15. Raven On Scripted Promos Preventing Wrestlers From Becoming Mega Stars

During a recent interview with ESPN, Raven talked about how scripted promos hurt the wrestling business, talking over fans’ heads with his promos & more. Below are the highlights:

On how scripted promos are bad for the wrestling business:
“I think it’s bad for the business. Now they write promos for people. In the old days, you got bullet points. They said, ‘Here are the points you gotta hit, so do it in your character.’ If you didn’t know how to be a character or how to be a star, you didn’t get over. Now they write for everybody, which is good for the lower-tier guys who can’t write, who aren’t creative enough yet or don’t have enough psychology yet. But for guys who have potential star power, you’re really killing it, because Steve Austin would’ve never came alive if they would’ve been writing his character for him. If they told him to just stay with these promos. It’s a whole different world now.”

On talking over fans’ heads with his promos:
“Bischoff pulled me aside one time and said, ‘I think you’re talking over the fans’ heads.’ I go, ‘I may be, but I don’t think it matters because it’s mystifying and elegant and eloquent.’ The fans listen to Kurt Cobain music and get the point, but they don’t understand what every word means. They understand the concept of what he’s talking about, and that’s the same thing with my promos. You understood the concept. If you were a misfit, you felt, ‘Here’s somebody who gets me.’ If you were a normal person, you’re like, ‘I hate misfits. Misfits are a pain in the ass. They whine. They complain.’ It was a unique perspective on the world.”