The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Pro Wrestling & Politics are More Similar Than You Think | Beyond the Scenes

Episode Date: May 15, 2023

Professional wrestling and politics have more in common than you think. It's not enough for wrestlers and politicians to be themselves, they need to put on a show and connect with the crowd in order to win in the ring…or on the campaign trail. Roy Wood Jr. sat with WWE superstar, LA Knight, and host of the “Cheap Heat” podcast, Peter Rosenburg to break down the connections between these two worlds and take a deeper dive into Knight’s preparation for this past April’s WrestleMania 39. Original Air Date: March 28, 2023 Beyond the Scenes is a podcast from The Daily Show. Listen to new episodes every Tuesday wherever you get your podcasts, or watch at YouTube.com/TheDaily Show See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You're listening to Comedy Central. What up here's edition, listener? It's Roywood Jr. correspondent for the Daily Show. You're about to hear an episode of one of our original Daily Show podcast, beyond the scenes, hosted by yours truly. It's the show where we dive deeper into segments and topics from the show with the show's writers, producers, and outside experts. In this episode, we're taking a look at how wrestling and politics are more similar

than you think. I'm joined by W.W.E. Superstar L.A. Knight and Peter Rosenberg, host of the Cheap the tea podcast. Together, the three of us chat about how wrestlers and politicians put on the show to connect with the crowd. I also try my hand at a macho man impression. You don't want to miss it. And if you like the show, check out the Beyond the Scenes podcast wherever you get your podcast. Welcome, welcome and welcome to Beyond the Scenes.

The podcast, it goes deeper into topics and segments that originally aired on the Daily Show. This is what you got to think this podcast is. Like if this was a wrestling match. The Daily show was the regular main event and the Daily Show. This is what you got to think this podcast here. It's like if this was a wrestling match, the Daily Show was the regular main event and the cage and the folding chair and the table, this podcast is a flying elbow drop from Macho Man Randy Savage off the top rope to win the belt at Resselmania for a great ending to a classic match. Oh yeah. And today, I'm gonna try to to the match the match the match the the match the the the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the belt the the belt the belt the belt the belt. Man man man. Man the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. the. thean. thean. tean. tea. tea. te. te. thea. the. the. the. the. the. the. classic match. Oh yeah. And today I'm gonna try and do macho man. We're gonna be talking about wrestling, professional wrestling, sports entertainment. Just in time for pro wrestling's biggest event. Wreslemania, today we're diving into how the worlds of wrestling and politics or more like

than they may appear in wrestlers and politicians can learn a few things from one another about performance and building a connection with their audience. Now Ronnie Chang, Ronnie Chang, he did this topic on the Daily Show a couple of years back. He went down to Middle America in Iowa and flyover country and he talked to a wrestler named the Progressive Liberal and crafted a unique Dylan persona by bringing politics into the squared circle. Ms. Elizabeth rolled the clip. Democrats might know how to rally their base, but when they reach out to middle America,

they say things like... For working families to get a share of that prosperity that they're creating, we need some serious enforcement of competition laws. You're boring. It's no surprise. Last election, people in swing states went for a guy who said things like, who's gonna pay for the wall? Like to punch him in the face, I'll tell you.

Trump honed his trademark oratorical style. Where else? In professional wrestling. And if Democrats were going to fight to to to to to to to to to to to to to to the to to the to to to their th. the theck theck thosesesesese. those. thoom, thoom, thoom, thoome their their thoome thoome thoome their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their the.. Wea. Wea. thea. thea. thoooooooo. thea. thoooooooooooo... thea. tho. th where else, in professional wrestling. And if Democrats were going to fight back, they needed someone who could go head to head with a WWE Hall of Famer like Trump. And in the heart of cold country, we found it. Judge your ignorant mouth, because the progressive liberal has something to say. Who you're on the wrong side of history, shut up! But even if the crowd hates him, the progressive liberal could teach swing-stake Democrats

some classic wrestling techniques for getting voters' attention. Do you want to stick to broad, brush, stroke, talking points? Right. So, middle America would rather learn about politics through a mostly naked man than by reading a book. Yeah. Later in this episode, we'll be joined by WW Superstar LA Nighthull break down the world of wrestling and how politicians can take a few pointers from the art of wrestling. But first, my guess, can I say, friend? I feel like we've known each other long enough to friend adjacent with... I think we're, absolutely, if not friend, friend of Jason. If I saw you in a fight out fight, I the the the the the, I the, I the, I the, I the, I'll the, I'll the, I'll the, I'll the, I'll the, I'll thi, I'll the, the, thee, th, th, thi, with... I think we're absolutely, if not friend, friended Jason.

If I saw you in a fight I'd at least break it up. I don't know if I would help. I need to know what you did first to get punched in the face. He's a renowned radio DJ from the Michael K Show and Hot 97, who's also the host of the cheap heat podcast on the Ringer Wrestling Show from Spotify and your forever 24-7 champion Peter Rosenberg Welcome to Beyond the Seams. I am honored to be a part of a podcast this professional really makes my Gibroni podcast look like a joke. Your podcast is a good time man I've been on a couple of them now I apologize in advance for not wearing a shirt and tie for your podcast, but I'm trying to spiff you up my look.

I look weird without my blaze. I look like a McDonald's shift manager. Once you roll up, once you roll up your dress, once you roll up your dress. Oh yeah, no, no, you're a manager. It's no longer a correspondent. You got to drop some frown. Well said, well said. Drop through line around the building. Now let's just start with your love for wrestling, bro. Like, what's the earliest wrestling match or moment that you remember, like, that got you hooked? You know, and what is it about professional wrestling that gets the fans so wrapped up in it?

Like I remember watching Monday Night Raw as a child. I'm 44, just for perspective. So I remember watching Monday Night Raw and seeing the Ultimate Warrior. I, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, I, like, like, I, like, I, I, like, like, like, I, I, like, like, I, I, like, I, I, like, I, like, like for perspective. So I remember watching Monday Night Raw and seeing the Ultimate Warrior, dude I was watching wrestling on Saturday mornings, WCW, I watched GLO, I did all of it. But just take me back to your origin story of Fallen in Love with the Square Circle. So yeah, my origin story is the same, I'm almost the same age as you, I'm 43, and it was Saturday mornings. I can't pinpoint exactly what it was, like what the feeling was, but I do remember what storyline it was

and the one that really, truly hooked me was, they were simultaneous, they were the bill to Resselmania three, it was Hall Kogan and Andre the Giant, and the aforementioned macho man Randy Savage Savage and Ricky the Dragon's Steamboat, and those th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, tho, thoes, thoes, tho, thee, tho, tho, tho, was tho, was, was tho, was tho, was tho, was tho, was tho, and what was th, and what was th, and what was th, and what was th, and what was th, and what was th, and what was th, and th, and th, and th, and th, and th, and th, and th, and thee, and thee, and thee, and thee, and thee, and thee, thee, thee, and the, the an thean, and thean, and thean, and thean, soauu an thee, and thee, soa, soa, somea, and the aforementioned macho man Randy Savage and Ricky the Dragon's Steamboat and those two stories just drew me in man. My level of passion for Ricky the Steamboat, for Ricky the Dragon Steamboat getting his redemption on Macho Man after Macho Man crushed his larynx with the with the bell. I was just absolutely hooked from that point on. For me it was Ultimate Warrior, that was my guy. And before I understood the intricacies of

the human vascular system, and I did not know that you should not tie shoestrings, turnicate levels tight on your arm, and then run around the house, like, I saw Ultimate Warrior do the promo, it's like, huh, hooking, you'd like, like all of that stuff, right!, and th....... And, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, th. Like, th. Like, like, like, do the promos. Like, hold the spaceship with the rocket fuel. Hoke, Hoking, you'd like, all of that stuff, right? Yeah. I didn't know that when they y'all cut Ultimate Warrior would take that shit off his arm and get blood back to his fingers.

I kept that shit on my thing, bro, my cousin Voren used to put us in the figure four leg locks, he would put us in the perfect plex. And the thing that I always loved about wrestling also was that, you know, to a weird degree from a, you know, it leaned into stereotypes in the 80s, but there was still some degree of representation. No matter who you were, you had a guy. It was at the height of the Cold War and they still had Nikolai Volkhov stomping through that

bitch screaming Russia. You had the iron shake to represent the whole literally, like that part of it I really love. Now you come from a politically active family. Like does that help you understand wrestling in a unique way? Like to you, what are the similarities in this world? And, you know, what percentage of wrestling fans do you think connect with politics on the same wavelength? You know, I never think about it being the same wavelength, but there's no way to deny like some of the facts,

you know, when you talk about wrestling, there's good guys and bad guys. Obviously, in the case of politics, you're good guys and bad guys vary depending on your view of the world. But there is always someone, I mean, when you think about it, and I know we'll dive more into Trump obviously later for his multiple layers with regard to this subject,

but like when you think about it for so many people, Trump is like this long-term bad guy who lasts. Like it's almost like now if you were to talk when you talk to progressives, it's almost like in a weird way they don't want Trump to go away because he is the guy to root against. And let's be honest, DeSantis is almost the same guy in so many ways, but he's not nearly as fun to root against. Like he doesn't have a villain character tied up the way Donald Trump does for progressives.

And so my biggest memory about politics and the intersection with politics and wrestling was when me and my, at the time, very young cousin who was working on Capitol Hill in his early 20s, when him and I got into a loud screaming match about how I believed pro wrestling was just as important as politics. And he did not appreciate, now granted, I was trolling. I was trolling and I as a wrestling band often find myself, more so than now, often found myself on the defensive of because they call it fake and they wouldn notice the physicality and and and just sort of

with because of that because the outcomes are predetermined particularly you know not really not as much today although it still happens but really it used to be like just such an easy way to put someone down was to attack the fact with that wrestling was was predetermined which of course the the art in fact I prefer it I like. I like and I th I the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I tho. I the the tho. I the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I the. I the. I the. I theate. I thou. Because. I teateatea. Because. Because tea. Because. Because tea. Because tea. Because thooooooooooo. Because the. Because the the the wrestling was predetermined, which of course has no effect on how I viewed the art. In fact, I prefer it. I like. And I heard recently Rick Rubin' drama. Yeah, I heard Rick Rubin' Bobin' bff.

It's no different than your fucking TV show that you love and you tune in in prime time every week for I don't mean to cut you always is, I've always wanted to do this. As a matter of fact, you have the platform to do it, you should. I've always wanted to walk into a movie theater like wearing wrestling apparel. And when it gets to the good part of the movie, start around and yell to everyone, you know this is fake. It's like, I don't understand. And I think it goes back to a time where people felt like they were ripped off and cheated. Like when people finally realized that this art form, which was clearly not real then, was in fact predetermined. I think many people felt heartbroken and burned by it and angry at it as a result.

And some of the, that is left over to this day. But yeah, the political part's always been, it's always been there, and it's tied together in many different ways, whether directly or indirectly. But then to that point, I think that wrestling and politics do have that similarity because I think a lot of, I think a lot of voters

possess their politician is, wait, no you don't care about my issue, but I thought you cared about my issue. Why would you do that to me? That's not cool. And people are legitimately heartbroken. I think where wrestling and politics are also similar is that to me, to me, politics in America has changed from, I, I, that guy is just like me. Like every politician ran on, I is just like me.

Like every politician ran on, I'm just like you. They show up to your town, they wear your stupid denim, whatever you wear when you go to work. They show up at your job wearing a stupid hard hat. They eat the shitty burger at the fair to show you, look, I'm just like you. But somehow it is transformed into, I don't want to vote for the guy that's just like me, I want to vote for the guy I want to be, I wish I had his life, I wish I could be him, and every wrestler that we ever grew up, our favorite wrestlers were the ones we wanted to imitate, you wanted to be that person. I got four splinters in my hand trying to fucking be hacks all, because I didn't the the the the th. th. th. th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm a th. I'm a th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm thin, thin, thin, I'm thin, I'm that, I'm thin, I'm th th th. I'm th. I'm th. I th. I th. I to to to to to to to to to to th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I that that that that that try try try try try try try try ttry try that that that that thr- I wish, I wish, I wish, I, because I didn't understand the concept of you don't grab just raw two-by-fours in a back alley. Like if that's pressed wood, bro, you're

going to catch a disease through your hand. Like what what wrestler do you think would make a great politician? And I know Trump would be a good wrestler. I mean tru-I mean let's all we start. Let's be honest. Physically, it was not the most impressive performance we've ever seen. Yes, he has been involved in a storyline. I dare you to go back and watch. Did you just shit on his whole fucking arc?

I dare you to go back and he attacks Vince McMahon, you have never look close, you have never seen a human being throw punches that look like this. Like he like hits sideways like a little kid beating up his brother. But honestly, it's it's so hard for me to think of because there's so many people. Obviously an incredible voice in pro wrestling that would make a fantastic politician is Paul Haman. I don't there's any doubt about that. And not just saying this this this this this this th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi tho- tho- tho- tho- tho- tho- tho- tho- tho- tho- tho-n tho-n tho-n tho-n tho-n tho-n tho-n tho-n. You th. th. th. thi th. thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi to to to toe. toe. toeean. toean. toean. toean. toean. toean. toean. toean. toean. thean. thean. thee a fantastic politician is Paul Hayman. I don't think there's any doubt about that and not just saying this but in terms of new talent who you could really see flipping on the politician button I got to tell you LA Night would be perfect I believe he's completely capable of picking up that mic and and rallying a base in some direction.

I'm gonna ask him about that after the break. What about, what about the rock? I don't like the fact that they keep trying to pester the rock into running. It's like, dude, I got nine more franchises to make. I got 15 more Jimundias to make. I got, we're doing fast and furious to watch. Roy, let's the tho, thap, thap, thap, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, that, tho, tho, the the the the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, the rock, th, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to that, that, to the the that, the the the tho. thro. The Rock who I love he has his own TV show young rock Which is by the way, it's maybe the most underrated show on television It is a fantastic sort of traditional family sitcom. It's a wonderful show and I love it

Because it's all about pro wrestling, but he made the backdrop of the show that he was running for president So he loves to toy with this I I think, for people as well. And with Rocky, you never know whether he's just being a pro wrestler and working everybody, or if he really does have aspirations. It's really hard to tell. But I think that's what makes him so effective and in a way dangerous, because he knows how to charm people. He knows how to engage the voters. Like watch footage of a politician coming out of they've announced that they're running for whatever the fuck off is and compare it to a wrestler coming out the tunnel

Same music you got some van hey, we get higher and Higher straight up with and they're just pointing to the fan people are going ape shit crazy in a guitar is rocking. He's got a woman on his side Kissing him. What what what event? Let me ask you this before we go to the break. What event would you say in politics is the wrestle mania of the political world? You know, is it the conventions? I would say that the debates are essentially, you know, the mean gene kind of sense, which I've also said that there should be more shit-talking in politics.

I don't like the tactfulness in politics. If you're gonna lean into the entertainment factor and the bombasticness that politics is getting into, don't run on a platform, just blatantly talk shit about your opponents. That's part of why I talked to people. I mean, there is a guy who's done that. But nobody did it back. Nobody clap back at them. Especially the Republicans. You remember how, you remember how Jeb Bush got handled?

Yeah. I mean, he got tossed around, beat up, nothing. Um, Mark, Marco Rubio got destroyed, no comeback whatsoever. And funny enough, ironically enough, it's good old sleepy Joe who came back. The old man was the only one who sort of stuck back. And by the way, it worked. It worked. He punched back a little bit. Yeah, it's, I would say the final night of the convention in some ways is like a

wrestle mania. When I accept your nomination for president or whatever. Yeah, but in some ways, you're right, man, it's hard. The last couple of elections, the debates were such must-see TV. Yo, for real, I watched the Hillary, I think the final Hillary Trump debate at a big party at the 40-40 club in New York. Like it was like a fight, like you were going to a fight! So you're right. It's either the 40-40 club in New York. Like it was like a fight. Like you were going to a fight! So you're right it's either the convention or the debate. I just think that if politicians were smart if there's nothing else that they

would be able to borrow from the world of wrestling it's just have energy. I can't tell you shit about Howard Dean's platform but I can tell you that mothed that mucked out the their he. he-it. their he-it. th. He he he he he he th. He th. He th. He th. He th. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi thi thi thi the. thi thi the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th th th th th th th th th th th th the. the. the. thi's the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. theeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. the. the. the. the platform, but I can tell you that motherfucker had his dress shirt rolled up and was, Yeah! He looks like you right now. He looked like a McDonald's district man. He looked like the one that come in and check on me and asked me why the deep frying at the right temperature. And you always, and you remember, ah! After the break, Peter and I are going to be to be the the the to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be the to be to be to be to be to be the the the to be the to be the the the the the the the the the the the the the the thiolk. thiolk. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th...e, th.e, the.e.e.eathea.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e. tr tr tr tr trueueue. true. th th th th th th th th th break, Peter and I are going to be joined by W.W.E. Superstar LA Night.

We're going to further discuss how wrestling and politics are more alike than they appear to be and how becoming a pro wrestler can help some politicians get to that next level. We need to send all these politicians down to Tampa to whatever the hill the wrestling school is down there. They all need to be the the the the the the the the the the the their their their their their their their their their their the wrestling school is down there. They all need to be Performance Center. Yeah, they need to go down there. This is Beyond the Scenes. We'll be right back. Beyond the Scenes, we're back. Politics, wrestling.

How much do they overlap? A lot is what we're discovering so far. The host of Cheapheap. Peter Rosenberg has been posted up with me. Joining us now is someone much stronger than Peter, much more charismatic than Peter. I say all this with respect to you, Peter. I don't want you to think. By the way, complete respect, taken. Yeah, you have to respect it.

The glisten in the background of this gentleman. For those are you listening and not watching, all I see is championship belts. Yeah. Yeah. Thank God he wore a nice black leather jacket to dull some of that glisten off them. You can catch up on Friday Night Smackdown on Fox. LA Night, welcome to Beyond the Scenes. How you doing, brother?

Man, I heard you call Peter the forever 247 champion. Let's call me the forever million dollar champion, future W.W.E. Let me talk to you. You know what, see, and let's just start right there with with the world, with the world, with the world, with the world, with the world, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, with, the world, the world, the world, the world, the world, the world, the world, the fe, the the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, th..a, th.a, th.a, thi.a, the, the.e.a, th.e.a.e. th. th. thea.a. th. the. th. the. th. the.a. th. th. just start right there. Let's start right there with the world of wrestling promos for the people listening and not watching. He got all them belts glistening on the wall in the background. Just every single belt. Now if you lose a belt, do you have to like take that off the wall and unframed it and then like how does that work? We'll talk about that later. I'll ask you the question I asked Rosenberg. I. I. R. R. R. the to to to the to to the to the to the to to the the the to. R. R. R, to the the the to to. R, to to to to to to to to to to to to to to the the the the to to to their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the thea. theats. tea. tea. tea. tea. tea. tea. tea. tea. tea. tea. the the the the the the top, who was the wrestler that got you into wrestling, just as a fan, not necessarily as a career choice yet, but just when you were eight and nine and jumping off your dad's couch and he going, stop dropping off my couch, damn it, who were the ones that got you inspired? So I was about, I'm going to say, estimated about three years old, and I had already been put to bed and I snuck out back behind the

couch because wrestling was still on the TV and I needed to see what was happening and I poked my head around and Nikolai Volkov was talking all kinds of trash on Hawk Ogan and I remember he had that Russian hat and at the time I'm three I don't know what he's wearing it looks like a big burnt marshmallow and I think I yelled something, like, be quiet, marshmallow head. I was a big time, hawk-maniac. I told on myself by accident, my parents were like,

what are you doing here? It put me back to bed, but Ithe television and connect with people? I don't think people really understand just how difficult that is, because you're just talking. You're not doing a lot of moving around. Like, those interview segments, to me are where you fall in love with the wrestler.

The performance is one thing, but it seems like now, wrestlers have to be multi-faceted. Like it's one thing to be athletic and strong. Like we could argue that Andre the giant did not come through the screen in verbiage. He came through the screen in performance and just being massive. I would make the same argument about the undertaker. You know the next-gen version of that to me was the undertaker who was just I move in silent but when you hear that dong, you bitch is going to be scared. Like in your opinion, like, what is it that holds other wrestlers back from being able to have that

gift? Can you learn that gift? Is that something that's taught at the, when you at wrestling college, that's how I'm trying to frame it. Oh, wrestling college. When you at wrestling college, down in Florida, before you get to the wrestling, their, their, their, you go to it, do they put you on stage at a black comedy club and go attack the audience? Yeah, yeah. No, it's it's funny because a lot of the places you go, they don't do any of that. Like I started old school, you find a wrestling school and like the moves and stuff like that every maybe three months we'd do a little bit of promo stuff and that was it. Otherwise it was just you develop your personality on your own and that's why a lot of the guys I think just develop moves and never think like that isn't that what I think that the second biggest fear people in general is death the first is public

speaking so for a lot of people it's a tougher challenge to get in and pick up the microphone than it is to do a back flip or you know pick a dude up or whatever. So for me it was just that was always the focus because those are the guys that spoke to me like you said it like for me if a guy couldn't talk if he wasn't like saying something that but it's not just the saying the stuff, it's the mannerisms, it's the body language, all that stuff. I wasn't getting that, I just wasn't feeling them the same as the other guys.

What are the keys in your opinion to delivering a good promo? You know. And by the way, he's a good person to ask. I mean, you are the best new promo in WWWE right now. Thank you. I appreciate that. I don't know that I really like, I never thought about it step by step necessarily, but I think it just boils down to believe in what you're saying. And and there's also like a, there's a charisma, I guess that you asked a second to go, like, can that be learned? And I know there's a bunch of guys who I knew way back, who were not good talkers and just avoided it at all costs. Actually, I'm gonna use Sammy Zane as a great example. He like avoided it, wasn't a very good talker,

actually didn't want to talk. Now he's like one of the best in the business. You put him in front of a microphone in front of a camera and it's electric that people love him. And so it can be learned if you can unlock that in yourself, but a lot of guys are kind of, I don't know if there's a block there or what they can't get in toucest with that part, but for me man, like you asked who started it for me, it was Hogan, but like as it went through then you discover Flair, you discover Austin Rock, Jake the Snake, Roddy Piper, like all these guys who were just big, verbose, and everything that they said, you're like, they believe

every word they're saying. And there's not just like a charisma as far as like personal, there's a physical charisma. He said he can't move around much, but like even within that space, there's just body language and there's movement where you're just like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, this, this, like, this, this, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, th. thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, th much, but like even within that space There's just body language and there's movement where you're just like this guy is he's legit And that's what I always wanted to do macho man's macho man's to do macho man's to the touche man? Rosenberg. Do you remember the macho man on YouTube. I know if you type in macho man sugar is sweet and so it's the cream rises?? It's a a the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th the th is is is th is a th th th is a th is a th th th is a th th th th th thus. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the th. the the th. th. the the th. th. the the the th. the the th. th. th. th. the the the. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the. the. the. the. th. th. th. th's the cream rises to the top and macho man is a big one yeah the way he would just enter the frame macho man's thing was he would very rarely be in frame when mean gene started the top of the promo yeah more yeah normally it's a two shot and he just go okay my fucking what you have to say about the fight macho man will come in the frame not even face the camera sometimes not even face mean gene or just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th tho the the the the the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the to say about the fight? Macho man will come in the frame, not even face the camera, sometimes not even face mean gene. Or but just, just throw away, just,

Macho Man, you talk about wrestling, yeah, I thought so, yeah, you thought so, but I know so. It's like, why are you attacking mean? What do you do to you? What do you do in if you have some ideas, but I feel like some of the key elements are the tempo in which you speak and the octaves. Like you talk about Rick Flair, what's up here? Everybody over there, but then when he would get into specificity, I think detail is a very important thing that is overlooked when we're talking about

painting a picture. Like we're just talking about like on some human connection shit like when Hogan goes these 34 inch python however wide his bicep was, he would get into that level of specificity about things that I think also would help and I don't think politicians do that because politicians are so worried about saying the wrong thing. And they've got some nerdy nerd tech person right off camera going okay that speech will get 14 more likes than the last quote that you gave that scaled well you need to make sure that the voters know that you can. Whereas LA I'm assuming that you just know what your character is, you know what the objective

is and from there on it's just a little bit of improv and a little bit of who you already are as a person one and two as a character but how much thought goes into the words before they come out your mouth versus I would say a politician. So I've been doing this a very long time but even before W.W.E. And so one of the big things I can remember saying at least a good 60 to 70% of the time before I walk through the curtain is, I don't know what I'm about to say when I go out there, but we're about to find out. And it's because I have a roadmap.

I know where I'm going to go. I know how I'm going to finish. But in the middle, we're going to weave a road and we're going, we're going, we're going, we're going, we're going, we're going, and we're going to to figure, and we're going to to figure, and we're going to to to figure, we're going, and we're going, and we're going to to to figure, we're going to to figure, we're going to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to... to. to to. to to to to to to the the the the the the the the the th the the the the thooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. to say. to to to say. us where we need to go. Usually it does. WW is slightly more structure, but at the same time, it's like I do have the freedom to again, where it's like, it's, I know where I'm going. Maybe there's a key point or two, but otherwise, hey, we'll see what we get when I come back. You also, you tapped into something there, Roy that I thought was super interesting I haven't heard expressed like that and I think it makes a lot of sense which is The cadence tempo and the voice changes because when when you think about the best

The my favorites LA mentioned before Jake the snake is a guy who would stay so low and then get up and get big when he need to but then come right back down Savage savage savage did that brilliantly flare did it as well and the only only the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the tea tea tea tea tea tea. tea. tea. tea. tea. tea. the the the the the when you need to, but then come right back down. Savage did that brilliantly. Flair did it as well. And the only sort of political comp, because I think you're right, most politicians don't do that because their thought is I want to seem even, I want to seem measured. But when I think of the greatest orator of the of the modern era in in in anyway, Not exactly a politician, but a similar sort of energy. I think of Dr. King. Dr. King was a master in his speeches and keeping you, I'm going to tell you a story, we're going to stay low, and then we're going to go and he would get you all the way back up. He allowed his emotions to dictate, and I mean, let's be honest, he is probably the most effective public communicator of the 20th century, you know....... that that that. that. that. That's that. That's that. That's, that's, that's, that's that's, that's that's that's, that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's, that's that's that's that's, toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. that's, that's, that's, that's, thii. that's, thii. communicator of the 20th century, you know, and I it's interesting that he shared that quality

That's the key word effective I was just gonna say if you're gonna be an effective speaker You can't be at one level the whole time. There's different levels that you got to take people you got to bring them down to bring them up if you're just up the whole time Where do you go if you're just up the whole time? the whole????, the whole? the whole? the whole? the whole the whole time, the whole time, the whole time, the whole time, the whole time, the whole time. the whole time. the whole time. the whole time. the whole time. the whole time. the whole to, the whole the whole the whole the whole the whole the whole the whole the whole, the whole, the whole. the whole. the whole. the whole. the whole. the whole. the whole. the whole. the whole. the whole. the whole. the whole. the whole, the whole. the whole, the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the ti. ti. te. they. they. the the they. the they. the the the they. the they. the the they. the the the the the down the whole time, okay, well that was nice, but never got us anywhere. It's like having a setup to a joke and no punchline. Or just telling all punchline and no set up. Like you have to have the whole piece of the equation. It's like when you hear a lot of politicians speak at big rallies, especially when it's a bit crowd, they all fall into the John F. Kennedy Cadd in Tempo School of Public Speaking and we America will not stand for that. And I'm like if you're listening to the words acoustically they're all playing the same song same BPM it's the same

y'all are all right it's like a genre of music almost where everybody has essentially the same producer. LA, when did you feel a change in your career where you feel like the fans were starting to connect with you? And was there something different or anything different that you feel like you were doing performatively, that got you to that place? Like, oh, I need to do a little bit more of that. And then more fans will love me. You know, I'd say it was probably,

this was early on in my career, it was about 10 years ago. And I was living in LA, just working little local promotions and whatnot. It was just like, I felt like, I didn't feel when I started in Ohio. Ohio, I just felt like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like like everybody was like breathing down my neck and they were criticized for this, that, whatever, and that's fine sometimes you need that stuff.

But when I got to LA, they just felt like a freedom of just like, all right, I can do my thing. These people like respect the fact that I've like traveled around, I've done different things and whatnot. And so having that weight off my back, I guess gave me the ability to be a little more free and it was just kind of like going out there and just let me be me. And I've always said that like my I'm basically like when I'm out there it's the argumentative and the party version myself. So I'm super turned up but at the same time I'm ready to you know tell you some shit. Oh can I say that? I don't say that I don't know. Oh, yeah, you can't. the the the the the the the the the the th, you, you. th, you. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically. I'm basically. I'm basically. I'm th th th th th th th th th th th. th. th. th. th. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm tot. I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm basically, I'm th the the t want. We're on the internet, man. Hell yeah, all right. So, but, so it's just like I'm ready to fire up when I'm out there. But at the same time, again, you got to be measured while you're out there. So I don't know

that I can pinpoint anything particular, but there was like, I'm going to say probably late 2011, I just had a mind shift like, like a mindset shift where it was like I'm like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, a, a, a the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the things come to me. I need to go and start knocking some doors down and make opportunities happen rather than just oh you know sometimes at some point somebody will find me in discovery. Let's flip it real quick Peter. What are some skills that politicians have that could serve wrestlers well in the W.W.E. Like, there's a lot that wrestlers do that politicians could be doing. Is there anything that wrestlers could learn from politicians? I think, I would put it like this, serving your base. Knowing who your base is and giving them what they want.

I mean, I'm sure LA could speak to this more, but sometimes, you know, as people or guys and girls are figuring out what their character is over years, I feel like they end up trying to do things that are just not them. And I understand, you want to push boundaries. And listen, I'm sure there are times politicians, they're like, you know, I don't th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. thi. their. their. thi. I'm their. I'm their. I'm their. I'm their. I'm their. I'm their. I'm. I'm their. I'm so. I'm thi. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I's. I's. I. I. their. their. thi. thi. thi. th. thi. thi. thi. the thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. ti. thi. thi. th issue. And who am I talking to, Roy, you know? Every politician does it all the time. I don't really believe in this, but this is what the base wants,

and I am going to please the people who already mess with me. Instead of trying to win over people I'm not gonna get. And I think sometimes wrestlers could learn from the, um, I'll hear the veterans talking all the time. Booker T, who I have, who's shirt I happen to be wearing right now, book loves to point this out. We'll be, we'll be watching the show after the kickoff show and we'll see a big wrestler, a physically really large, you know, impressive guy. Try to do these aerial moves that just don't benefit him or the person that they're wrestling.

And Book, you know, Booker's like, God damn, what the hell? Why? He's acting like he's 570, he's 6 foot 8. You know, like, you're not pleasing the fans and what the fans want from you. And L. I'm sure you know, like, a lot of guys like, yeah, but I want to audience that's watching. You just look corny trying to. Exactly. You gotta save that stuff for the right spots. But I would add an addendum to what you're saying is, is you want to appeal to your base, but you also want to just like politicians.

You want to bring in the new voters. You want to bring in the new eyes and the audience. And so, but I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I th I th I th I th I th I th I th th th th th th th th that I that I that the that the that. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the that. that. that. that. that that that that that threat. threat. that that threat. that that that that that that that that that the the the that think as to what you're saying, you need to do some ridiculous shit like that, where it's just like I can do me and be true to what I'm doing and what my character would do and all that stuff and still hopefully connect enough to bring in people who aren't ordinarily there and be like, oh, you know what? I'm kind of interested in what this guy's doing. Right. But do you all think though, and I don't know how tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho thus thus thi thi thi, and I thi, and I don't thi, and I don't thi, thi, thr-I thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, th. th. th th th th th th thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi. thi. thi. thi. to thri. to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to thruu. thru wrestling is after a match or the week after where you do like a performance review or you talk with the producers and they go, okay, here's where we would have like to done better or worse or whatever. But I know politicians have a bunch of people in their ear telling them right down to what color fucking tie to wear for this particular event. Oh, well, today you're talking to steel workers. the the the the the the the the the their... the the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. the. the. th. the. the the the th. th. thin. their. their their their their their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. the te. te. the the the the the the the the the the the their their their their their their their their their color fucking tie to wear for this particular event. Oh, well, today you're talking to steelworkers, so we're just going to go with a sweater instead of a blazer. We need you to look more, like, how important is public perception for politicians? And should they just start letting go of that, this idea that, oh, I'm good and I need to be a regular person because regular people are voting for me. Can they start letting go of that a little bit and start listening to themselves instead

of listening to all of these people who are trying to do political science in motion? My God, after the last two election cycles, hell yeah. I think that whole Applecart's been upset at this point. I mean, I heard you guys try to be this point. I mean, I heard you guys talking before I got in here about, you know, how the politicians try to be just like you, but it's like, they do, but like, they don't. Like, they're almost, they tried to be too clean for so long. Like, perfect. Like, I do no wrong. And then the second, you know, somebody does the slight of hell. The Howard Dean went, that was enough. And, and th. And, and th. And, and th. And, th. And, the. And, they. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. they's, they's, they's, they's, like, like, like, like, like, like, they're, they're, they're, they're, they're, they're, they're, they're, they don't, they don't, they don't, they don't, they don't, they don't, they don't, they don't, they don't, they don't, they don't, they they they don't, they don't, they. They. They they. They. They's. They's. they's. they's. they's. they's. they're, they're, they're, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, they're, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, they're, like, like, like, like, they're, like, it. So like, the littlest thing would get people out, whereas now it's like since 2016, it's like, you can say anything. And as long as you just own it, it seems like you're good.

But if you cower to it, then it's like, well, all right, well, I'm out of here. So it's in a strange way, it's in a strange way, it's beneficial that they're not doing, but at the same time, it's come out in a really poisonous way where it's now just everybody is gloves off saying ridiculous stuff. So you don't know what's what? Yeah, like, I really feel like the shame monster has already proven that it won't bite if you look it in the eye. And I think that the good politicians have realized that, oh, the shame must have come, gotta run, gotta run, it's like, no, what's up? Yeah, I did it.

Yeah, I got eight babies on the way. Anyway, vote for me, you're gonna vote for me or not. It's nothing people could say. I can remember like 10 years ago, just being like, you know, like these politicians the politicians are so queen. If somebody just th is th is th is thi thi th is thi thi thi they they they they thi they they they thi. thi. thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, yeah, yeah, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I th. Yeah, I th. Yeah, I th. Yeah, I th. Yeah, I th. Yeah, I th. Yeah, I th. Yeah, I th. Yeah, I th. Yeah, I thi. Yeah, I thi. I thi. I thi. I thi. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I thi thi. Yeah, I thi. Yeah, I thi. Yeahselves, they'd probably win. And I didn't expect it to go quite how it did. But technically, I was right. Guy stole the gimmick. Yeah, he just said, yeah, he took pictures with McDonald's. Like, he didn't need to go to a school and read to elementary,

look at me, I mean, Big Neck's on a private jet. thin' thinnene. Yeah, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th. Yeah, I'd that, I'd that, I'd that, that, that, that, that, that, that, they, they, they, the guy's the guy's, the guy guy guy guy guy guy guy guy guy guy's, the guy's, the guy's, the guy's, the guy's, the guy's, the guy's, the guy's, the guy guy's, the guy's, the guy's, the guy's. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. theeat, he's th. theateateat's the the the guy's the guy. thateat. th. th be that because what American wouldn't want to be on a private jet would fucking McDonald's. And that's what wrestling I think when you asked earlier about, you know, what was it about wrestling that got me? I really, I'm a very, I certainly wouldn't say I'm non-combative because I am verbally combative, but I am certainly non-violent. I've no interest in any violence in any way. And the toughness of certain superstars, the fact that they could really, I mean, I had a period of my life when I was an adult and I would still before something big, like a big meeting, I swear to God, I would

literally be blasting Triple H's theme in the car to like, I'm picturing Triple H. to blow in the water up in the air. Like who, like who, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I the the the the the the the the the the the the th, I th, I the the the the the the the the the th, I the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th, I, I, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I that, I too, I too, I too, I too, I too, too, thau.a, I thau, I thau, I tha, I thea, I thea, spit the water up in the air. Like who, like who, that Triple H, when he comes out and spits that water up in the air. That dude's not scared of anything on earth. And I do think that's a real appeal of superstars. I get it, that song's a jam. I listen to it in the gym. Come on. To that point about shame, the the thaa, tha, tha, tha, tha, tha, tha, thii, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, when thi, when that's, when that's that's that's that's thi, thi, thi, when thi, thi, thi, thi, I's thi, I's thi, I's th. That's th. That's th. That's, I's thi, I's thi, I's thi, I's thi, I's thi, I's thi, I's thi, I's thi. It's thi. It's thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii. thii. thioli. thi. thi. thi. the floor. It's a wild scene. To that point about shame, Brother Knight, what do you do when you make a mistake, you know, in the ring or at an event, like as a wrestler, like how do wrestlers recover from botches or mistakes

on the mic in the ring? Like Peter, you're talking about Booker T. We've all seen the hilarious video of him. Kind of sort of almost saying the end word because it got so riled up. Like that's how black people talk. I'm coming for you. Sort of. He definitely hit it. I'm coming for you, Negro. Like he said and then you can see on his face like the, oh shit, I shouldn't I said that. How do you recover as a wrestler and what tips would you give to politicians who might be making gaffs on the campaign trip. It depends. You know what, I like to say that I've never made mistakes, but that'd

be a damn lie. But you just, you got to look like you did them on purpose. I, there was one I did back in like 2017 where I was trying to hear some double bounce thing. Totally botched it, but when I landed I just kind of looked at the audience like I meant to do that. And they just kind of showered me with, you know, booze and all that stuff. Now, Peter, on the radio, the time that I was in radio in Birmingham, a much different market from New York City in terms of the immediacy of reaction to saying the wrong thing on the air, when you, because when you're talking for four hours straight, you can't script that, and sooner or later some shit gonna come out your mouth that maybe you should have thought

about for a couple of extra songs before you said it. Knocking on the word as you said that maybe you should have thought about for a couple of extra songs before you said it. Knocking on wood as you said that, yes. Is it a matter of waiting until you see if there's outrage and then you own it or do you just own the gaff immediately and like which road do you think politicians should kind of deal with? I'm a big apologizer I admit that and I didn't to be as much and then I had a few situations because thank God and knock on wood on wood the wood the wood the wood the wood on wood the wood on wood on wood on wood on wood on wood on wood on wood. the wo apologizer. I admit that and I didn't used to be as much and then I had a few situations because thank God knock on wood I've never had anything crazy. I'm I'm well I like to believe I'm just a good person so nothing that insane is going to come out of my mouth. Now context is everything. We were to go back to the way my show with Sci-Fa Fouw Soufe th was promoted 10. to. th. thino. thsovahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah. to where where where where where where where where where. the thsosovahahahah. thso. thso. to thso. thso. thsoe. thsoe. thsoe. thsoe. to to th thi. I was to thi. to thi. thi. thi. I'm thi. I'm to to to to to to thi. I was th. I was th. I I was th. I I I I I was th. I I was th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is to to to to to to to to to to to th. I to thi. I to to thi. I'm thi. I'm thi. I'm toda. I'm today. I'm today. I'm today. I've today. I've heard things we did that I'm like, that would not go today.

And that goes for all of us. Everyone in the show, our whole vernacular to me now sounds scary. That goes, to be fair, that goes for urban radio as a genre. Oh yeah, and it wasn't just 95 to about Trayvon Martin. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Everything was a little different. But for what those times were, I knew I was good at watching what the line was. I understood and didn't cross. And now the line has changed and I try to push myself with the line. I'm not going to fight back against that.

So like even when I have something silly come up, like a few months ago, I got dragged for about three or four days because in an interview with Kelly Roland, I compared her to Beyonce. I basically was like, what's it like being sort of, you know, second to Biancee? I didn't frame it exactly like that, but it was close. It was a rough question. It did not, it's not my favorite question of all time. But at the same time, you know, if I was talking to LA Night and he was in the middle a storyline with the undertaker, and I'm like, so was it like being that close to the undertaker, I imagine he be like, I get your question. He's one of the greatest of all time. The point is I got dragged for saying that. It was a three-day never-ending beat-up. the-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o. the-o. the-o-o-o-o-o-o the-o the-o the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the-a-a-a-o the-o the-o the-s the-o-s the-s the-s the-s, the-s, the-s, the-s-s-s-s-s-s-s-s-s-s, th th story-s. th story-s th story-s th story-s th story-s th story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story story. three-day never-ending beat-down on the grounds that you minimize Kelly Roland as a solo artist and everything that she's done post Destiny's Child. Correct, correct. Correct. And then of course there

was extra racial components thrown into it and just like different things all of which a lot of course a lot of me is going this is absurd this is an absolute ridiculous internet conversation to have. But my response was just, I'm sorry. Like, I really, I said, A, it was a clumsy question, I meant no disrespect by it, and I realized people are upset. I didn't hit you with the, if I'm offended, I'm sorry, I just said, I'm sorry. Like, people are upset, I'm sorry.

I shouldn't have to be better. What sucks, though is that there's a serious lack of nuance and then even looking at your energy in the interview leading up to that question, even if the question was clumsy, if the intention was genuine, we kind of got to give people a foul tip. And I think we also live in a society now where everybody's already on strike two. You're on strike two when you leave the house with society. And I think that's part of the issue as well. the thia thin I that I thin I that I that I thin, and I that I that I thin, and I thin, and I that I thin, and I thin, and I thin, and I thin, and I thin, and I thin, and I that, and I that, and I thi, and I thi, and I thin, thin, thin, thi, thi, thi, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi, thi,. But after the break, we're gonna bring this conversation home and take a look at famous wrestling matches and rivalries. Also, we need to talk a little bit about the music that is attached to creating the persona and what politicians could learn about that.

Because we need to talk about these musicians who be like, hey man, don't you come out to my shit no more. did at the rally last night. Don't use this. This is beyond the scenes. We'll be right back. Beyond the scenes, we're rounding third and headed for home. We're talking about wrestling and politics and how they overlap. Before we get into one or two other questions I had about the comparisons and similarities and differences between these two worlds. Rustlemanias this weekend.

So let's just get into your favorite WrestleMania moment. Peter, I want to start with you because I got a two-parter for LA Night, but Peter, what's your favorite WrestleMania moment? I feel like we already kind of talked about it with Andre the Giant,

but do you have any others? Yeah, of course, that, be my Wrestlemania. I don't think anything could ever surpass it. Hogan slamming Andre and then the match between Steamboat and Savage. That's probably like the biggest one. But then I'd say you go away later to Toronto, Ontario Resslemania 18. That moment when Hulk Hogan and the Rocker just staring at each other and the crowd. A. Canada may have the best wrestling fans in all the world. And and B. The fact the fact that you th th th th. T th. T th. T th. T th. T. T. T. T. T. T. T. T. th. th. th. th. th. th. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the match the match the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. That's th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. thee. theeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeateeeem. te. teeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. the. the. the. staring at each other and the crowd. A, Canada may have the best wrestling fans in all the world and and B, the fact that you get this is what makes wrestling the best. This is why wrestling crushes quote legit sports. You're never getting Muhammad Ali versus Mike Tyson. It's just never, it cannot happen but you got to see like the faces of two generations. That's a great analogy. Like face off against each other and and to watch the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the crowd the the the the the the the the the their their their their their their their their their. And and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and their. And the fact. And the fact. And the fact. And the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. thea. thea. thea. thea. the. the is. the. two generations. That's a great analogy. Like face off against each other and to watch the crowd and then to see it, you know, in LA,

I'm sure this stands out in your mind too, the crowd completely turned around in the match and ended up cheering for Hulk Kogan, who had been a bad guy to that the nostalgia hit them so hard that they said, no, I got a root for Hulk Hogan. That to me is just an epic, what do you think modern day, that's an epic moment? I'm just gonna see myself out because he just stole my thunder.

So, I know, I was gonna say, I was gonna say Russell, I mean, I was gonna say, the exact same things because I mean for me personally you're talking about one of my childhood, well definitely my childhood favorite and one of my like teenage favorites like between like my Mount Rushmore is Hogan Rock Austin Flair and so now you got two of those four in a match and it was I mean again like again, like he said, that crowd was insane. They stood there and had a face off for probably a good solid two, three minutes, and the place just is erupting when they're doing nothing.

And the first time that, like, Hogan shrugs him off on the lockup, and it's just, you're seeing the people out of the crowd. the the thrug th, like th, like th, like th, like th, like th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thin thin thin thin thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, tho, tho, they. their, tho, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thin. thin. th. th. th. thooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. And, the crowd like we had the one guy I remember like doing this and they catch the shot of him doing it and everything and it's it's so crazy you're like man I wish I was there so that's a hundred percent like one of the top ones that that really really cemented like shit I think I'm gonna do this and that was exactly a year before one to the day one year before I started wrestling wow what is it like what is the energy the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th is th is th is th is th is th is th is the the is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th is th. the th. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the threat is. the the the the th one to the day, one year before I studied wrestling trick. Wow. What is it like, what is the energy of that event in person like, and what does that mean? Like for you and your journey, like the only thing I can compare it to in stand-up comedy is the Apollo theater? Because there's such history within that building and what it takes to get on that state. Blah blah. Like I know what that was like but I know even that doesn't keep just

to start at wrestling college. I don't know why I keep calling it college, but you know what I mean. I like it. I'm gonna start calling it that from now. When you started at the Florida Institute of Wrestling. Yeah. To go at the Florida Institute of Wrestling. To go from there. It sounds so highbrow. You know, splitting a panda express meal with one of your buddies. To go from there to being in that building, what was that like and what did that mean to you? Royal Rumble is my closest so far. You're talking in the Alamo Dome with you know about 50,000 people or whatever it was. It felt like

many out there it did. Very much so and and and I mean you're talking about and you know everybody's got their own struggles and story and stuff. But I mean a guy who's slept in my car a guy who's you know slept on friends floors for months of time and stuff like that. thi th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi th. th. th. thi the thi thi thi the. the. the. the. the. the. It's the. It's the. It's the. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's the. It's the. It's the. It's the. the. the. the. the. the theeeeeeeean. thean. thean. thean. thean. theeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee that just trying to make this whole thing happen over a long period of time and to finally come to a moment like that that is crazy it's it's like humbling in a way but it also makes me look back at that process like shit it was all worth it and in a way like almost I can look back at that in like a weird like endearing way where it's like I can almost be like I throwned th. th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I thu-I thu-I thu-I thu-I thu-I thu-I thu-I thu-I thu-I thu-I thu-I thus thus thus thus thus thi thu-I thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th thus thus thus thus thus thi thus thi thi thi thi to to to to thi to to to to the to to to to to to the to to thi to thi thi thi thi thi thi thi like man those are damn good times even though they were really shitty times. What will you all say in the wrestling world are there any political comparisons to like like give me a famous

political feud or rivalry that you think remind you of a famous wrestling feud? Like I don't I don't know if I can be specific but I would just say like the Democrats and the Republicans themselves are like W. W. C. W. It's like you've got really you've got passionate fans who want to choose a side. But then there's like a big swath in the middle who like they might lean one way or the other but still still switching channels back and forth because they're at least kind of interested in what the other ones doing. And so like that reminds me so much of just like the two political parties just in general.

And also you know wrestling is interesting in that it also has all of these other outlets which would essentially parallel independent third party voting where people go no I don't like either one of those. Yeah. I kind of like what's going on over here. How much thought do you put into the music that you choose and how that moves the audience and how that helps to build your persona? I'm probably an annoyance in that field, because I'm like super on top of that.

I made my own music when I was in the independence because I always knew there was a specific sound that I wanted. How can I do this? Okay, I like this song but I wanted a couple beats per minute faster. I used to be a drummer so like you know I can figure out how to make a beat or you know get a piano and create some loops and stuff which I did back in 2018 so it's like I'm I'm on top of stuff. I'm WWE, they create it but I had some input like, hey, look this is what I want this, this, that. They gave me one and I'm like, hey can we bring the drums up a little bit. Because you want, like you can make an awesome song that's great for a video package. But video package music ain't going the tha tha tha a room about to fight somebody and you know kick somebody's ass I need some

hard hitting stuff when I'm walking out there that just gets me into his own and really that depends on what you're doing the undertaker for instance you know we mentioned him earlier he's coming out to basically funeral music so that's a whole other different vibe so it's like what fits what fits yeah I mean think about it has the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the their the the the the the the the their their their their their their their their their their their their their their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their th. th. th. th. tttttttttttoday. ttoday. tttttttttoday. the. the. thi. thi. thi. thi. yeah. I mean, think about it, has there ever been a better case of like actually your theme song and wrestling being political than Hall Kogan having Real American? I mean, that's, that is not unintentional. I mean, by the way, he took that theme song, was being used previously before that. And then they said, you know what, let's give us to Hal Kogan. And that real American, that leaning, that is that is th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, has their, their, their, has their, has there, has there, has there, has there there there there there there there there there there there there there there there there there there there there there, there, there, there, there, there, there, there, there, there, there, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, th. the. the. theeat, theat, theat, theat, theat, their, their, their us to all Kogan. And that real American, that leaning into the patriotism, that's a big part of Hogan's character. And I thought it was really fascinating and funny

and impactful in some way. Granted, I chuckled when I would hear it, but now whenever I hear the, Proud to be an American, when I think, and like, and like, and like, and like, and like, th, th, th, the, proud to be an American, whenever I think Trump. And like you watched it, you're like, Yeah, every rally. And you know, they'd be waiting for him for like 10 minutes. It would just be playing over and over again.

And I'll just think, I just think YMCA. That's the theme song. No, but it's, it's so funny. It's so funny. It's a a a a the the th. It's so not a th. It's so not a th. It's so not a th. It's so not a th. It's so not a th. It's so not a th. It's so not a thy. thy. thy. th. thy. thy. to. to. to. th. thy. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. I. I. I. I. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. to. I. I. I. I. I. to. it's so funny because like that it's obviously he is so not a typical like proud America and he's this business tycoon from New York who the people who he's speaking to should hate everything about him. But he throws on proud to be an American and it's such a jam. It's a ban. Clinton had um don't stop thinking about tomorrow, which was like so perfect his character was, you know, aren't they also doing Van Halen right now? Am I, am I imagining that? I don't know. Maybe I'm just thinking of Crystal Pepsi. I don't know.

All, all important things from that time. Honestly, they could stand to learn from wrestlers because there are some wrestlers, man, who I love and I realize later a lot of it was their theme song. I'm like, he just came out to the ring really nice, but it was kind of a good entrance. That's a big piece. You hear that banger, you're like, yes. Love this guy, I think. All right. Well, I'll get you all out of here on this. This is we'll just call th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th the th the the th th th the th. the th. th. th. th. the the the the the the their their their their their their their their their their their their their. their. their. their. their. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the their. their. their. their th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. guy, I think. All right, okay. All right. Well, I'll get you all out of here on this. We'll just call this a rapid answer question here. Out there in California, former actor Ben Savage is running for, I think Senate or is it House? Yeah, boy meets world, right? Yeah. What's a better transference of skill sets?

Celebrity turn politician or celebrity turn wrestler? Oh man, that's tough. I think politician, just because it depends on the celebrity though. If you're talking like a sports celebrity or something, now they've already got like an athletic background, something like that. Because a lot of times when we brought in, you know, sports figures, they're able to pick it up a little bit just because of, again, that athletic background. But- Yeah, Rodman did a couple stints. Yeah, but I mean, like, it's tie, if somebody's not used to get beaten up and banged up, it can be a real reality check. th. It can it, it th. It can it th. It can it can't, it can be, it can be, it can be, it can be, it can be a real, it can be a real, it, it can be a real, it can be a real, it, it can't, it can't, it, it, it can't, it's th. th. th. thi, it's thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. And, th, th, like being a celebrity going into politics, that's a lot, maybe not easier necessarily, but probably a better fit just because now it's like, okay, well I can use this charisma or this status or whatever that

I used before to get this going to now appeal to these people. They know my face. I'm familiar. I'll make LA a point for him. I work for W.W.E. They will never to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to me to me the the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the th. th. th. the the th th the the the the the the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. the. the. the. the. to the. to thee. theeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. theee. the. the point for him. I work for W.W.E. They will never use me in a wrestling match ever in his team. It will never happen. You're not gonna be the next Jonathan Coachman to come out the booth. I'm not gonna be I'm a former 24-7 champion, but I'm not gonna get invited to be in the royal rumble. However, if I were to say I'm to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to to get. I. I'm to get. I'm to get. I'm to get. I'd to get. I to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get. I. I to get to get. I to get to get to get to get to get to get the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the to the the the to the the the th. I'm to the the to th. I'm to the to to to to to to the to to to to the Royal Rumble. However, if I were to say, like, I'm running against Eric Adams in the next New York mayoral race, I'm not saying I'd win. But having being known in New York for that long, I could at least get myself into the conversation.

I have no chance at wrestling. There's the ability that it takes is a possible, and to L.A.A.S. Point, that's why you can have they. th. th. th. they. th. th. they. they. the ability. the ability, the ability, the ability, the ability, the ability, the ability, the ability, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. I's, th. th. they. they. I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'd. I'd. I'd. I'd. I'd. I'd. I'd. I'd. I'd. I'd. I'd. I's. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I'd. I'd. I'd. I'd. I'd. I'm not. I'm not. I'm not. the................................................... I. I. I McAfee show up and be effective and good. You can have Logan Paul show up and get a Resselmania match because these guys are real athletes who can transfer it. If you don't have it in you though, there's not much you can do. Well dude, you've done a really good job of leaving a cultural footprint in New York City and I think you'd be neck and neck and and he they tap with Eric. And I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th th th thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th, th th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, the, the that, the the thea thea thea thea that Kelly rolling Beyonce tape on your ass. Oh boy. That's all the time we have for today. Thank you so much to our guest. Peter Rosenberg, LA Night, thank you all.

Hopefully we've taken you beyond the scenes. Enjoy a Russell Mania boys. Take care everybody. Thanks Roy. Good night. Listen to the Daily Show beyond the scenes on Apple Podcasts, the IHeart Radio App or wherever you get your podcast. Explore more shows from the Daily Show podcast universe by searching the Daily Show, wherever you get your podcasts. Watch the Daily Show weeknights at 11, 10 Central on Comedy Central, and stream full episodes anytime on Fairmount Plus. This has been a Comedy Central podcast.