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Several weeks ago, I was sent the "Holy Shoot" interview with NWA:TNA's Kid Kash, produced by BBrownVideo.com with a note from Brown that I wouldn't believe some of the things Kash dishes out during the interview. Chalking it up as typical hype, I put the DVD among the pile of videos I never seem to watch and always seems to get larger. Last week, I had the opportunity to watch the DVD. There's no hype. Just controversy and possibly career suicide.
Taped this past May, the Kash interview starts out with comments from TNA's Trinity, who discusses Kash as a person, noting that you either "love him or hate him." That's pretty much how everyone discusses Kash, who despite his good work in the ring, is often considered bitter and out for himself. The reasons behind Kash's attitude are discussed in the interview, among a ton of other topics. In many ways, this is among one of the more entertaining shoots I've ever seen, since Kash doesn't play politics and says what he thinks about everything, including the company he's currently employed by, NWA:TNA
EARLY DAYS
Kash starts out discussing breaking into the business after meeting Ricky Morton. Kash noted that the best advice that was given to him by Ricky Morton was to be able to change up his style, as Morton advised him about workers who felt that their way was the only was to wrestler, so time would pass them by. Kash said that he tried to learn as many different moves and spots so he could catch and stay atop of the wave. He discusses breaking in as Morton's partner on the Southern independent scene, noting that while Morton was making $500 a shot, he'd be lucky to make $80 including gimmicks. After a few years of getting hot dog payoffs, Kash noted that Robert Gibson smartened him up to the business and he realized that he was going to continue being used for nothing unless he stood up and made a name for himself. Kash also discusses breaking into the business under Morton and teaming with him as the new Rock N' Roll Express, having his ankle broken by Wahoo McDaniel in his first match, his martial arts background and training under Gene Anderson, why Robert Gibson put the word out in the business for guys to shoot on Kash, why a match with Gibson nearly turned into a shoot, how he once hijacked a ring in order to get paid, beating up a promoter to get his money and more.
Kash discusses his brief run in WWF in the mid-90s during the initial Light Heavyweight championship division launch. Already injured after missing a crossbody to the floor on an indy show because there was fresh dirt laid on the floor of the venue, which was going to have a riding show the next day and hobbled by a broken ankle, Kash fought through it. It backfired on Kash, who re-injured it while against Essa Rios during a tag match. After hurting himself during a tag match, they called an audible and went to the finish. Kash said that by the time he made it to the back, Mick Foley had already set up two chairs for him to rest and three bags of ice. Foley told him, "Don't put [the injury] over," and to rest up, because he'd get another chance to get a job. Kash said walking to his car to go home was among the hardest things he ever did in his life. Kash said that there were some jerks in the locker room, but put over Dustin Rhodes, Foley, Mark Henry and Jim Cornette during his time there. Kash noted that you could always tell the jerks by the folks who "couldn't hold onto a gimmick" and noted that Billy Gunn tried to swipe his girlfriend at the time.
EXTREME CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING
The discussion moves into Kash's runs in Extreme Championship Wrestling (which Rob Van Dam got him into) and the myriad of names he used in the promotion, which turned into a rib on Kash. Kash discusses some of the buildings ECW ran, including the infamous Flagstaff in Jim Thorpe, PA which was so run down, the balcony attached to the locker room was expected to collapse over a cliff at any moment. Kash noted that at the time he was closest with Rob Van Dam, Nova, and Jason Knight. Kash tells a story about a confrontation with Taz backstage in Staten Island, New York after Kash hit a piledriver variation on one of Tazz's students, upset that Kash could have hurt the student. When Kash defended himself, Taz complained, saying Kash was green. Kash offered to let Kash call Ricky Morton and try to tell Morton that Kash was green. Kash then claimed that he offered to fight Taz, but cooler heads prevailed. Kash noted that he wishes WWE would let Taz work as it's a shame he isn't because, "He can go." Kash discusses the birth of his Kid Kash character, noting that one night while editing, Paul Heyman realized that Kash looked like rock star Kid Rock. Kash discusses rejecting the idea, who changed his mind and helped create the look and why it brought him to a new level as a performer in the business.
Kash defends Mike Awesome for jumping to WCW while he was ECW champion, saying that it's a business and the bottom line is making the money. He brings up his injuries, saying that he has to stretch and take a hot shower at the start of every day before he can even walk out to get his mail. Kash discusses breaking his tibia, a broken jaw, breaking his hand 15 times, a broken orbital socket, and breaking both ankles. Kash noted that he has a tube in his nose permanently since he has broken his sinus so many times, which makes it always look like he has a cold since he's always sniffing. Kash says that he doesn't understand why everyone realizes that this is a business, but the second one of the boys treat it like a business, the others get up in arms, and puts over Awesome for helping to make Kash a star in ECW.
Kash discusses winning the ECW World Television championship and memories of the chaotic scenario that set up the win at the Hammerstein Ballroom. Kash noted that they kept him in the dark about winning the belt until a pre-show meeting and when he found out, he thought he heard wrong. "You should be a wrestler," says Kash, "Coming out of the curtain, looking at the three tiers and people everywhere, sold out. It wasn't Madison Square Garden, but to me it looked like Madison Square Garden; the way it looked, completely sold out."
Kash discusses some of the names he worked with in ECW, ripping on Sandman. He says that he had to learn how to wrestle, while Sandman can't and is out of shape. He said that the only reason Sandman got over was going to the ring smoking a cigarette and drinking a beer. "Sandman is a nice guy, but he just thinks he knows more about the business than he does." Kash says that Sandman got a push in ECW that he didn't deserve because he was in the back pocket of Paul Heyman, but admits that Sandman put "asses in the seat."
Kash goes off on a rant about Raven, saying that he doesn't appreciate where he is in the business and now makes fun of the wrestlers who do have the passion that Raven doesn't. He rips on Joel Gertner, saying that Gertner was someone who would jump in on a ride from the airport or a hotel room and then be nowhere to be found when it came time to put in his share of the money. Kash brings up that Gertner was making great money doing TV stuff while the workers were struggling, they'd be lucky to get $10 for his share of the room, if he hadn't left before they woke up. Kash says it was to the point that if you saw Joel in the airport, the word was to turn and go the other way before he saw you. Kash tells some funny road stories about dealing with PN News on the road as well.
In regard to the end of ECW, Kash said that one thing could have saved the company, "Money." Kash said that while the ECW show was the best rated show on TNN, it meant nothing. Kash said that he heard that TNN was supposed to reimburse ECW for production and it never happened. Kash said he had a great contract in ECW and loved every minute of ECW, but you when go from making great money every week to every three weeks and they never paid back the money that was owed, that's a problem.
In regard to painkillers in professional wrestling, Kash says that guys shouldn't use them to zone out, but if they are using them to ease the pain, he has no problems with it. Kash says that if you slip on ice and fall, you get hurt and will be given painkillers. He says that wrestlers are no different. While noting that guys mix drugs or drugs and alcohol, Kash says that anyone who does that doesn't have common sense and they have to pay the price.
NWA:TNA
The most controversial part of the DVD comes when Kash begins to discuss TNA, where he currently works. Kash defends the company's stance in not letting their workers work for Ring of Honor, saying that he doesn't blame them for not wanting to be confused with Rob Feinstein's mess. That starts off a huge rant on Feinstein which ends with Kash ripping apart wrestlers who trade sexual favors for pushes, presumably in NWA:TNA.
"Then all of a sudden there are a couple of guys that lets guys bl*w them, and then they get title shots and they're making more money than you. Yet they need guys like me, they need guys like Jason [Knight], the guys that have been in the business for a few years to get guys over. It pisses me off, wouldn't it p*ss you off? Because it's not right ... if you had pride in yourself, you wouldn't be sitting there jacking off while some f****t is watching. That's the kind of stuff that happens in this business, I don't know if you know that or not."
Kash says that TNA wasn't what he was promised it would be, so he just gets his check every week and goes home. Kash says that he's working on getting a chiropractor degree and isn't letting the business run his life. He says that TNA is like every other company where its the same political games and guys who don't deserve pushes being supported by workers who work hard in the ring. He says there are young punks making lots of money but can't get over. Kash is careful to point out that the only exception to that was Extreme Championship Wrestling, where everyone busted their butts and got to work hard. Kash says that he misses that aspect of ECW and if he had the money, he'd buy the company from Vince McMahon and open it back up himself.
Moving onto TNA management, Kash bashes the idea of "Internet writers" being on TNA's creative team, saying that it used to be that Internet writers were fans who had an opinion. He says that because someone who isn't a worker writes an opinion, they have the power to dictate wrestlers' careers. He says writers don't have what it takes to be wrestlers, so they spread their opinions. He says that it's "Bullsh*t" that wrestlers put time and heart into their careers only to have someone's writing rip them down.
"You got people like Bob Ryder and these guys sitting in the office booking shows. I don't get this. Just because they put money in, that gives them the right? That's what happened to WCW. You let the office guys that were forking out all the money get involved in the booking and talent relations and stuff. What happened? Eighty million in the hole. Honestly, TNA is my job and I work there. I won't lie to you. I don't enjoy working there. There's a lot of pr*cks who work there. There's a lot of guys that brownnose that work there. There are a lot of guys who did things that I've already talked about to work there. There's a lot of guys who don't do a damn thing to deserve to have gotten there. That's the business. That's the nature of the beast."
Kash brings up Chris Harris, James Storm and AJ Styles by name, saying that they had better hope that TNA never asks Kash to wrestle him. Kash brings up the, "real wrestlers of our time" who taught him and notes, "They taught me how to make little boys like you look like crap". Kash says that if he got in the ring with them, by the time he was done, people would be thinking, "We put this kid in with a man" and he'd show TNA who really deserves the push. Kash says that if the company is going to pay him, he'll show up but he doesn't show respect back. He says that he learned for years how to tell a story and learn all styles, while these young workers don't know how to tell a story. He says that no one has been trying to tell a story since ECW closed and rips on those who do nothing but insane crazy spots.
Kash says that the first time he spoke to AJ Styles, Styles had a list of moves that he didn't want anyone else to do because those are the moves that get him over. Kash notes that some of the moves are ones that he and Nova created a decade ago. Kash says that the kids today don't care about anything but getting their spot in on television. He says that guys have five minute matches and then when it's cut to three minutes, they screw up the timing just to get their spots in. He names Chris Harris specifically for that. He says that the boys sit back there and evaluate everything and they need to get over it. He says that no one seems to get in their head that the idea is to have a match and try to help get the company over so everyone can make money. Instead they are concerned about how they look during the five minute match.
Kash's rants turn to Chris Harris of America's Most Wanted, whose size and what went into attaining it Kash takes issue with. He tells a story about America's Most Wanted working against Quiet Storm & Chris Divine, discussing how Storm called an elbow spot and Harris turned it down backstage because of their height differences and how it wouldn't be believable. Kash said Storm got the move in anyway and "knocked that P***y out." Kash says that Harris had nothing to say to Storm about it after that and Storm gained his respect for that. Kash then calls Harris a, "Tomcat" saying that a tomcat is a woman.
Kash says that Sonny Siaki has been trying hard to improve and thinks he will be fine if the company tries to get away from "The Rock" image with him. When Kash's feud with Trinity is brought up, Kash notes how Jeff Jarrett held up WWF for $200,000 to drop the Intercontinental belt to her, and now has to have his own company in order to make money in the business. Kash says that if his father ran the company, he'd make himself World champion too. Kash said that he didn't have any thoughts about it, but then saw he could do something different, remembering the Andy Kaufman angles in the 1980s with women. Kash said that he gives Trinity credit because she wanted to take everything at full force and was willing to do the angle. He puts her over for her toughness, noting her stunt women background and hit her with chops as hard as he ever hit a man. He says that other than Jazz, Trinity is the toughest woman wrestler in the business. Kash also puts over The Amazing Red, saying he is a superstar no matter where he ends up. He says that Red has the respect that most don't anymore. He says that the first time they were going to work, Red said, "We'll do whatever you want to do," and that Red shows a respect that most don't anymore. He says that everyone should be looking out for the company, not themselves.
Kash says that Jonny Fairplay was the "Biggest waste of money next to Lex Luger." He said that TNA might have thought he would be a draw, but he added nothing to the company. He says that Luger was never a good wrestler and the only way he got over was, "because you took a lot of steroids and pumped your body up." He says that all the attitudes he and Buff Bagwell showed, laughing at the younger kids in the business came back to him via karma.
Kash is also critical of TNA's push of AJ Styles. He says that Styles position in the company isn't believable. He said that Jeff Jarrett is a nice guy and never did anything wrong to Kash, but he made himself "look like a chump" by losing the belt to a Cruiserweight. Kash says that it doesn't make any sense to him and it's not credible as a company. He says that you can't compare AJ Styles to Triple H. He said that if TNA wants Cruiserweights to carry the banner for TNA, they must not want to compete head-to-head with WWE. He brings up Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit in WWE, saying that Styles "couldn't wear the jockstrap of either one of those guys." He says that a couple of cool high flying moves doesn't amount to what they have done in the business. He says that they look like professional wrestlers.
Kash says that he hopes Styles sees the video and "I beg you, have something to say about this." He says Styles is a nice guy, but doesn't deserve to be the NWA champion. He compares Styles to Ricky Steamboat and Ric Flair, and says that Styles can't fill those shoes and is nowhere near that. He says that times have changed but neither himself nor Styles could fill those shoes.
When asked about his partner Dallas, Kash says that he doesn't know him. Kash says that he works for TNA because he gets a chance to work with Jerry Jarrett and Dutch Mantel. He says that the locker room doesn't impress him at all. Kash says he sees himself as more of a singles guy. He says that he's complained about having to put people over when not getting the same amount of money. He says that complaining about money is part of the business, but "Don't toss a strap on me to keep me quiet." Kash said that he doesn't need a belt to get over because he can get himself over and if anyone wants to prove him wrong, just book him against anyone they want.
When asked if TNA could succeed if they got a TV deal, Kash said, "Honestly, I really don't. If they keep things the same, I don't see it. It's like Tommy Dreamer once said to me, 'I can give you the ball, but you gotta run with it.' They have the ball but I don't see them trying to run with it. They'd do a lot better if they just let Jeff and Jerry [Jarrett] running it. Have your chiefs and have your Indians." Kash says that when he talks to people in WWE about TNA, they laugh about it. He says that people paid attention when it started but now they just watch it to laugh at it. He says that embarrasses him, but he has to pay his bills. He says that he's trying to finish his chiropractor degree and break into acting. Kash says that he might have to put up with the company, and praises that there are interviews he can do like this one to vent.
During the interview, Kash also discusses the differences between WCW and the WWF during his time in their locker rooms, older stars not wanting to step aside for the next generation, wrestlers vs. football players, WWF buying out WCW, Rob Feinstein's Internet bust, Feinstein selling "Best of" tapes of workers without giving money back to the boys, why he likes Teddy Hart and doesn't like CM Punk, his eyewitness account of their fistfight, Vampiro, Insane Clown Posse, ECW stars not getting pushes in WWE, wrestlers that could break out as stars in the future and more. The DVD also features matches from Kash while working for Jason Knight's Assault Championship Wrestling.
For more information on the DVD, visit BBrownVideo.com.
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