yeah. The cool thing about being. an interviewer is you're the catalyst for the story. That's right. Yeah. You end up being the person who helps people tell stories. And that's what I've always loved about this medium is the ability to just kind of guide a story and allow it to be told. Yeah. And some of my favorite moments in WWE and my career, I guess I should say so far, I did these Facebook lives with Triple H. It was the most nervous I had ever been for anything, for anything, because I was like,

Oh my gosh, it's triple H. Like, of course people are like intimidated a little bit. And I had Vic pretend as if he was Triple H in the living room to like go over my questions and like what I was going to ask him. And we were live on Facebook. And I think it got like millions and millions of views every time we did it. And it was so fun. And as we got to do it, I got to know him a little bit better and develop that relationship, which is really cool. And I'm thankful for.

I was just so nervous because I'm like, can you imagine Vic in the living room pretending like he's Hunter? And I'm like asking him these questions as I think the interview is going to go. And it's just ad lib. Like you figure it out on the fly.

Like he might not want to talk about something and you just divert or whatever. Like it's just you're learning as you're going. But having those moments where you're learning as you're going is really cool and you're getting to control the narrative and the conversation. And then as well as like the kickoff shows

when I was hosting and kind of figuring out the traffic between the production trucks and my and my guests or my co-hosts at the time. I'm really proud of that because that's something, nobody prepares you for that. You can do as many like trial runs as you want, but then whenever you're in it, you're like, oh, this is, we're live. We're as live as we can get. So how do we do this? And like, it's a, when the red light goes on, can you do it or can you not?

Is there something you learned from Triple H, maybe even just like from watching him or from working with him? Let me see. Learning from him, I think he has a presence about him, not only as an executive, but just in general, when he walks in a room, you know he's there. And I think that's really cool. But I also know he loves his family and he would always make it a priority to come over and say hello to our two kids. And I think that's so special because sometimes you don't see that a lot, that he'd make sure to take the time to talk to you. Same with Sean Michaels. I feel like Sean Michaels I could go to with anything and say, hey, I have something to talk to you about. He go great. Let me hear you out. And that was

really special to create that dynamic with them that not everybody gets. And I had that opportunity. I'm so excited to see what's next for you. Thank you. And congratulations on everything to this point. Congratulations on headline and everything you've got going on there. Thank you. I end every conversation with gratitude because it's such a big part of my life. Yeah. Three things in your life that you're grateful for. Oh, wow. Okay, three things I'm grateful for. I have to say my husband, my kids, my dogs, I think throughout the ups and the downs, they have been absolute rocks in my life. And so I'm really thankful to have them there regardless of anything that happens, any event. Second, would have to be my business. I'm really thankful that I

pulled the trigger this year and just went ahead and did it because it's so special. to not only me, but to my family as well and to carry on that legacy, there's just nothing like that. And I'm really grateful to have started that business and to see where that goes. Third, I would have to say, maybe new beginnings. I think that's something that people don't think about quite often is like there's really something unique in a new beginning. And sometimes people look at it as a downfall and I'm looking, I like to look at it as a positive, as a driving force for something new and a new opportunity that I might not even know is there, but it's there. So I'm really thankful for that.

Those are three great things. Yeah. So good to sit down with you. Yeah. Thank you for having me. Oh my gosh. It was strange to be on the opposite side. Yeah, right. I'm typically the one that's doing the interviews. I'm like, oh, I'm kind of nervous. Like, what do I say? Like, I'm not asking questions. I'm getting questions asked at me. So that's interesting. Yeah, right? No, this was so great. And so great to finally. meet you too. Right. It's been like, I think I followed you on Twitter for years. Same. I mean, it's a small world. So we all do. We all are paths to cross at some point. And so it's nice to connect. Well, I'm so excited for what's next. And we'll all be watching. Yes, thank you.

And thanks so much for having me. Okay, there we go, my friends. I am so excited for what is next for McKenzie. Go check out headline by M.M. And she's describing a lot of the jewelry that she's wearing here. Go check out this interview on YouTube so you can see exactly what we're talking about here. But, you know, that, I like that, I like her approach here. I like her approach of like, I need a new beginning and I need a break. I need a fresh start here. And that's exactly what she's getting. And who knows what 2024 is going to hold for her. But I am so excited to see it. Snap a screenshot. Let us know that you're listening to this and tag us when you post this on social media. So we can share it as well. She's at McKayette.

Benzie N. Mitchell on Instagram and Twitter. I'm at Chris Van Fleet. And what a quote here from Jim Rohn. Your life does not get better by chance. It gets better by change. Be great and be grateful. We will see you on the next one for some more insight with former WWE superstar Rick Boogs. 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 but get up in here the jim roams

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