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I recently conducted a very
interesting interview with former ECW star, New Jack. In classic New Jack
fashion, he does not hold
back during this exclusive “Chair Shots to the Cranium” interview. New
Jack talks about his days in ECW, where is involvement with wrestling lies
today, and how he feels about the WWE Hardcore division. Below is the
interview in its entirety.
Steven: What have you been up
to since your ECW days?
New Jack: I’m with XPW now. They are based out of California. They are
kind of like ECW. XPW is a little more hardcore.
Steven: What is your
involvement with 3Pwrestling?
New Jack:
The May 18th
show will be my first with them.
Steven:
You are considered
one of the most hardcore wrestlers in the ring today. How did you acquire
your hardcore style and are there any other aspects of your wrestling
style you consider an asset in the ring?
New Jack: The hardcore style
started before I left the Smokey Mountain Federation. It followed me to
ECW and I started doing more extreme matches. I had a weapons match with
Public Enemy. That match went over so good with me coming to the ring with
a trashcan and everything, we just continued to add to the hardcore style.
Steven: How long have you
been in wrestling?
New Jack: June will be 9
years.
Steven: That was mainly with
ECW. How about any other federations before ECW?
New Jack: I worked for some
Independent federations in North Georgia. That was my first time on TV. I
then left there and went to Smokey Mountains and then on to ECW.
Steven: Is there anyone or anything that inspired you to get involved with
pro wrestling?
New Jack: No one inspired me
to do this, s**t, I started doing it because I felt like doing it. I
don’t have heroes in my life or people I look up to. I think all that is
bulls**t. I decided to do it, so I started doing it. I’m my biggest
hero.
Steven: So, did you see wrestling on TV and just decide one day that you
wanted to be a wrestler?
New Jack: Actually, I had a friend that asked me to do it; this boy named
Melvin. He asked me if I wanted to start wrestling because he was training
down in WCW. I think he ran out of money or something, so we started
working out down in Atlanta. When then ended up hooking up with North
Georgia after that. It was his idea. I had no interest in it at all. I was
a bounty hunter at the time. I wasn’t thinking about doing no d**n
wrestling.
Steven: What inspires you to put in all those hours of training and lay
your body on the line night after night?
New Jack: That’s just my
style man! Paul E. was always trying to bury Mustafa and me every night
due to personal reasons. So, I just started doing stuff in the ring so
that people would remember my spots rather than the people I had to put
over. I just stuck with it from there.
Steven: I did a recent column about the WWE hardcore division. In that
column, I listed you as someone who could make their division truly
“hardcore”. Have you been contacted by WWE and would you be interested
in going there?
New Jack: I appreciate that.
Watching their hardcore division is like watching a f**kin cartoon. Then
they have Raven coming out there trying to be a generic version of me. I
would consider going to WWE as long as I did not have to deal with that
cocksucker Paul E. I won’t comment on whether or not I have been
contacted by them or not right now.
Steven: What do you consider the hardest part about being a pro wrestler?
New Jack: The traveling and
if you are married, trying to keep that keep that s**t going at the same
time. You have seen how it is in the business, so you’ve seen how people
get tossed around. You have people getting together with each other, then
splitting up and being with someone else. You also have wives wanting to
be a valet and s**t or a Nitro girl or Ho or whatever. So, it’s hard to
do this and be married.
Steven: What do you consider
the biggest highlight of your wrestling career?
New Jack: I’ve got a few of
them man, but I guess when I look back I consider the time I did a video
and a song with Bootsy Collins one my best highlights. As far as the stuff
I have done in the ring, that’s just the s**t I do.
Steven: Who is your favorite
wrestler to work with in the ring?
New Jack: Man, I really
don’t give a s**t. I’m on my way down to Florida soon where I have 3
shows. I know one of the guys I’m working with, but I don’t know the
other 2. It does not matter to me. I just go and do my job and then I get
the hell on. XPW is my main priority. They are the main source of my
income, plus all the porno tapes they give me.
Steven: What do you consider the most hardcore thing you have ever done in
front of a crowd?
New Jack: The worst I have
gotten hurt was in Dansbury, CT. I fell off a platform, cracking my skull
and breaking my arm and leg. I was working with Vic Grimes. The reason I
got hurt was because it was a spot he called and he didn’t want to call
it. I did come back from it. I never got a chance to work with him again
until February during an XPW match. In my match with him, I threw him off
a 40ft scaffold. It was a match, but it was kind of like a receipt to me
as well. He was supposed to land on a table, but I tried to throw him
across the state of California. He barely touched the table and he landed
on the ropes, flipped back in the ring on his head, and all kinds of s**t.
Steven: So, that match was
like a payback match for when he hurt you during your last match with him?
New Jack:
Yeah.
Steven: Is there someone that
you have not worked with in the ring that you would like to work with in
the future?
New Jack:
No. I don’t sit
at home and fantasize about wrestling somebody or going to WWE. I don’t
give a s**t about that. When I get tired of wrestling, I’ll quit. If I
get in the ring with someone, most of the time it’s more of an honor for
them. Even though the Rock may be making more money than I am, I can cause
just a much hell in the ring than he can, and even more. I’m not trying
to pick on him or single him out; I’m just pulling his name out of a
hat. There is nothing no one can do in this business that I can’t do.
It’s already been told to me that during these bulls**t hardcore matches
in WWE, fans are chanting my name in the audience. I’ve already proved
my point and laid my foundation in this business, so whether they want to
give me the credit or not, I don’t give a s**t.
Steven: What goals have you
set for yourself in this business and how do you plan to obtain those
goals?
New Jack:
(laughs) To make as
much money I can and get out. You know what, I’ll tell you what my goal
was; my action figure! (laughs) My goal was to get an action figure and I
have like four or five of them now, so mission accomplished! (laughs)
Steven: (laughs)
Steven: What advise would you
give to someone that may be reading this interview and considering
entering the wrestling business.
New Jack:
All I can tell them
is good luck. This is a cutthroat business and you’ve got to have some
nice, juicy lips to pucker up and be prepared to kiss a lot of ass if you
want to get somewhere. That’s something I refuse to do. I have stayed
true to myself and I have not had to do that. I got paid because I put
asses in the seats because people paid to come see me. There was a lot of
times when the bookers did not want to use me, but they knew I was the
main attraction whether I won or lost. If you don’t know how to play the
game, then you will get lost in the shuffle. If you stay true to what you
believe in with this business or any other business, then you will go a
long way and you will earn a lot more respect. I have people more afraid
of booking me on shows worrying whether or not they can handle me than
wondering if I’m going to get out of control because they know I’m not
one to let someone tell me what to do. If you’ve got the mind to play
the game, then good luck. If you come into the business thinking you are
going to be a superstar overnight then you are living a total dream.
Steven: You have a match
coming up May 18th with Sandman and Sabu. It is the first ever
3-way body bag match. How do you feel about the match’s extreme style
and the other two wrestlers involved?
New Jack: I’ve never done a
body bag match, so I don’t know what to expect. I know that between
Sandman, Sabu, and me we will have a good time. Any time Sandman and me
are in the ring together, we have a good time. I’m looking forward to
it.
Steven: New Jack, I appreciate your time today. Thanks for sitting down
with me.
New Jack:
No problem man! |