Trick Williams

18:20He gave me an opportunity.

18:22Steph McMahon:Yeah. You know what I mean? He was a good guy. And his wife, Jerry, they just gave me an opportunity to show what I can do. They treated my mom well. And I really appreciated that. Here comes my junior season. Uh-oh. Junior season, I'm finally eligible to play with my boys. You know what I mean? We're working out. We're training. We're training. and retraining, I worked my way up to being a starter my junior season. That's amazing. Things are going good. You know what I mean? Like we're really moving in the right direction. Halfway through the season, Steve Spurrier quits. Oh. He quits. I know.

18:56I know. The storytelling is crazy, but this is the truth. Steve Spurrier quits. We played against Tennessee, and I remember it was a tough game. It was at Rocky Top. and, you know, my boy Jarrell Adams, he fumbled the ball late in the fourth and Tennessee scooped and lost the game. Then we have a practice, you know, a couple days later and Steve Spurrier, he told us, he said, you know, maybe it's time that I take a step back and let somebody else call the plays around here. He said, okay, somebody else is calling the plays. That's no problem. We get back to the locker room and Steve Spurrier is breaking news.

19:31He resigns as head coach at the University of South Carolina. But that's not what he told us, you know what I mean, on the practice field. He just said he's going to take a step back. Oh, shoot. Now we have an interim head coach. Everything changes within the program.

19:44Steph McMahon:Oh, boy. You know what I mean? They didn't stick to the playbook and just pick it up halfway through. Nah. Damn, they had to change everything on everybody. That's what we do in our business. Sometimes things just change on the fly. I don't know, but when you have seasons and a team of people who, Like, you're a teacher. You're a leader when there's a playbook and it's working, right, save for that game. You know, I understand wanting to make your mark, but, like, you got to be there for the players. But I broke it too. Yeah, and I don't know the full story of why Steve Spurrier resigned. And why he left in the middle of the season.

20:24You know, it could have been health-related. I don't know. Who knows? We never got that story.

20:29Steph McMahon:Yeah. All we know is, like, man, my coach is gone. Yeah, and apparently that does happen a lot. It happens a lot. It happens a lot. My daughter came to play softball, and the coach that recruited her, her freshman, like the day of orientation, that coach left. Just like that. And she was like. You committed four years, maybe five years of education, the whole future with that coach. Yeah. You know what I mean? Like I decided to walk on and transfer, you know, with that coach. It was number four. You're finally starting. Finally starting. Things are moving good. You find this situation out. Yes.

20:59Steph McMahon:You lose the game. You lose the game. And the coach is gone. And the coach is gone. And here comes. We have an interim coach named Sean Elliott. I think he's actually still at South Carolina. He left and came back. But he picks up. The team doesn't pick up. We might have won one more game the rest of the season. Oh, yeah. It was rough. Yeah. You know what I mean? I'm sure it was. It was rough. Yeah, it's tough. But long story short, I think, you know, through everything that happened at Hampton, at the University of South Carolina, You know, has so many wins in the midst of even the team not being the best that it could have been.

21:37Tell me. Man, I'll tell you a big win. Steve Spurrier, the most winningest ball coach in South Carolina history. He has a banner on Williams-Brice Stadium. Williams, Trick Williams, but we could talk about that. It's probably 80 to 100 feet up, and it's just him. You know, his hand on his, you know, and his visor on. When he leaves the team, they say, we're going to take down the banner. Now we got to put up a new picture. But the truth is, Trick Williams was in the weight room at all times.

22:08Steph McMahon:Of course he was. I was on the field. I had something to prove. Those coaches at Hampton told me that I wasn't going to play at the University of South Carolina. That's right. I got to prove them wrong. And that chip still sits on me to this day. And I was always in the weight room. I was always working out. I remember a kid was supposed to take a photo shoot for all the cups and all the tickets at the University of South Carolina. He couldn't make it. But he said, since TJ can't show up, Trick Williams, can we take pictures of you? You bet you can. Yes, you can. You don't think I worked this hard for nothing.

22:38You know what I mean? Let's take these pictures.

22:39Steph McMahon:Pop off the shirt. I take off my shirt. I haven't worn a shirt since. You know what I mean? I'm wearing a shirt today out of respect for Triple H. You know what I mean? I didn't want him to hit my paycheck. I knew I was going to be in front of you, Stephanie, so I'm wearing a shirt today. That's our disappointment. But that's the only reason I got on a shirt today. I watched you do an interview somewhere in New York, and you had your fluffy jacket on and then you take that jacket off and then someone said, I didn't expect you to take off one jacket and you have another jacket. That's right. But you were cold that day.

23:11Steph McMahon:I was cold that day. So you were also wearing a shirt. I only have three shirts. So I got to choose wisely when I'm wearing. But okay, we're taking pictures at the University of South Carolina. They put me on all the cups, all the tickets. I was like, okay, this is really cool. But when Spurgeon quits, They say, who are we going to replace that big 100-foot banner on Williams-Brice Stadium with? Who has the best pictures in the system? Who looks good with the shirt off? Right? Trick Williams goes on top of the Williams-Brice Stadium. No way. 100 feet in the air. I lie to you not. And that, to me, it's a little win, but it's a big win.

23:48Steph McMahon:I mean, that's a huge, huge win. If I wouldn't have left Hampton University and taken that chance to be there, And that was just a hundred foot reminder of if you be obedient and you listen to what I got for you, you never know what it's going to take. And it's things like that. I'll allow you not, Stephanie. It's full circle moments my whole life. Yeah. That just reminds me like, OK, you're on the right path. What's another one? Here's another one. OK. So this one's pretty funny. OK. This one's pretty funny. I told this on the pivot. OK. So long story short, I'm going to skip past my senior season with Will Muschamp, you know, spending the whole year, you know, substitute teaching and coaching the kids with my cleats on.

24:29Steph McMahon:Yeah, and when did you, how did you become a teacher? So I was a physical education major. Okay. So going into my senior year, we had to do internships, you know, of PE out inside the schools. When Muschamp came in, you know, we was practicing in the morning. But I couldn't change my internship, so I wasn't even going to practice my senior year. Oh, boy. So I'm not playing on Saturdays at this point. All right, so now I got to tell this story. Okay, okay. So my internship is at Airport High School. It's in Columbia, South Carolina. It's the Airport Eagles. And, you know, long story short, I'm there instead of football practice for the University of South Carolina.

25:07The Airport Eagles have a player who used to play there who's a legend. His name is Dew Staley. Dew Staley played at Airport High School. He played at the University of South Carolina, and he also played for the Philadelphia Eagles. Stay with me. So the only reason I really know who he is, I mean, I knew who he was with a helmet on, but, you know, like, I really know him because he's pictures all around airport high school. So as nothing happens my senior year, I do my pro day, nothing happens. Okay, shoot. Coach Burnett at airport, he says, you know, Trick Williams, can you please stay here and coach?

25:43The kids love you here. Okay, I can coach the kids. You know what I mean? I'm coaching with my cleats on. then I have a dream. I'm going to play for the Philadelphia Eagles. I don't know how it's going to happen, but it's got to happen. I had a dream. It was vivid. It was clear as day.

25:58Steph McMahon:Oh, literally you had a dream. I had a dream. Okay. And I tell my mom, I said, I'm going to play for the Philadelphia Eagles. I don't know how. Here's the dream, Stephanie. Okay. I walk in a building. It's a bunch of doors. It's a bunch of doors. It's a bunch of doors. I knock on one door. It's the New England Patriots. Hell yeah. This is your dream. This is my dream. Okay. And they say, sorry, we don't have space for you. I say, okay. Knock on the next door. It's the Green Bay Packers. Here to play football. Sorry, we don't have space for you. I knock on the Philadelphia Eagles. I'm here to play football.

26:33He say, you serious? I say, I'm dead serious. He said, come in. Let's see what we can do. Just like that. Wow. I had this dream. I go and tell my mom, I'm going to play for the Philadelphia Eagles. I don't know how this is going to happen. But now the reality is I do my pro day, nothing happens. I'm coaching at Airport Eagles. You know what I mean? So I'm like, maybe I misinterpreted the dream. Maybe it's the Airport Eagles that I'm going to play for. You know what I mean? Maybe I'm going back to high school. But I don't know what's going on. You know what I mean? But I'm still training. I'm still grinding.

27:07I'm still working. I'm still working.

27:08Steph McMahon:Because when the opportunity comes, you want to be ready. I'm going to be ready. Yeah. I'm going to be ready. Here I go. I'm going to train with one of my boys from college. He doesn't show up. Alshon Jeffrey shows up. I know it's a lot of football guys, but Alshon is from South Carolina. He's from the same place that I'm from. I see Alshon. I know exactly who he is. He just signed a$55 million deal to the Philadelphia Eagles. He played high school with my cousin, DJ. So many points. I said, oh, this is how it's happening. I'm going to play for the Philadelphia Eagles. So I said, yo, Alshon, what's going on?

27:41I'm Trey Williams. I would love to just learn from you. Can I train with you? Can I just learn the game at a higher level? He said, yeah, I'm training with Alshon maybe two weeks. One day, Alshon, he sleeps in. I'm supposed to meet him at the facility. He doesn't show up. But Deuce Daly shows up in the facility. How do I know who Deuce Daly is? Because he played at airport high school. He played for the Gamecocks, and he played for the Philadelphia Eagles. And at this time, he's coaching for the Philadelphia Eagles. I'm like, whoa. this is crazy. I got to say something to Duke Staley. Right? I said, Duke Staley, how you doing?

28:18My name is Trick Williams. I'm coaching at your alma mater, Airport High School. He said, for real? Come with me to my car. Let me draw you up some plays so you can show Coach Burnett. I said, I ain't worried about no plays. I ain't worried about airport. I want to play for the Philadelphia Eagles. He says, you serious? I'm dead serious. He said, send me a film and see what we can do. I said, on my film, he said, Nothing we can do right now. But stay in contact with them. Okay. I coach at airport. Door open.

28:46Steph McMahon:Door is open. That's a great relationship. Yeah. I'm coaching these kids with my cleats on. You know what I mean? I'm pouring my heart into it. Just meaning you're staying ready. I'm staying ready. You know what I mean? I go to the NFL Spring League this year. It's the first year they did the NFL Spring League. And I get good film. And they have a database sheet in the NFL. It was like john.smith at ravens.nfl. dot NFL. So if you find this database sheet, you can pretty much contact any coach in the NFL. I contacted every single coach. Amen. All 32 teams. That's awesome. Every wide receiver coach, quarterback coach, offensive coordinator, tight end coach.

29:27My name is Trick Williams. Here's my tape. I played in NFL Spring League. I played in South Carolina. I played in Hampton. Here's my resume. Two teams got to me. Who are the two teams? Patriots the New England Patriots and the Green Bay Packers oh no yes the two that's right the two doors that I knocked on in the first place they said sorry thank you for sending in your highlights but we don't have space for you

29:52Steph McMahon:oh no shit I said oh my gosh you were like the next one I know is coming my mom said have you talked to Deuce Daly this is the same year that the Eagles I have such goosebumps right now this is a true story this is crazy this is a true story this is the same year that the Eagles win the Super Bowl. So I've been in contact with them. I've been in contact with a great winning coach, great winning coach, great winning coach. They win the Super Bowl. And then my mom said, did you send your stuff to Deuce? I said, all right, I didn't want to bother him, but here we go. I sent my stuff to Deuce. Two weeks later, he calls me.

30:23He says, Trick Williams, have you ever been to camp in the NFL? I said, no, sir, I haven't. He said, congratulations, we are bringing you into NFL rookie mini camp with the Philadelphia Eagles.

30:35Steph McMahon:Holy shit. What? No football agent. Crazy. No stats my senior year. Coaching changes, demon practice. A whole year out of the game, coaching the kids. Found myself in rookie minicamp with the Philadelphia Eagles. Just like this. I lie to you not. I go to camp with the Philadelphia Eagles. Man, I've been coaching the kids. I know how to get outside my routes. I'm good now. Man, I get to camp. any ball thrown in my direction, I was catching it and coming down with it. Right. I had the best camp ever. I say, if this doesn't work. Right. It's not for lack of talent and effort. I get cut. No. I get cut.

31:21And I asked Deuce Taylor, I said, what can I do to make this team? He said, there's nothing you can do to make the team. Just try your best not to mess it up. They cut me. I said, but everything that I had been through up to that point, 20 years of playing the game. I was like, there has to be something better for me. Like one tear, one tear, shed down my face. All right, what's next?

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32:56I finally signed with a football agent.

32:59Steph McMahon:Okay. I finally signed with a football agent. Okay. This is going to hit really home for you. This is where you get involved. Oh. I finally signed with a football agent. He said, man, you have great feeling to worry. We can get you to another NFL team. Nothing happens. Man, what the heck is going on? Right. He says, don't worry about it. We're going to get you with the XFL.

33:23he sends my stuff to the XFL. WWE reaches out to me the next day. He said, are you interested in coming in for a tryout? I said, I don't know, man. I don't know if I could wear those tights like Triple H used to wear back in the day, man. I don't know if I could. You know what I mean? I got to put on these tights, man. I don't know if I could wear these tights. I said, Dad, you think I should go wrestle? He said, you better go out there and do something. and then when I thought about it like bro this is the perfect opportunity the attitude era I grew up on the attitude era

33:56Steph McMahon:right man like I was three years old watching Stone Cold Steve Austin and I opened a can of whoop ass at three years old my mama had to cut off wrestling you know that was my first cuss word watching Stone Cold Steve Austin you know what I mean that's so great I lied to you not these are all true stories these are not jokes these are stories oh my god that's so great and man and like when I thought about it I was like bro this is exactly who I am like when I thought about all the when I put all the pieces together I'm working so hard at football that's not what I'm supposed to be doing I said I love to talk I do public speaking I'm working with the kids all this stuff it's what I do naturally I'm athletic obviously I can do all this stuff I just never once thought about a possibility WWE was over here WWE was over here NFL was over here I just never put the two together.

34:47I never put the two together. But there's one piece that I'm confused on because the tape was submitted for the XFL. But how did becoming a superstar, like, was it open by the wrong department?

35:02Steph McMahon:Did somebody say. It must have been the wrong department. I think it was your department and you knew I had potential. I think it, I think God intervened. I think God intervened. Because that's your whole story. That's my whole story. And it's so interesting, too, because your dream was just that you got the opportunity, not that you were on the team. The dream was just getting inside the door. Yeah. That was it. And that's all it took. And then learning that it wasn't your path. Man, that's a lot of work for nothing. God, why did you do that to me? I know. But you had to get there. I had to get there.

35:35Steph McMahon:And experience all of that. Plus. And I learned so many lessons along the way about being a superstar. I don't know how much time we got, but I could talk all day. Lots of time. This is your time. So, man, I remember a guy named Corey Jackson. When I was coaching at airport high school, he came in. He was a public speaker. And he played in the NFL. And he shared how, you know, he played basketball his whole life. And he played one season of football. And he made it to the NFL. I'm like, how in the world do you do that? And he's 6 '7", great guy. And I went and talked to him. Yeah. I said, hey, Corey, my name is Trick Williams.

36:11Man, your testimony moved me. I say, I would like to just learn from you. He said, man, I'll tell you what. Come to my office. I go to his office. We travel to it. I just learn from him. He says, we're going to Orlando. You know what I mean? The Pro Bowl is in Orlando. I'm going to do some guest speaking for the Hall of Fame and different stuff like that. I just want you to come with me, and I just want you to meet certain people and just, you know what I mean? Have the experience. Have the experience. Yeah. And I learned so many lessons through this moment. I remember the first time I got there, I'm talking to a gold jacket, a Hall of Famer there.

36:44He said, hey, man, you're a good-looking kid. You know, what'd you do? Like, yeah, so I'm coaching at airport, but I'm really trying to get to the NFL. I'm giving this long story. And he was like, okay. I asked you, but I didn't really want to answer. I got something to do. And then Corey pulled me to the side. He said, from now on, you are a free agent. All that other stuff. Talk yourself up. He said, you speak highly of yourself. You are a free agent. I don't know what that was. Don't you say that again. Don't you ever do that again. You embarrass me. You know what I'm saying? I'm like, okay, got it.

37:15I'm a free agent. Yes, got that. Yeah. And then we go to this club and all the pro bowlers are there. All the pro bowlers. I ain't going to give no names because of where the story's going. All the top profile guys are there. I'm there with my shirt off. You know what I mean? Of course. That's what treat Williams best. Now I remember. You want to stand out. I want to stand out. Yeah. But honestly, I got a shirt on for you today.

37:40Steph McMahon:I've been like this a long time. You got to understand. But I remember all the guys just lined up and lined up. And when you're in these situations, the women just go crazy. They're flying over you. And I remember top guys in the NFL to my right and to my left. I remember it was like girls coming up to me, like walking past him and walking past him. They're worth millions of dollars. I'm substitute teaching at airport hospital. You know what I'm saying? And they're looking at me like, who's this dude that he is? And you're smiling. And I'm smiling like, yeah, you know what I mean? But I learned some valuable lessons from that too.

38:20I said, these girls are right here because they think that I'm worth millions of dollars. You know what I mean? Because I'm right here with everybody else. So I'm glad I got to see that right then and there. Because if I would have got there and I was a pro bowler by myself, I would have thought it was because Trick Williams was so great.

38:36Steph McMahon:That's right. Because my abs poke out so much. Like, oh, they chose me over everybody else. It might be true. But the overwhelming arc is if they knew the reality of who I was at the time, they wouldn't have been there. They wouldn't have paid you any attention. They wouldn't have paid me any attention. I had to see that. I had to experience all these things. Boy, that's cool that that was your perspective too. Yeah. I mean, and then. Because you could have just been enjoying the moment. Right, totally. Yeah, but, you know. And maybe you did that too. No, I didn't. No? Because it didn't feel right.

39:06It wasn't right. You know what I mean? Like, I had to be real with myself. I said, no, I want to earn everything that comes with it. Yeah. And then that's not really a perk because what does that really mean for me? Right. You know what I mean? I got Lash Legend now. You know what I mean? You know what I mean? I got something waiting for me that's even better. But that was important for me to see at the time. Don't be a mark.

39:26Steph McMahon:I don't know a lot of men who would have made that decision. Yeah, no. Yeah, Corey said the same thing. Yeah. He was like. For real. He said that. I mean, you're, who you are is very impressive. Thank you. Thank you. Yes. Thank you. My mom took her time. Yeah. Well, you obviously have incredible parents and you're cut from a beautiful, strong cloth. I appreciate that. Yeah. I appreciate that. All true stories, no jokes. But that was just another story of just all these things. Yeah. So that was one of the lessons. What's another one that, I mean, a very important lesson to learn, especially as a professional athlete.

40:02Yes. Yes, for sure.

40:03Steph McMahon:I mean, and before you really became, you know, some something. Right. And now you're on the rise and you have lash. But that's, you know, to learn that lesson so early is important. So many professional athletes get in terrible positions. Lost in the sauce. Yeah. I can see how it can happen. Like, man, when you winning and you're doing well in the business and you're successful. Sure. You're untouchable. Yeah. You know what I mean? Like, nothing happened to me. You know what I mean? Like, I'm champ. I'm doing this. I'm Super Bowl. Whatever the case is. I'm glad that I had to lose everything. Yeah.

40:43Everything to the point I was down to 14 cents when I paid off all my bills. Wow. And that's when WWE called me.

40:50Steph McMahon:You're kidding. I'm being serious. That's when WWE called me. I lost everything. Everything. thing because because at that time so now you know um what i'm confused is your timing at rikishi school and like when did all that happen okay so so um all right so after that whole eagles thing the whole debacle i'll go back to the school system and then i finally i go to a trial with wwe and they said if you're serious we can tell you never wrestled before right go learn how to wrestle and we'll bring you back. Okay. No guarantees, no promises. So they had seen your tape. They seen my tape. Liked you, reached out to you.

41:31Steph McMahon:And this is what they said. They said you're athletic, charismatic, you know, but you need to learn. You got potential. You need to know what the business is about. Like, you know what I mean? Just a little bit. You need to understand what we do here. Yeah. So from there, I was like, am I ready to drop my identity as a football player? I've been playing for 20 years at this point. Like, am I really done with football? You know what I mean? I'm substituting, coaching the kids. And, like, you know, is this self-seeking? You know what I mean? Am I just trying to go be someone on my own? Yeah, that's exactly what I was trying to do.

42:02It's hard to be a teacher. I'm not going to lie. Yeah, it is. It's hard.

42:07Steph McMahon:The system doesn't make sense. It doesn't make sense. It doesn't. So that's when I moved to Philadelphia again. That's when the whole Sweet Baby James thing, I've talked to that story for a long time. I'm going to save that story. But I moved back to Philly and I'm training at CZW. And that's when I had my first, you know, wrestling match. And I'm wrestling under the character Sweet Daddy Trick. And I'll lie to you not, Stephanie. My first match, it might have been 12 people there. Sure. 13. Yeah. It was the most lit environment I've ever been in in my life. Those 13 people, they were in it. They were in it.

42:43They felt it. They was on a journey with me. That's so cool. I knew I found my purpose right then and there.

42:49Steph McMahon:Wow, that was your moment. That was my moment. Wow. I knew. I didn't sleep for two days. Wow. You know what I mean? In front of only 13 people. Right? And it hit you like a lightning bolt. I knew it. Like when you just know it's the right answer. I knew it. I get to be every piece of who I am. You know what I mean? I get to talk. I get to take my shirt off. I get to perform. I get to, you know, all my gifts, I get to put it all into one and present it to the world. You know what I mean? Yeah. Hell yeah. The world was 13 people that night, but it didn't matter. You know, I get to present it to everybody.

43:21Steph McMahon:It's so great that you felt that. I mean, I suggest if anybody gets into the business, they need to see what it's about. Because if you don't have a moment like that, it has you hooked and makes you love it. Yeah. Then it's too much to just. I agree. Because it is hard. Yes. It's a tough life. Right. And in addition to all the bumps. For sure. um and but it's an exciting you know gift as well I mean you get to I've heard you say you know you guys feel like you're cheating or whatever like you get to travel the world together you know and it is true like you have the opportunity to learn how to be right how to be a star how to be um you know the the best person for your audience that you can be you get to travel you get to do all this community work you can learn behind the scenes if that's something that interests you you can learn a different language you can take financial aid classes you can take classes in general like the op there are so many opportunities within the system that's right you know and it's like it's but it's hard it is you know but it is hard it's a grind and i think if you don't have the strength of character and the love of the business and the gratitude sort of mindset, it'll eat you up.

44:46For sure.

44:46Steph McMahon:Yeah. It'll get, it's just not meant for you. For sure. I definitely agree. And then, yeah, that's where we went from Philly to COVID breaking out. Yeah. So WWE called me for a tryout. They said, we're going to bring you back. This is the day COVID breaks out. Holy cow. The day. And other people was there too. Solo Sokola was there. Jade Cargill was there. Tiffany Stratton was there. Really? This whole crew? This whole crew was at the same trial. What a group. Yeah, COVID breaks out. And then they say, all right, sorry guys, but we're going to send you back home. COVID is more serious. So you never had the chance to do anything?

45:22So I never got the chance to be there. Okay. And then that's when I moved to LA, Knox Pro with Rikishi and everything like that. Okay. And that's when I'm online teaching and DoorDash and anything I can to just make some money to pay my rent.

45:36Steph McMahon:That's great he was able to keep the school going. Yeah, he was the only one. We had to wear masks and everything. It was a weird time. It was such a weird time for everybody. My oldest daughter, it was her freshman year at a new high school. And they had to wear masks and sit at isolated tables and partition tables. And you weren't allowed to socialize. And we all thought we were going to die. It was crazy. It was a crazy time. It was really crazy. That's a win in itself that we're past COVID. Right? And they say every hundred years or so, there's some type of epidemic. Well, we're good now. A little bit.

46:13Steph McMahon:Hate to be so positive. No, yeah, that's great. That's a great way to look at it. We lived through it, but we did. We did. We did live through it. So that's when you go to Rikishi School and you get some more experience. And now you get the final, you get a call back. Yes. So post-COVID now, how does it go down? At the Performance Center? Yeah. Okay, at the Performance Center. Yeah, so, you know, my class is pretty special. You know what I mean? We're the 2.0 group. You know, Bron Breaker, the Creed Brothers, Tony D 'Angelo, Carmelo Hayes, Grayson Waller. You know, all us, we came in together.

46:49It's still during COVID, you know, that funny time right there. And, yeah, man, like, I remember them just throwing us into the deep end.

46:57Steph McMahon:Yeah. I remember two weeks, I was there for two weeks, and I get a dot on my TR app. It said, you're going to SmackDown. I said, oh, shoot. They said, yeah, you're going to smack down, but don't get a big head. You didn't deserve it yet. I said, okay. You know what I mean? Let's just see what's going to happen. Right. This is when Apollo Cruz is doing his Nigerian gimmick. Right. Okay. And I'm one of his Nigerian bodyguards. No way. You were. I didn't know what the hard camera was. Right. I'm like, oh, my gosh, what is this? I just see a bunch of monitors and everything looking at me. And it was a crazy time.

47:33Steph McMahon:Also great experience. Also a great experience. Yeah. Then, you know, all the producers, everybody in the back said they love the segment and everything like that. The next week I get COVID. No. Yeah. So they said, let's leave those NXT boys down there. Yeah. We can't chance that. We can't mix. We can't mix. And that's how that whole thing started and ended for me. Wow. But again, meant to be this way. Meant to be this way. Way better. I wasn't tripping. Way, way, way better. I wasn't tripping. I wasn't ready. you know like well but so cool though for you to well a just to get that right like huge obviously you knew you had something they were interested in right sure and then you go and to have that experience in the ring where you don't like where you learn even before you ever make it up there again right but it's like you had the chance to stand in the ring and to feel all that and experience all that so so it wasn't such a surprise the next time yeah for sure for sure It was definitely beneficial to my career.

48:30My first time going through Gorilla because I wasn't even on NXT TV. So I remember little things like pyro being the loudest thing ever in the world.

48:42Steph McMahon:And it's hard not to react to it. Yes, like my heart jumping straight to my stomach. Oh, yeah. So if you watch when I briefly managed Kurt Angle, every time his pyro would go off. But on camera. I mean, I couldn't help it. And I was talking to myself, don't move, don't jump, don't jump. And I told her I'd do it anyway. I couldn't help it. Yeah, like you need these reps, you know what I mean, to see these things. And then they throw us, you know, into the deep end again with the whole rebranding of the 2.0. Sure. And everything like that. And pretty much most of us. So how did that feel when that happened?

49:17Steph McMahon:So it was black and gold. It was black and gold. Right. And I remember because especially it was right around the time of my husband's heart attack. Right. So, you know, it was very clear then when the rebrand happened. Right. It was just like a very particular time. I remember it. For sure. For sure. And it became all colorful. All colorful. We had the new NXT title with the rainbow and everything like that. But it was an interesting time because it was a rumor like all of you would be debuting next week on TV. Like, okay. You know what I mean? He's selling us a dream. Right. He told us when he signed us, it's probably going to take three years, three years, four years.

50:02And sure enough.

50:03Steph McMahon:For NXT to get placement? For NXT to get placement. Okay. Okay. Because when you're coming in as an athlete, like I had some experience on the indies, but, you know, I was still in the athlete category. It took some time for me to, you know, experience what the business is truly about. So when they say we're going, you know, next week we're going to get this thing going. Like, oh, shoot. He said, Trick and Mello, y 'all going to be a package deal. And from there, you know, Mello's like. But you guys sort of came up together, right? Yeah, we was the same class, you know what I mean? And we, you know, he always wanted to be a solo act.

50:39And I always wanted to be a solo act. Sure. You know, because.

50:42Steph McMahon:Yeah, that was, yeah. That was the dream. Yeah. That was the goal. And they said, y 'all going to do this together. And to Melo's credit, you know, he took the challenge, you know, on the head and said, let's do this. Let's make this work. And I was able to learn a lot from Melo. And I feel like it was beneficial for both of us, you know, them throwing us into the deep end of NXT 2.0 to see us both doing our thing today. It's pretty dope. Yeah, it is. Yeah. Yeah, it is. Yeah. what do you think is um like is there a moment when you guys what are some of the things he taught you you know in being a package deal and so a he taught you whatever you're given you're going to make it great for sure right for sure um and b like what are some of the other i would say having an athletic background you know i was raised and my pops in the military there's a dynamic of players play, coaches coach.

51:41Whatever they say you do and you like it. People who came from the indies had a more sense of being their own personal brand and being in control of their brand. If they don't like something, they pitch in different things.

51:57Steph McMahon:They're part of the process. I never went to Steve Spurrier and said, I don't like your play. Let's throw it to me. You know, I would have got the ball way more if that was the case. I could have saved myself a long time. I've been open for years. That's all I had to do. If only you knew. If only I knew. Go say so. But that's one of the things I learned. Like, he had ideas and he formed a relationship, you know, with the writers and everything like that. That's smart, yeah. I'm like, man, like, you know, I've always, in a weird way, I always looked at the coaches, like the opposition. Probably because of Hampton.

52:35You know what I mean? That's so interesting. They told me like, and I always had a chip on my shoulder.

52:40Steph McMahon:Right. Where I had to prove to the coaches that I'm good enough. You're going to give me the spot because I earned it. And I saw him actually, he didn't have that chip. He probably has a different chip. I don't know. Everybody's got some kind of chip. Everybody got a chip. You know what I mean? But, you know, he worked with them for the best product. And I was like, you know, I was like. Collaborative. Yeah. And up to that point, I've never been able to just kind of go with the flow and trust the process. So that was where I had to learn, like, this is a collaborative effort. Yeah. And everybody wants everybody's brand to be as big as it possibly can be because at the end of the day, we want to make money.

53:19You know what I mean? Yeah. And maybe it might be. It's a business at the end of the day. It's a business. Yeah. And it might be your role. For all of us.

53:24Steph McMahon:Right. For all of us. Everybody. It might be your role to help somebody else look better today. Yeah. And that's okay. But at the end of the day, if you do it well, then somebody might be helping you one day. That's right. And that's exactly what I was doing for Melo. Lil Yachty's doing for me today. Yeah, oh my God. The gingerbread man shirt. Let's talk about it. Oh my God. That was my idea. Was it? No, of course. I love it. I love it. And I just saw the new one. Is it pretty good? Have you seen it? I heard something. I heard something's in the works. Wait. I don't know if it was sent to me. I think it was.

53:57Steph McMahon:It was either shown to me or it was sent to me. I don't know. I'm going to show them first. Oh, that's perfect. I have teeth. Oh, that's selling out. Stop. That's selling out. I'm buying one. I'll show you later. I know Sammy don't like me. I know he don't like me, man. I'm happy to share it.

54:26Steph McMahon:I love it I love it it's so good okay so I know he's sick of me I know he's sick of me oh my god it's great it's great it is so great thank you thank you yeah and it's gonna be amazing this weekend too oh yeah man we gonna turn it up man I got another chip on my shoulder you know what I mean it's the first WrestleMania let's talk about it Tell me a little bit about Lil Yachty. Because he looks like he is having the time of his life. And he took one hell of a haluba kick. Man. I mean, he impressed me. This is what he told me. He says, Trick, I can't believe they're letting me do WrestleMania with you.

55:07He said, I ain't want to take no shortcuts. I ain't want to go straight to the top. He said, I want to go to Delaware. I want to go to Baton Rouge. He said, I want to be one of the boys. he said i love this business i've been watching this for years and you know i mean and he wants to be one of the boys yeah like we talk man sometimes two o 'clock in the morning like

55:39but man that's my boy man yeah like and it's crazy because we both have a desire for excellence you know we want it to be good that's clear you know i mean we want everything that we do to feel like yeah yeah same feeling that we felt when y 'all was doing your thing in the attitude era like everything has to feel real to the people yes and he loves it and you know he said he wants to

56:02Steph McMahon:have a match all right you heard it here first yeah y 'all say he wants a match man he's gonna get in shape and we're gonna do this all right all right let's make it happen let's make it happen my new legacy title is an original fully custom designed from the ground up to commemorate my career inside and out of the wwe ring the belt features 907 crystals golden metallic prints a black velvet strap and the center and side plates contain artwork and reference to the mcmahon family crest you can get my legacy belt now at wwe shop and fanatics road to gold is the latest wwe exclusive from fanatics casino bringing wrestlemania thrills right to your fingertips it is the most star-studded casino game ever built spin reels featuring 20 wwe superstars from Cody Rhodes to John Cena and my personal favorite, Triple H.

57:05Steph McMahon:And for the first time ever in an online casino game, you'll hear the voice of WWE himself, Michael Cole. Battle to the top for rewards with bonus spins, mystery wins, and cash collect moments. This is WrestleMania Road to Gold and it only lives at Fanatics Casino. Must be 21 and over. Gambling problem? call 1-800-GAMBLER not available in all states see Fanatic's casino app so you know I don't want to end it how long has it been? Okay, we can keep going. Yeah. Because this is too good. Oh, yeah. I'm right here. No, this is fun. Yeah, you do. But and I think part of what you just said about demanding excellence of yourself, right?

57:55Steph McMahon:Like that is obviously a key value, you know, that you've put on yourself throughout your life. Sure. Right. And where do you think you get that from? Man. Like you've mentioned your mom and your dad. Yeah. Like how did, do you think growing up in a military family taught you some of these core values? For sure, man. My pops is rough in a good way. Yeah. You know what I mean? Like we up at five o 'clock, you know what I mean? Make sure the house is clean. Yeah. You know what I mean? Like we playing football, we playing sports. And it's you and how many siblings? I have two brothers. Okay. Andre's my older brother.

58:31Hassan's my younger brother.

58:32Steph McMahon:Okay. Three boys. Three big boys, I imagine. Big boys. Yeah. We competing. You know what I mean? We wrestling. Yeah. You're tearing the house down. I broke a son's collarbone in a Royal Rumble. You know what I mean? Oh, shit. At 10 years old. That's awful. And he was eight? He was seven. Seven. He was seven. It was the scariest day of my life. Yeah, but oh my God, you must have felt awful. Yeah, my parents wasn't home. What happened? Man, he had to go. No, but like, what did you do? Body slam off the top. Royal Rumble style. But onto what? On the ground. The hard floor. On the floor. And how did he land to break his collarbone?

59:07I didn't see him because I was in my victory stance. Oh, right. You know, but I just remember the yell.

59:15Steph McMahon:The sound. The sound. Did you hear it crack? I didn't hear it. I heard his, oh! It was a sound that I'd never heard anybody make before. A human make, yeah. And it's like he moved and then he stopped. I thought he was paralyzed. Oh, shit. Oh, that's terrifying. Yes. So, you know, the viewer's discretion, don't try these moves at home. Yeah, no. Let's take these very seriously. For sure do not try this at home. Because I'm a living example. But it's all doing great. He'll be at WrestleMania. Yeah, no, he's all good. He's all good now. Yeah, he's doing great. I mean, I know those moments, right?

59:45Steph McMahon:Like, I was more on the receiving end. But I can't imagine how you felt. Yeah, I felt terrible. Thinking you hurt your little brother. And your parents are not home. They're not home. And you're 10. I'm 10. So what do you do? Who's the oldest kid there? Andre. Okay, your brother. He comes in. Who's what? 12, 13? He's 13. Okay. And he's notorious for telling on us anyways. Okay. This is right up his alley. Mom! You know what I'm saying? He's going to be mad I said that. You know, but. He's your big brother, isn't he? That's my big brother. And that's one time I didn't get a whooping. You know what I mean?

1:00:20Yeah. We didn't whoop that trick that time because I was already. You felt so bad. I was already. You were so scared. And we went to the ER and he was wearing a sling. But I actually helped his game. Because he was a lefty. And when I did that to the left side of his collarbone, he developed the right side. So he became a better athlete. On the right side? So he has me to thank. Oh, that's right.

1:00:43Steph McMahon:So is he ambidextrous? Now he's ambidextrous. He can do it all. There's always a silver lining. But yeah, man. But so your dad would have you up at five in the morning, all three of you. Five in the morning. Clean the house. Clean the house. Going on runs. Football practice. I remember we used to go to the gym like 5 o 'clock in the morning. You know what I mean? We were going runs in the neighborhood. And you never knew what it was when he woke you up. I'm sorry. I was just going to say, how old were you guys? Going to the gym at 5 a.m.? I might have been 5 all the way up to graduating. He wanted to stay in good shape.

1:01:21Steph McMahon:Right? And he wanted you with him? You're coming with him. Or was your mom working? My mom was probably sleeping. She was probably sleeping. Good for her. But honestly, you know, speaking to that fact, and I hope my pops wouldn't mind, but I watched him be the hardest worker, you know, our entire life. Set the example. He worked in the school system. You know what I mean? Like, he was coaching after, you know, he got hurt in the military. You know what I mean? In what branch? Not that it matters. He was in the Navy. Okay. Yeah. And I'm going to share this, and I hope he doesn't mind, but this is just a testament to the man he is.

1:01:55Like, I watch him work all type of different jobs. You know what I mean? from teaching, you know, he was in the Navy. He was, you know, he was our football coaches. You know, he worked in car repair. You know what I mean? He did anything and everything. Anything to make sure that we was good. He'd come back smelling like oil. Everything he could just to make sure we was good. When you're young, you don't really realize what that means. But as a man, I'm like, he had no pride, no ego. And he demanded that out of us too. He was like, you need to learn how to do this. As a man, you need to learn how to do this.

1:02:28There ain't no time for being lazy. You won't be sorry. Like, we watched it firsthand. So that's why all of us, work ethic has never been a problem. Like, that's not even an option to be sorry and not do your job. That's crazy.

1:02:44Steph McMahon:Right. Yeah, because they sacrificed too much for us to get to this point. Too much. That's beautiful. Yeah. And my mom was the same way. She spoke greatness into us. I just remember, y 'all going to be so famous one day. Yeah? Y 'all going to be famous. The women going to be throwing their panties at you. They're going to be throwing their panties at you. You're going to be swatting them away. You're going to be swatting them away. I'm like, yeah. That's going to be me. Absolutely, that's me. That sounds great, man. But this is who she is, you know what I mean? And she spoke greatness into us.

1:03:20Another story. I remember, like I told you, that game I went back to South Carolina State. I wasn't playing. My grandfather passed away. And I came home. You know, I didn't even ride back with the team. I said, I need some time to figure out what I'm going to do. And I remember just talking to my mom. I said, Mom, I don't know what's going on in my life right now. Like, nothing's happened the way I thought it would. She said, you are a king created by God Almighty. Never forget who you are, whose you are. They can't break you. And that's the same thing I chant when I go into the ring sometimes.

1:03:53I'm a king created by God Almighty. Never forget who you are, whose you are that can't break you. Sometimes I ain't saying nothing, but sometimes I am saying those exact very words because it's an affirmation. Me putting my foot in the ground, letting the world know who I am. So even if I'm nervous, even if I don't know what I'm going to do, if I know I'm going to just go out there and give everything I got, that's enough. and that gave me enough confidence to just go do my thing from there. As a mother, that moves me more than you can possibly realize.

1:04:24Steph McMahon:Wow, yeah. You know, because she obviously loves you so much. Sure. That she spoke all that truth, you know, but giving you that affirmation and believing every single word of it when she said it to you, enough to make you believe it and feel it. And now that you say that before you go out for your matches. most of the time. Yeah, she said this at the lowest, one of the lower points, you know what I mean? Like, you know. You needed it. I needed it. Yeah. And it hit home. Yeah, you were listening. I was listening. I had to. I had nothing else to hold on to. That's a good mom. Yeah. So you're a middle child.

1:05:04I'm the middle child. I keep everything together, you know what I mean?

1:05:07Steph McMahon:Is that the role of the middle child? I think so. At least in my house. Yeah, I heard the middle child doesn't ever feel, you know, like they get the attention. Oh, so maybe that's why I have a chip on my shoulder. It might be a little bit of bone. Maybe there's more than one chip. Maybe there's more than one chip. Chips Ahoy. I do love Chips Ahoy. Okay. Yeah. You soak them in milk, though, I like. Uh-huh. Yeah, because they're too crispy. Do you like the chewy ones? No, I don't like the chewy. They don't smell the same, I find. They don't do it. Do you eat chips of hoy ever? Not anymore, man.

1:05:46Steph McMahon:Not anymore. I got to keep that. You know what I mean? You got to keep that. Ching, ching, ching, ching, ching. So what is your cheat? Do you have a go-to? Oh, man. So. This is one of our favorite questions, actually. Man, pizza, man. Pizza is the perfect. Whoever invented pizza. Can you imagine them just saying, we're going to take this dough. Take them tomatoes over there. Mush them up. Basil. Spinach. Cheese. mama mia you know i mean like who thought about pizza i don't know it is perfect somebody yeah it is perfect it is i love pizza too and then like we might throw some pepperoni on it i don't know right i don't do the pork no more but there's not many things in life i miss more than a pepperoni pizza oh sorry you were never a bacon guy i love bacon oh but you know i sacrificed it yeah what a grade of good.

1:06:41Steph McMahon:Okay. All right. Well, that's good. Again, here you are sacrificing, giving up what you love. Yeah. Yeah. You got to. Yeah. So thicker, thin crust or both. I'm going thin crust, man. What about Sicilian? I love a good Sicilian slice. You know, we got WrestleMania in three days. No, it's for after. It's for after. Okay. Okay. I'm helping you plan. Okay. We have pizza. What do you and Lash love to do if you finish a big event, you're going to go celebrate? What does that look like? You know what we love? We go to BJ's and get one of those pizookies. It's like a big chocolate chip cookie. And they throw vanilla ice cream, two scoops.

1:07:29Steph McMahon:Do you heat up the pizookie? Oh, my goodness. Is the cookie warm? It is amazing. With melted chocolate. It's greatness. Yes. And then the ice cold ice cream combined with the warm chocolate gooeyness. $8.99. Yes. What else is in this? Oh, man, just a warm chocolate chip cookie. Just so I don't feel totally bad, I get my chocolate chip cookie gluten-free. Okay. But then I put my ice cream on top. That's all right. That's all good. But that's my cheat meal. And vanilla ice cream? Vanilla ice cream. Vanilla. It's got to cut through the sweetness. Yeah, you know what I mean? Yeah. Little boom, little boom.

1:08:00Steph McMahon:Yeah, a little combo. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Do you like to have two cookies and chipwich it? No. Too much. Now you're getting nasty.

1:08:13I can go there. Yeah. Now you're taking it to a whole other level.

1:08:18Steph McMahon:Because it's pretty amazing. Yeah, for sure. And then you can even put chocolate chips. You know, like the original chip, but you can make it on your own. Are both of these cookies warm? They're both warm? Well, it depends on what you're doing. Okay. Because, yeah, if you're eating it warm with the cold ice cream, I see that's its own independent spoon-fed thing, right? Because the cookie's going to break up. For sure, for sure. And you want it to be able to... To break this a little bit. Oh, yeah. Yeah. I know. Oh, man. I'm telling you. We're right there. Wait, wait. What's your cheat meal? What's your cheat meal?

1:08:47Steph McMahon:Well, right now I'm kind of not indulging. Okay. Right? I'm just... But I do love cereal, and granola in particular. Granola cereal? So what I do love is, yeah, I mix granola, and I have this new granola that's like very healthy granola, apparently. I used to eat the not great. Okay. This is really good, healthy, as far as it can be, with chocolate chips and milk. Okay, okay. And I eat it like a cereal. That sounds good. Yeah, I love cereal. And it's not too unhealthy. You can eat that every day. No, that's the thing. I mean, but obviously too much of anything is too much, but, and there's still like sugar in the chocolate, you know, but it's this type of chocolate that's like really good for you.

1:09:28It's a healthy cheat meal.

1:09:30Steph McMahon:I mean, not with the amounts. She's like, well, when I eat the whole bowl. In theory, it's a great healthy cheat. But, yeah, I like to eat a lot, like when I'm going to have a cheat. And I don't know what that is, but it's like I've got to overeat, you know, to satisfy whatever craving that is. You deserve it. Yeah, you work hard. It's like a Sunday night meal. for you? Yeah, yeah, whenever it happens. Oh, this week, yeah. I'm not even thinking about it. I am for you. Because it's going to be an insane week and weekend. That's right. There are all the right reasons. That's right. I can't wait.

1:10:12Steph McMahon:And you guys are going to deliver in such an unexpected way. You know, you are going to bring it to the next level, as you tend to do when you're out there. You've got everybody with you. Whoop, that trick. Oh, yeah. I mean, I want to ask you before I go too far about that, but I do want to, it's not just you and your match that I'm talking about, right? It's like you and your class. It's you and all of the talent that's out there competing. Like, you guys are setting the bar for the next year's WrestleMania. For sure. Right? For sure. Like, this is your WrestleMania, and I have no doubt all of you are going to deliver.

1:10:57Steph McMahon:For sure. And over-deliver. That's right. Because that's what we do. That's what we do. And we want our fans to keep wanting to come back every single time. That's right. Myself, Oba, Javon, you know, the stand and deliver last year. And I remember, like, everybody said, I'm going crazy. Like, man, they're going to remember our match. They're going to remember our match. And that's exactly what we did last year. That's right. Those are two guys, and myself included, who want to be the top of the business. and we all compete. You know what I mean? We both want that number. All three of us. We all want that number one spot.

1:11:35Right. But it's healthy. You know what I mean? Yeah, no, it's good competition. But like, nah, man, like you went viral this week. I'm going viral too. I'm going viral. I'm going viral this week. Yeah. Every week we add it. Level up. Level up. Yeah. And I think we pushing each other. And I'm glad to be with them boys. Yeah. Because they want it.

1:11:51Steph McMahon:And you will all demand the best of each other. For sure. For sure. Right? It's like it brings out the best in you. It's healthy competition. Healthy competition. Yeah. Which is necessary. Yeah. In life. You know, if it was, oh, great job. You so great. Pat on the back. No, you're great. And then we go out there and we suck it up. Yeah. Nah, man. Get them out of here. You don't want to be comfortable. No. That's not your nature. My whole life, as we can see. Right? I'm going to jump into the deep end and I'm going to learn how to swim. Do you ever feel that moment of like, yes, I did this. I still have this, this, and this to go, but do you ever allow yourself to feel comfortable for any time?

1:12:29You know, ironically, the only time I felt it is when I go back and watch, like, disconnected from it. Yeah. Because every match, I'm guilty of it. Like, ah, I could have did this. I could have did that. Right, right. And it's always in my mind. You know what I mean? And then sometimes I go back, and I watch something from, like, two years ago. Whoa. This moment was so magical. You know what I mean?

1:12:52Steph McMahon:Like, yeah, and it's gone. You know what I mean? But like, look at what we did, you know, two years ago with this or with that. Yeah. Maybe I just process it late and maybe that helps me stay hungry and everything. So I don't think I would change it. But I'm glad you get the glimpses of it anyway, because I mean, you sound like you're in such a great grounded place anyway. But sometimes, you know, I did a we did a pod with Paul the other day and he was interviewing me, actually. And we were talking about the ability to appreciate the moment when you're in the moment. Right. And I was just watching Sean's documentary, too.

1:13:31Steph McMahon:And he talks about the same thing. Like he couldn't appreciate what was happening in the moment, you know, and he couldn't realize how big that moment was in the moment. What does that look like to you? So I'm just starting to get to this place where for the Hall of Fame, I actually, I'm feeling it and I'm able to appreciate it and accept it and take it in. And I wasn't there. I really genuinely was not there. And I've talked about this a lot, but it's like I did not feel like I deserved it. Wow. And getting to this place feels really, really good because if for nothing else, like it really is my whole life.

1:14:17Steph McMahon:And that's a lot of what I talk about in my speech. It's like since I can remember, this is my life, you know, and the journey that I've been through and where I am now and how old I am. I think my age reflects an ability or a maturity or a perspective, I guess. You carry it well. Oh, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Bless you. But you're able to look at things differently. And that's where I'm getting to and being able to enjoy it. And I wish, and actually I'm so mad at myself, that I didn't enjoy it more in the moment with Cody on Raw the other night. You smacking good. I did. Well, come on now.

1:15:04Steph McMahon:You got to deliver when you're given the opportunity, right? That's what you did. That's what you did. But I was nervous, more nervous than in the moment. And it was still great, and it was a lot of fun, but it could have been even better if I weren't rusty, right, A, because it's been a long time. And we were trying to think it through and hammer it out, And it was really cool because it was me, Cody, Paul Heyman, and Paul Levesque. And we were just riffing. Right? And it's like reminding me so much of the old days, so to speak. And, you know, it was fun. It was really, really fun. And that part I was able to enjoy.

1:15:49Steph McMahon:But I wish I was in the moment more. I was in the moment. But I will be. It helped prepare me more for Friday. For sure. Yeah. You know, as a fan of you and, like, your family, of course, and, like, watching those segments back in the day, you know, it's crazy because, like, you literally did grow up in front of everybody. Yeah. Most of your life. But it's cool because, like, in our eyes, you know, from a fan perspective, you can do no wrong. Like, we just, it was so good, you know what I mean? And, like. And so bad. I mean, I was so evil. It was the right kind of bad. Yeah, so evil. It's the bad that we all love.

1:16:29You know what I mean? So, no, I still go back and watch those segments. Like, when it's you and Shane and y 'all just going at it and, you know, going against whoever and everything.

1:16:39Steph McMahon:It was fun. It was beautiful. It was so much fun. Oh, my God. We had a blast. I love how y 'all are so vulnerable. It feels like with your whole family dynamic and, like, giving everything, you know, for the business. So, like, I appreciate it. Well, thank you. Thank you. That's why I'm here. But that's what it's all about, right? It's about giving, right? And that's what it was for. Like, all my life, all I ever wanted to do was give back to the business because that was my family's, that was my family, right? Like, and I saw my parents work so hard. All they ever did, you know, was WWE. And at the time, we couldn't afford, you know, a nanny or whatever.

1:17:17Steph McMahon:And they always took me to dinners, right? And there were always business dinners. And I listened to the business side and then the creative side. and like all the troubles they were having, right? Because my mom was the CEO and my dad is the, you know, founder creator. And so to listen to their conversations about what was happening, what they were struggling with and who they were struggling with more from an executive side than anything else because they were trying to, you know, run the business at the same time. And it's just such a special business, you know? There's nothing like it in the world.

1:17:57There's nothing like it.

1:17:58Steph McMahon:And it's just, it was such a privilege to be able to be a part of for all these years and to have had all of these experiences and all of these lessons and wild and crazy moments. We need to do another episode. I just want to hear everything. Matter of fact, I'm going to watch you and Tricks when I come out tomorrow. I hope that's good. I hope everybody likes it. There's some great stories. I mean, it's funny because we feel like he even said, he goes, I don't know what to ask you because we know all of each other's stories. Right. I know. I was just sitting here listening to the two. Right. You got firsthand.

1:18:32Steph McMahon:She made more inappropriate comments than that one, too. Okay. It's kind of her thing. That's who I am. But I would love to do it. I'd love to have a part two. Are you kidding? Yeah, yeah. For sure. Yeah. Absolutely. I thought about you and Lash together even, too. I know. We've done some stuff together, and it could be fun. Man, I would love to work with Lash. You know, her dream match is against me for some reason. Just singles against you. Just a singles against me. There's like a weird thing there. I'm saying nothing. That seems like it has multiple levels. Yeah, man. What you really want out of this situation.

1:19:12I just want to body slam you.

1:19:13Steph McMahon:I want you to do the job for me. You only think about yourself.

1:19:20No, I love working with Lash.

1:19:22Steph McMahon:Yeah. I mean, you love her. And I've heard your story. And you said that you've always had so much game and swagger and especially with words and everything. And you, you know, saddled up to her and tried to pour some honey and like. Love Island, man. Love Island. Honey did not come out. Man, that was not a good day for me. Because the truth is, I was hoping she was going to give me like, you know, something I could work with. A little something. Right. But as I looked into her eyes, it was nothing there. Nothing. You didn't feel it. I didn't feel it. I was like, oh, she's not feeling this. Let me abort mission.

1:19:57Steph McMahon:Abort mission. Halfway through. But she was, no, she just plays a good, has a good poker face. Well, you got to work for it, right? I had to work for it. Yeah. I had to work for it. Amen. I said, you know, I don't know if you heard what people have been saying between me. There's rumors. Rumors going around. Rumors, you know what I mean, that you and me look good together? You, no? I told them no too you know what I mean don't worry about it I just want to make sure we're on the same page you said she tapped you up and here we are she's like me she's good at me you were so cute you were saying you guys live together there's a lizard in the house house and you're like you are the strongest woman i've ever known in my entire life and you are i need to do something with this lizard that's right yeah she does not play about lizards you know like she doesn't open doors if i'm there you know i open the door i'm like what do you do when i'm not here right well that's different that's different but you know that's where you know she allows me to be the man yeah she likes great she you know and i appreciate that she wants you to be she wants me to be the man.

1:21:17Steph McMahon:Yeah. So I'm going to get every single door. Yeah. Every single door. Good for you. Open it and close it. Yeah. Go back and open it again. That's right. Let's make it happen. With a smile on your face. With a smile on my face. That's right. Happy to do it. I'll remove every lizard and then the tail comes off and then I chase the rest of the lizard. That's what happens, you know. Really? Yeah. What? The tail comes off when you, yeah. That's crazy. Yeah, man. Really? You mean like they jump out of their tail? They like detach their tail? Really? And then they keep running Lizards are smart. And then they regenerate?

1:21:49They regenerate This is the same face Lash made when she found out the tails fall off too Oh my god, where does the tail?

1:21:56Steph McMahon:Don't worry, I'll get the rest of it The shock when it first happens Especially like you're holding the lizard I was a kid learning this though I would chase them for fun Oh, okay I got the lizard, oh the tail fell off She doesn't think she's cool or funny If I were holding the lizard by its tail and it detached and ran away, that would freak me out. Yeah, that's what happens. And you're left holding it. Yeah, you're left holding it. Does it wiggle? Is it moving? Yeah. You know, I think it does a little bit. You know what I mean? A little twitch, a little nerve ending. You know, I just try to catch it in the trash can, you know, and direct it into the trash can.

1:22:35And then I dump it into the bushes. Something like that.

1:22:39Steph McMahon:So there's no murdering? Oh, no. I don't know why she always does that we love animals yeah no because some people don't yeah for sure that's actually me and Lash's think like every city if we had the time we go to the local zoo oh yeah my favorite animal is the lion you know she loves the elephant huh yeah she's like yeah I'm big into you and I can beat you up I wonder if there's any like great lion elephant parable or something somewhere I'm gonna look it up yeah I'm gonna look it up there has to be yeah she said cause that's cool I'm the true queen of the jungle that's right I was like What's better than the lion?

1:23:12Steph McMahon:You said elephant. I'm like, oh, she's got you. Yeah, she's got me, I guess. Yeah, she's got you good. She got me good. She got me good. That's great. For sure. I'm so excited for you guys. So happy for you on a personal level and on a professional level. Thank you. You know, you're both just climbing so fast and you're both so talented. Thank you. Thank you. You know, and I think the right mindset and the right heart, you know, it's a beautiful thing what you bring to all of us. I appreciate that. So thank you. And I'm sure she does too. And thank you for doing the pod. Man, anytime, you know what I mean?

1:23:48Absolutely. Anytime you want to have story time.

1:23:50Steph McMahon:Oh, wait, I want to ask you about lemon pepper steppers. Let's talk about it. Okay, yeah. So is it after the chicken wing, lemon pepper? So, you know, you got to understand. These lemon pepper steppers have been passed down from generation to generation. Thank you so much. They are. Can we get a close up? Can we get a close up of the lemon pepper steppers? I mean, we need to do this. How many generations? Man, two generations. Okay. We briefly talked about my uncle's sweet baby James. Yes. So when I moved to Philly. I thought you said it was a story you didn't want to tell. Yeah, but now we're here.

1:24:20Now we got to. I was respecting it, so okay. But my uncle's sweet baby James, man, he's a great dude. He's a great dude. I didn't meet him until I decided I was going to learn how to wrestle and move him back to Philadelphia. That's when my pop said, hey, you got an uncle in Philly. He's staying in South Philly. I said, okay. He's like, you know, just hit him up, see what he's talking about.

1:24:41Steph McMahon:he says yeah come on and you had never met him never met him and it's your brother your dad's brother my dad's uncle oh your dad's great uncle okay okay my great uncle my dad's uncle okay so i drive to philly he's like yeah come on you know he's not there but he has his friend open the door for me so i'm just in south philly you know i mean in some in some place in some place with this man this man i never met before for two days but while i'm there i'm applying for jobs and doing everything like that. So you're living there. I'm living there for two days and I'm from the South. Right. There's a big difference between the South and South Philly.

1:25:18Steph McMahon:You know what I mean? It's not the same at all. You know what I mean? It's not. But that's where I'm going to leave it at. You know what I mean? Yep. Yep. Yep. But he shows up maybe two, three days later and says, hello. I'm like, hey. You're like, hey. I'm Patrick's son. You know what I mean? Thanks for letting me stay. Thanks for letting me stay. He's like, yeah, of course. You know, I'd do anything for my nephew, Pat. You know, he said, so what is it that you want? I said, well, I'm dead serious about this wrestling journey. You know what I mean? Like, figuring out my job situation. I think I got a good thing lined up.

1:25:54But, you know, if I could stay here, that'd be very helpful. You know, what can we do to make that happen if that's okay with you? He said, you want to stay here with me? I said, yeah. He said,$200 a month. That's it. welcome in. I get you a key. And the$200 wasn't because he needed the$200.

1:26:14Steph McMahon:No, it was because, I'm sorry, you tell it. But you're right. It's because as a man, you have to pay your way. Like nothing in life is free. That's right. And there's a value to it. There's a value to it. He said, you're going to stay here, you're going to appreciate it. That's right. And it makes you appreciate it more. It makes me appreciate it. Because you're working for it. And my uncle, I love you not, talking about lessons. I love my uncle, man. He would cook every single day. just seafood. All he eats is seafood. And he'll just give you life lessons. You know, like I said, he's my great uncle.

1:26:42Right. So he's a smooth... He's a lot of wisdom. He's a smooth player type. So where do you get the name Sweet Baby James?

1:26:48Steph McMahon:Sweet Baby James. Sorry, Sweet Baby James. Because, you know, back in the day, you know what I mean? He had one, two ladies. One named Lexus and one named Mercedes. Lexus driver Mercedes, Mercedes driver Lexus. And Sweet Baby gets them confused from time to time. You know, so... So, I ain't saying he was a pimp. Right. But he was a player. He is a player. He has some cool qualities about himself. And that's where my whole persona, sweet daddy trick came from. Right, right, right. You wanted to be like him. I said, oh, cool. So how long did you stay with him? I stayed with him for a year until COVID broke out.

1:27:20And then when COVID broke out, I said, I can't. You know, he's 60, 70 something.

1:27:25Steph McMahon:You didn't want to put him at risk. I said, all right, no, I'm going to be moving. I got stuff I'm trying to do. I can't live here. But that was a rough conversation. It was hard to leave him. It was hard to leave him. You fell in love with him. Yeah, man. That's my unk right there. Yeah, that's so beautiful. And then we came back and did WrestleMania there. It was a beautiful thing. He got to see me live and in action. That's so great. It was crazy. Oh, I bet he was so proud. Another full circle moment. Yeah. Another full circle moment. What did he say to you? Man, I just remember. First thing at first, we did a whole package at NXT.

1:27:58When I went back and I was telling people where I first started my wrestling journey. You know, training at CZW, training, you know, staying with my uncle, Sweet Baby James. So when he came to the venue at NXT Stand and Deliver, he had fans. People knew who he was. People were like, Sweet Baby James, Sweet Baby James. He was outside selling his own merch. He had his own T-shirt. That's what he do. He runs his shop downstairs.

1:28:23Steph McMahon:Well, yeah, he's a hustler. He's a hustler. And that's what he was teaching me. He was like, you got to keep some Stacey Adams on your feet. We call them lemon pepper steppers. That's where we got the lemon pepper steppers from. We pass it around for generations. Why? What does that mean, Stacey Adams? It's a stylish shoe. Okay, so it's this stylish shoe. Yeah, it's a stylish shoe. With a heel and a toe? Yeah, with a heel and a toe. Real player. You just got to keep them clean. It's when you dress them up. Whatever it is, yeah. That's right. My dad was always the same. He had to have his shoes shined.

1:28:56Steph McMahon:Oh, yeah. You couldn't walk around with scuffy shoes. Yeah, that makes sense. They had to look. So he had some lemon pepper steppers too? Is that what you're saying? All of his were lemon pepper steppers.

1:29:09Steph McMahon:That's what's up. That's what's up. Oh, man. And where did the all white come from? I'll tell you what. So the all white, you know, I had this coat I've been saving for a big moment. It was just sitting in my closet. I got it when I was at NXT. And then once I found it. And how did you find the coat? Man, I was just, so in Atlanta, you know, Lash is from Atlanta. And they have some nice malls with some nicer stuff over there. So I'm like, if I'm going to spend this type of money on a coat, I'm going to wear it at the right time. Right. You saw it? I saw the coat. You were like. It was glistening.

1:29:44It lit up.

1:29:45Steph McMahon:It lit up. It did. This is for me. And then as I debut on SmackDown and I cut off Sami Zayn, the gingerbread man. And I come out with this all-white coat, white pants, white belt buckle, no shirt, of course, white lemon pepper steppers. And I go and I hold my foot up just like this before I get in the ring and everything like that. And they had memes of everything with me in this coat. They had some dude from Powerpuff Girls. You know, all types of stuff. Like, oh, Trick Williams last night on SmackDown. And I remember I show up the next week and Michael Hayes comes to me. He's like, Trick, where's your coat?

1:30:27I said, well, you know, it's not my coat. It's a coat, but it's at the house. Thank you very much. You know what I mean? Right, right. And then Bruce says, where's your coat, Trick?

1:30:38Steph McMahon:Yeah, that's part of your gimmick. I was like, oh, it's my coat? All right. And then your husband trips. He comes like, Trick, where's your coat? I was like, well, it wasn't really good. It's on its way. You know, it was a coat. He said, I never seen Elvis Presley without his coat. I'm like, ah, okay. It's my coat. Right. Makes sense now. I've been rocking the coat ever since. Okay. And so that's going to keep you in the all white color unless you change the color of your coat too. Yeah. So it just made sense. I'm the anointed one. I share my testimony all the time. You know what I mean? So the all white just fits so perfectly.

1:31:12Yeah. So perfectly.

1:31:13Steph McMahon:Yeah. Oh, I love it. And then if you turn heel, are you going to change the color? Yeah. It's going to take a lot for me to get out of this white. If I step out without the white now, you know something's gone terribly wrong. Something's off. Or terribly right. That is a good. Or terribly right. Or terribly right. Okay. You're going to keep us guessing. That's right. I love it. I love it. Well, thank you so much. Hey, thank you so much for having me. This was awesome. Yes, yes. Thank you all so much. Thank you. Thank you.

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1:32:13Steph McMahon:Save big money at Menards.