NXT World Champion Aleister Black recently spoke with the folks from Rock Sins while on the WWE European tour. Featured below are some of the highlights from the interview.
On how it felt to be on an international tour with the WWE main roster talents: “It’s a huge thing. You’re in with all these people who are such incredible performers, these incredible wrestlers. Guys that are at the top of the world and the top of their game, and you’re being thrown in there and it’s like ‘Alright, survive’ so I’m being thrown in with the lions to see if I’m a lion myself. It’s an incredible experience and it’s very humbling. It makes me even more focused on doing right by the company with the belt I’m carrying and the brand I’m carrying and incredibly excited for when the time comes for me to truly move up myself and I get to work with all these fantastic professionals.”
On how the crowd responded to him during the WWE European tour: “Very well. I was surprised because NXT is a brand that I won’t say is a niche brand but it’s definitely a brand that has a different set of followers to a lot of the main roster that the mainstream fans follow. It’s been good, we’ve been getting NXT chants, even during the matches they are with us every step of the way, so it’s been validation for how worldwide recognised as a brand NXT is and as a performer that people know me which is a very good thing for me.”
On how he is handling being the face of the NXT brand now that he is their World Champion: “Very well [laughs] It’s a responsibility, but it’s something that I accept and it’s something that I knew once I won this belt. I never get complacent with anything. I remember walking backstage and going through the curtain and being congratulated by everyone, but the last thing on my mind is ‘we’ve reached the top of the mountain..its an easy ride from here’. The first thing right away was, the work has just started. I don’t take anything I do within the company for granted and there’s always going to be hard work whether you’re a champion or not. Carrying a brand, especially the third brand of such a huge company such as WWE, and carrying the belt that’s a huge thing, that’s a huge deal. I am more than capable of doing so, but the work is never done and it makes me want to work harder.”
On how important his theme music is and if he was involved in the recording of it: “I did not have a hand in picking my music, however, I did write some of the lyrics for my theme music. I was stoked when they got Brendan from Incendiary to do the vocals because Incendiary is a sick hardcore band, and I’ve been a big fan of them for a long time so for them do my vocals and collaborate with CFO$ it was a dream come true being able to write some of my own lyrics. It’s hugely important for me that my theme song resonates with my character because it’s the first thing they hear and it accompanies me to the ring so I want them to hear that, feel that, see that and come with me.”
Check out the complete Aleister Black interview at RockSins.com.
