During Samira K’s WrestlingNews.co exclusive interview, Karl Fredericks and Gabriel Kidd discussed being in the NJPW LA Dojo, DJing, Eddie Kingston and the importance of mental health.
Gabriel Kidd when asked about Eddie Kingston shared, “I’ve known Eddie for a while, and he’s someone I really look up to and admire how he carries himself. We both spoke about wrestling before and we have a similar philosophy on what professional wrestling is.”
Kidd followed up with, “He’s on the run of his career right now. He’s the talk of the town and doing big things on AEW. I had six months off. I had to deal with some stuff, but I’m not messing around anymore. I lost too much time. If you let this game pass you by, it will, and I’m not letting that happen anytime soon.”
Turning the topic of conversation, Kidd discussed mental health.
“I’ve been very public about it,” Kidd said. “In my head, I’m like, am I speaking about it enough? Am I talking about it too much?”
“When I talk about mental health and the stuff I went through, it’s because at that moment in time, I’m feeling it. Sometimes in my head, I’m over complicating it.”
“I think it’s a very important subject,” Kidd reiterated. “It’s something that everyone goes through, it’s just whether people are public about it or not. That’s anyone’s choice, but I think it’s important for people that feel like they can’t speak out that they can.”
Karl Fredericks chimed in saying, “I think that’s where most of my mental struggles come with the whole smelling the roses thing, especially when you’re a young lion. All you can think about is, ‘I can’t wait to get out of the black trunks. I can’t wait to get out of the dojo.’ Now, even though it’s been two years not in Japan like I would like to be, I’m actively living my dream. I’m doing it. I did it. It’s happening, so I have to step back and remind myself every single show that I’m doing it. This is 10-year old me, and I did it. I have to tell myself to chill out and smell the roses.”
There is a lot more covered in the interview. Check it out by clicking below.
