Pro Wrestling & Politics are More Similar Than You Think

Published Mar 28, 2023, 7:01 AM

Just in time for WrestleMania, professional wrestling’s biggest event, we present an in-depth look at how wrestling and politics have more similarities than one might think. WWE Superstar LA Knight and Peter Rosenberg, host of the “Cheap Heat” podcast, join Roy Wood Jr. to break it all down. Nowadays, 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.

 

Watch the original segment: 

 

https://youtu.be/7yYFQmZac7c

Welcome, Welcome, 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 gotta think of this podcast, hass Like if this was a wrestling match, the Daily Show was the regular main event. In 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 WrestleMania for a great ending to a classic match. Yeah, and today I'm gonna trying to do Macho Man. We're gonna be talking about wrestling, professional wrestling, sports entertam and just in time for pro wrestling's biggest event, WrestleMania. Today we're diving into how the world's wrestling and politics were more like than they may appearing. Wrestlers and politicians can learn a few things from one of number about performance in building a connection with their audience. Now Ronnie Chain, Ronnie Chain, he did this topic on the Daily Show a couple of years back. He went down to Middle America and Iowa, fla over country, and he took to a wrestler named the Progressive Liberal and crafted a unique dealing persona by bringing politics into the squared circle, Mister 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. There's no surprise last election people in swing states went for a guy who said things like who's gonna pay for the war? 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 we're 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 him. Judge, your ignorant mouthsive have something to send. But even if the crowd hates him, the progressive liberal could teach swing state Democrats some classic wrestling techniques for getting voters attention? Do you want to stick to broad brush stro 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 Knight, who'll 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 I feel like we've known him to the long enough to the friend his friend of Jason. I think we're absolutely, if not friend friend of Jason. If it's all you're in a fight out, 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 ninety seven who's also the host of the Cheap Heat podcast on The Ringer Wrestling Show from Spotify, and You're Forever twenty Full seven champion Peter Rosenberg, Welcome to be on the scenes. I am honored to be a part of a podcast. This professional really makes my JABRONI podcast look like a joker. 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 blazer. I look like a McDonald shift manager. Once you roll up, once you roll up, your dress leaves. Oh yeah, you're a manager. You're not. It's no longer, it's no longer correspondent. You gotta drop some fries, drift through line around the building. Now, let's just start with your love for wrestling, bro, Like, what's the earliest wrestling match or a 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 forty four. Just for perspective, so I remember watching Monday Night Raw and seeing Ultimate Warrior. Dude, I was watching wrestling on Saturday morning to WCW. I watched Glow, I did all of it. But just take me back to your origin story of falling in love with the Squares Circle. So yeah, my origin story is the same. I'm almost the same age as you. I'm forty three 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 WrestleMania three. It was Haul Coogan and Andre the Giant and the aforementioned Macho Man Randy Savage and Ricky the Dragon's ste Boat, and those two stories just drew me in. Man my my level of passion for Ricky the Steamboat, for Ricky the Dragon Steamboat getting his redemption on Macho Man after and 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 shoe strings tourniquet levels tight on your arm and then run around the house like I saw Ultimate Warrior. You do the promos like LOLd the spaceship with the rocket few Who can you like? All of that stuff? Right? Yeah? I didn't know that when a yell cut, Ultimate Warrior would take that shit off his arm and get blood back to his fingers. I kept that shit on my arm for hours at a time, like hand noticeably numb. That was my thing. Bro. My cousin Vorn 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 eighties, 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 Volkoff stomping through that bitch screaming Russia. You have the iron sheet and 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 very 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 at the time very young cousin who was working on Capitol Hill in his early twenties, 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 it. Now, granted I was trolling. I was trolling, and I as a wrestling band often find myself, especially back then more so than now, often found myself on the defensive because they call it fake and they wouldn't be honest, the physicality, and and just sort of 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 that 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 reclized drama. Yeah, I heard. It's no different than your fucking TV show that you love and you tune in in prime time every week for LT. I mean to cut you off about it. It's a stupid argument, and it's frustrating for anyone who's ever enjoyed wrestling. My thing always is, I've always wanted to do this. 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 movies, turn around and yell to everyone, you know, this is fake, right, This is not a documentary. 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 has 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 possessed the same level of disappointment when they think that their politician is wait, no, you don't care about my issue. But I thought you care about my issue. Why would you do that to me? That's not cool? And people are legitimately heartbroken. I think we're wrestling and politics are also similar. Is that to me? Politics and America has changed from that guy 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 Hacksaw Jim dugging because I didn't understand the concept of you don't grab just raw two by wars in a back alley, like that's pressed wood, Bro, You're gonna catch a disease through your hand. Like what what wrestler do you think would make a great politician? And well, I know Trump would be a good wrestler. I mean Trump has already wrestled, so that's already. Let's be honest. Physically, it was not the most impressive performance you've ever seen him. Yes, he has been involved in a storyline. I dare you to go back on his whole fucking arc. I dare you to go back and watch WrestleMania twenty three when he has that match and he attacks Vince McMahon, You have never looked 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 um, honestly, it's 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 Hayman. Um, I don't think there's any about that. And not just saying this, but in terms of new talent, who you could really see flipping on the politician button, I gotta tell you, La Knight would be perfect. I believe, completely capable of picking up that mic 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 pist The Rock into run and it's like, dude, I got nine more franchises to make. I got fifteen more DuMond used to make. I gotta be doing fast and fet Roy. Let's be real. The Rock, who I love, He has his own TV show Young Rock which is, by the way, maybe the most underrated show on television. It is a fantastic sort of traditional family sitcomments. It's a wonderful show, and I love it because all about pro wrestling. But he made the backdrop of the show that he was running for president, so he loves the toy with this, I think, yeah, 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 go watch footage of a politician coming out when they've announced that they're running for whatever the fuck office, and compare it to a wrestler coming out the tunnel, same music. You got some van hidden figging hi and hip and then just pointing to the people are going ape shit crazy and 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 WrestleMania 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 set, 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 in 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 I mean, there there is a guy who's done that. Nobody did it bad, Nobody clapped back that. Nobody clapped back back back at him, especially the Republicans. You remember how you remember how Jeff Bush got handled? Yeah, I mean he got tossed around, beat up nothing, um Mark Marko, 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 that and by the way it worked, it worked he punched back a little bit. Yeah, it's it's I would say the final night of the convention in some ways is like a WrestleMania. When I accept your nomination for president or whatever. Yeah, but but in some ways you're right, man, it's hard. The last couple of elections, the debates were such musty TV. Yeah, you know, I for real I watched the Hillary I think the final Hillary Trump debate at a big party at the forty forty 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. One of us 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 motherfucker had his dress shirt rolled up and yeah, like you. He looks like you right now. He looked like a McDonald's district man. He looked liked the one that come in and check on me and asked me why the deep frying at the right temperature? Always you remember for the rest of your life. After the break, Peter and I are going to be joined by ww superstar La Night. We're gonna further discuss how wrestling and politics are more like 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 there. They 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 Chief Heat, Peter Rosenberg, has been posted up with me, but joining us now is someone much stronger than Peter, much more charismatic than Pete. I say all this with respect to you, Peter, how much you think complete? Yeah, you have to respect it. The glisten in the background of this gentleman, for those of you listening to not watching all, I see his championship belts, just listening camera lens and thank god he wore a nice black leather Jacket's dull. Some of that glistened off. You can catch on Friday Night SmackDown on Fox LA Night. Welcome to be on the scenes. How you doing, brother man? I heard you call Peter the forever twenty four seven check, let's call me the forever million dollars champion, future WWE champion. Yeah, let me talk to you, you know what, see, and let's 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 unframe it? And then like how does that work? We'll talk about that later. I'll ask you the question I asked Rosenberg off 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 drobbling off? Who were the ones that got you inspired? So I was about, I'm gonna 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 Volkoff was talking all kinds of trash on hawk Ogan. Wow, 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 Burke marshmallow and I think I yelled something like, be quiet, marshmallow head. I was a big time halkimaniac. I told on myself by accident. My parents were like, what are you doing here? And put me back to bed, But I yeah, man, I was big time hawkimania from day one. How are wrestlers able to come through the 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 or where you fall in love with the wrestler, the performance is one thing, but it seems like now wrestlers have to be multi multifaceted, 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 gonna 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's something that's taught at when you at wrestling college. That's that's why I'm trying to frame it old wrestling college. When youre at wrestling college down in Florida before you get to the big time, is there a shit talking course? Do you go to it? Do they put you on stage at a black comedy club and go attack the audience? Ye learn how to talk? Yeah? No, it's 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 you learn the moves and stuff like that. Every maybe three months we'd do it 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 developed moves and never think like that. Isn't that what I think? The second biggest fear of people in general is death. The first is public speaking, yep. 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 backflip 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 like for me, if a guy couldn't talk, if he wasn't like saying something, that caught me. But it's not just the saying the stuff. It's it's the mannerisms, it's the body language, all that stuff. I wasn't get in that. I just wasn't feeling the same as the other guys. What are the keys in your opinion to delivering a good promo? And by the way, you're he's a good person to ask. I mean, you are the you are the best new promo in WW 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 there's also like a there's a charisma. I guess that you asked a second ago, 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 at all costs. Actually, I'm even gonna 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. For 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 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 a kind of I don't know if it's there's a block there or what. They can't get in touch with that part. But for me, man, like you asked who who started it, for me, it was Hogan. But like as it went through then you discover flair. You discover that Austin Rock, Jake the Make, Roddy Piper, like all these guys who were just big, verbose and 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 personality'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 this guy is he's legit and that's what I always wanted to do. Man is another one. 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 to the time and Macho Man is a big one. Yeah. The way he would just enter the frame. Micho Man's thing was he would very rarely beat in frame when me and Jeans started at the top of the promo, Yeah, yeah, yeah, normally it's a two shot and he just goes, okay, motherfucker, what do you have to say about the fight? Macho Man would come in the frame, not even face the camera, sometimes not even face me and gene or but just just throw away, just talking about rescime. Yeah, I thought so, Yeah you thought so, but I know so it's like, why are you attacking me and Jene? But it was so great. I feel like some of the key elements, and Rosenberg you chime in if you have some 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. Rick Flair was up there, everybody. But then when he would get into specificity, I think detail is a very important thing that has 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 thirty four inch python However, why this 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. Okay, that speech will get fourteen more likes than the last quote that you gave. That scaled. Well, you need to make sure that the voters don't that you get 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 Okay, So I've been doing this a very long time, but even before WWE and so one of the big things I can remember saying at least a good sixty to seventy percent 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, I know how i'm gonna start, I know how I'm gonna finish. But in the middle, we're gonna weave a road and we're gonna figure out where we go and hopefully it's hopefully it gets us where we need to go. Usually it does WWS slightly more structured, but at the same time, it's like I do have the freedom to again where it's like it's it's I know where I'm going. Maybe there's a key point or two, but otherwise, hey, let's 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 you think about the best my favorites. La mentioned because Jake the Snake is a guy who would stay so low and then get up and get big when you need to, but then come right back down. Savage. Savage did that brilliantly. Flair did it as well, and the only sort of political camp 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 a way, not not exactly a politician, but a similar sort of energy, I think of Doctor King. Doctor King was a master in his speeches and keeping you. I'm gonna tell you a story, We're gonna stay low, and then we're gonna go, and he gets 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 twentieth century, you know, And it is 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 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 setup, Like you have to have the whole piece of the equation. It's like when you hear a lot of politicians speak a big rallies, especially when it's a bit crowd, they all fall into the John F. Kennedy cadence and tempo school of public speaking, and we America, we'll not staying 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 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, was about ten years ago, and I was living in LA just working little local promotions and whatnot. It was just like I felt a freedom that I didn't feel when I started in Ohio, Hio. I just felt 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, there 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 if it's just kind of like going out there and just let me be me. And I've always said that, like I'm basically like when I'm out there, it's the argumentative and the party version of 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 know the internet? Oh yeah, all right, so uh but so it's just like I'm ready to fire up when I'm out there. But at the same time, again, you've 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 gonna say probably late twenty eleven, I just had a mind shift, like like a mindset shift where it was like, I'm kind of letting things come to me. I need to go and start knocking some doors, knocking some doors down and make opportunities happen rather than just oh, you know, sometimes at some point somebody will find the discovery. Let's flip it real quick, Peter, what are some skills that politicians have that could serve wrestlers will in the wwe 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 basse, knowing who your bass is in giving them what they want. I mean, I'm sure ELI 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 are like, you know, I don't know how I feel about this issue, and who am I talking to? Roy? You know, every 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 messed with me instead of trying to win over people I'm not gonna get. And I think sometimes wrestlers can learn from the same thing. If you know that you are great at you know, I'll hear them, I'll hear the veterans talking all the time. Book or t who I who shared I happen to be wearing right now, but 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, books like, god, damn, what the hell why he's acting like he's five seventy's six foot eight, you know, like you're not the fans and what the fans want from you and Elie. I'm sure you know, like a lot of guys like yeah, but I want to show that I can do more. But sometimes that's for your ego and not for the audience that's watching. You just look corny trying to exactly you got to save that stuff for the right spots. But but I would add an adendum to what you're saying 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 don't think as to what you're saying, you need to do some ridiculous shit like that where it's just like I can 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 you know, and I don't know, how 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, if 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 where for this particular event all were today You're talking to steel workers, So we're just gonna go with the sweater instead of a blazer. We need you to look my way. Like how important is public perception for politicians? And should they just start letting go of that, this idea that, oh I am good and you 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 and in motion. Oh my god, after the last two election cycles, Hell yeah, I think I think that whole applecart has been upset at 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 that Howard Dean went paw and that was enough, Like like that was that was it. So like the littlest thing would get people out, whereas now it's like since twenty sixteen, 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, wow, man, all right, well I'm out of here. So 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 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 monsters coming out a run, got it 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, and that there's nothing people can say. I can remember like ten years ago just being like, you know, like these politicians are so clean. If somebody just came out and they were they were themselves, they'd probably win, and I didn't expect it to go quite how it did, but right happen. 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 Max on a private jet, you know what? I want to be that because what American wouldn't want to be on a private jet? Would McDonald's is, And that's what 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 would certainly wouldn't say I'm non combative, because I am verbally combative, but I am certainly non violent. I have 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 in my life when I was an adult and I would still before something being 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 in the water, get the water up in the air, like who, like who? That triple H when he comes out 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 songs a jam. I listened to it in the gym. I'm spitting water on the floor. 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 as a wrestler, Like how do wrestlers recover from bach's or mistakes on the mic and the ring? Like Peter you're talking about Book of t We've all seen the hilarious video of him kind of sort of almost saying the inward because he got so riled up, like that's how black people talk. I'm coming. He definitely hit it. I'm coming for your new girls, like he said, and then you can see on his face like the ah shit, I shun it that. How do you recover as a wrestler? And what tips would you give to politicians who might be making gaffs on the campaign trail? It depends, you know. I like to say that I've never made mistakes, but that'd be the life but you just you gotta look like you did them on purpose. There was one I did back in my twenty seventeen restaurants. You're some double bounced thing. Totally botch 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. And now, Peter on the radio side, 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 can't come out your mouth that maybe you should have thought about for a couple of extra songs before you said it. Knocking on wood, 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 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 well, I'd 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 Cipha Sounds was promoted ten years ago, where we were really leaning into race stuff all the time. 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. It goes to be fair. That goes for urban radio as a genre. Oh yeah, and it wasn't trying to five to about Trey Von Martin. Yeah, exactly. Everything was a little was a little different. But for what those times were, I knew I was watching what the line was, like, I understood and didn't cross. And now there's 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 m Kelly Rowland, I compared her to Beyonce. I basically was like, what's it like being sort of, you know, second to Beyonce. I didn't frame it exactly like that, but it was closed. Yeah, it was. It was clumsy. 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 of a storyline with the Undertaker and I'm like, so, what's it like being that close the Undertaker, I imagine he'd be like, I gets your question. He's one of the greatest of all time. The point is I got dragged for saying that it was a it was the three day, never ending beat down on the grounds that you minimize Keilly Roland as a solo artist and everything that she's done post Destiny's Child. 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 if I really I said, hey, 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. What sucks, though, is that there's a serious lack of duance, and then even looking at your energy and 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 are putting on strike two. You're on strike two when you leave the house with society, you know what I mean. And I think that's part of the issue as well. But after the break, we've got to 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 about a man. Don't you come out to my ship no more? I saw what you did at the rally last night. Though, beyond the scenes, we'll be right back. Beyond the scenes. We're round and 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 you know, similarities and differences between these two worlds. WrestleMania's this weekend, so let's just get into you 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 Andrea the Giant, but do you have any others? Yeah, of course that that WrestleMania three will forever be my WrestleMania. I don't think anything could ever surpass it. Hogan slamming andre and and the match between Steamboat and Savage, that's probably the biggest one. But then I'd say you go way later to Toronto, Ontario WrestleMania eighteen, that moment when Hulk, Coogan and the Rock are just staring at each other and the crowd, Hey, Canada may have the best wrestling fans in all the world, and be the fact that you get this. 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 to watch the crowd and then to see 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 Coogan, who had been a bad guy to that point, but the nostalgia hit them so hard that they said, you know, I got a root for Hulk. 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 uh no, I mean I was gonna say rest of n eighteen as well, for the exact same reasons, the exact same things, because I mean, for me personally, you're talking about one of my childhood fight well definitely my childhood favorite and one of my like teenage favorites, like like my Mount Rushmore is Hogan Rock Austin Flair. And so now you've got two of those four in a match and it was I mean 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 like shrugs him off on the lock up and it's just you're seeing the people out of the crowd, like we had. There was one guy I remember like doing this and they catch the shot at him doing it and everything, and it's it's so crazy. You're like, man, I wish I was there. So that's one hundred percent like one of the top ones that that really really cemented, Like, shit, I think I'm going to do this. And that was exactly a year before one to the day, one year before I started wrestling trat. 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 stage. Blah blah blah, Like I know what that was like, but I know even that doesn't keep it 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 going to start going with that from now when I started at the Florida Institute of Wrestling. To go from so highbrow, you know, splitting a Panda Express meal with one of your one of your buddies, to go from there to being in that building, What was that like? And what did that mean to you? Roal Rumble as my closest so far, You're talking in the Alimo Dome with you know, about fifty thousand 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 at a time, and stuff like 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, man, those are damn good times, even though they were really shitty. 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 WW and WCW. 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 they're still switching channels back and forth because they're they're at least kind of interested in what the other one's doing. And so like that reminds me so much 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 has 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 that there was a specific sound that I wanted. How can I do this? Okay, I like this song, but I wanted a couple of 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 twenty eighteen. So it's like I'm on top of stuff. On 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 gonna be the same as music where I'm walking into a room about to fight somebody and you know, kick somebody's as I need some hard hidden stuff when I'm walking out there. That just gets me into his own um. 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 it what fits, Yeah, I mean think about it. Has there ever been a better better case of like, actually your theme song and wrestling being political than Haul Cogan having real American I mean that's that's wow. That is not unintentional. I mean he 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 Taul Coogan and that real America, that leaning into the patriotism. That's a that's a big part of Hogan's character. And I thought it was really fascinating and funny, um and impactful in some way. Granted I chuckled when I would hear it, but now whenever I hear the proud to be an American, whenever I think Trump and like you watched it, yeah, every rally and you know they'd be waiting for him for like ten minutes. It would just be playing over and over again, and I just think, MCA, that's that's theme song. No, but it's it's it's so funny because like that so obviously he is so not a typical like proud American. 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. Now it's a banker Clinton had um don't stop thinking about tomorrow, which was like so perfect. His character was, you know everything also doing van Halen right now? Or am I am I imagining that? Maybe I'm just that may even 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 of and I realized later a lot of it was their theme song. I'm like, if it came out to the real really nice, But it was entrance. That's a big piece. You hear that banger? Are you like? Yes? I think all right, okay, all right, well I'll get you all out of here on this this this is we'll just call this a rapid a rapid answer question. Here out there in California, a former actor being Savage is running for I think Senate or is it House? Yeah? Yeah, what's a better transference of skill sets? Celebrity turned politician or celebrity turned wrestlers. I think politician just because it depends on the celebrity though. If you're talking like a sports celebrity something, now they've already got like an athletic background something like that. Um, 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 if somebody's not used to getting beaten up and banged up, it can be a real reality check. So I almost feel like being a celebrity going into politics, that's 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 use before to get this going to now appeal to these people. They know my face, I'm familiar. I'll make LA's a point for him. I work for WWE. They will never use me in a wrestling match ever in history. It will never happen. You're not gonna You're not gonna be the next Jonathan Coachman to come out the booth. Yeah you know. I mean, I'm a former twenty four seven champion, but I'm not gonna get invited to be in the Royal Rumble. However, if I were to say, like I'm running against Eric Adams and 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 as impossible. And to LA's point, that's why you can have a Pat McAfee show up and be effective and good. You can have Logan Paul show up and get a WrestleMania 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 with Eric Adams until he pulls out that Kelly Roland Beyonce tape on your ass. That's all the time we have for today. Thank you so much. Jo Guests, Peter Rosenberg, La Night. Thank you all. We've taken you beyond the scenes. Enjoy WrestleMania boys, take care of everybody. Thanks Roy, good night. Listen to The Daily Show Beyond the Scenes on Apple Podcasts, the iHeartRadio app, or wherever you get your podcasts. M

Beyond the Scenes from The Daily Show

Imagine The Daily Show, but deeper. Host Roy Wood Jr. dives further into segments and topics covered 
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