BLK Jeez was interviewed by Andrew Thompson and they discussed Jeez’s 10-plus years that he spent in CZW, the environment within the promotion throughout the years, his current work with the National Wrestling Alliance, Jeez gave his thoughts about his longtime partner Ruckus going into the Indie Wrestling Hall of Fame and more.
After 20 years in wrestling, Jeez feels he’s in the best shape of his life, adds that he has a few more years in him: It’s definitely that. It’s definitely working out, you know what I’m saying? Eating clean and all that but it’s also, I still have a passion for this. There’s still a lot that I wanna accomplish and over the years, we all go through where we might not like it as much, you know what I’m saying? Because the negatives that we gotta deal with in this business or whatever but, when we as wrestlers, when we get motivated, there’s nothing that can stop us. It’s like now, I feel like I’m in the best shape of my life. I’m putting out the best performances, the best promos and all that. I still got a few years left man, you know what I’m saying? I’m loving this.
Jeez reflects on promo during which he called out CZW for lack of Black talent on promotional material: Yeah, it definitely was. It [CZW promo addressing lack of Black talent on promotional material] was coming from a real place. That promo, it wasn’t scripted, it wasn’t — and it wasn’t anybody saying, ‘Hey, why don’t you touch on this?’ It was me — it was them putting a camera in front of my face, rolling and me just getting some things off my chest and at the time, that’s exactly how it was. It was like when CZW started working with wXw in Germany, first time we went over there, those cats over there, it was like they were treating all of us like we should all be happy to be there. Not just [Black wrestlers], like all of us. They were just — they were treating us like — they was pretty much young boy-ing us bro. They was treating us like we not sh*t and I wasn’t gonna stand for that and like, a lot of the guys that were there, they were just allowing it to happen and I’m like, ‘Yo bro, are we men or are we boys over here?’ And it’s like — and back then, it was like any time that I spoke my mind, you know what I’m saying, and I looked out for the boys in the locker room, it was frowned upon. It was like, people were like, ‘Oh, that’s just Jeez. That’s just how he is’ so, it sort of gave me a reputation like I’m a hothead or like I’m unprofessional which isn’t the case. It’s all about respect, you know what I’m saying? We’re men first, wrestlers second. So if you want us to respect y’all, you’re gonna respect us and the sad thing about it was the majority of cats in that locker room, they weren’t backing me on it. They were just like — I was just like a man in my own world it’s like. Yeah, exactly [I was a lone wolf] and that’s how it was a lot. That’s how it was for me for a long time on the indies, you know what I’m saying? And me standing on my own two, me not putting up with b.s., that stalled my career a lot, because people would — people didn’t wanna book me, people who I thought were my homies, they wouldn’t even speak up for me so it’s like all these other cats getting bookings here and there and I’m not getting anything and it pissed me off, you know what I’m saying? So for a long time, that entire time that I was in CZW, all those promos, that was my real thoughts, my real feelings, you know what I’m saying? And it was like, it got to the point where people didn’t wanna work with me, especially when it came to [when] we had to do anything that involved getting on the mic and talking, like in-ring promo, stuff like that, people didn’t wanna work programs with me because I don’t know, was it fear? I don’t know. Do people just — people didn’t wanna deal with me. Fellow wrestlers, promoters didn’t wanna deal with me. It was all because of my promos, it was all about the character.
A lot of fellow wrestlers and promoters, they just felt like the character was too real. It was like they hear my name, they’re like, ‘Ah, nah. Nah, he’s a problem,’ you know what I’m saying? And it was messed up and the crazy thing is, you know how it is these days where everybody is all about the culture and that’s great. I was on that years ago and people frowned on me about it. Even people that look like us bro, like seriously. People that look like us, they were frowning on me about it and I’m looking out for myself, I’m looking out for all of us and they weren’t even trying to hear it.
Jeez says women were treated badly in CZW, notes that it was a toxic environment for them: But CZW was a toxic environment though. It was a toxic environment, especially for the women. The women were treated very, very badly, you know what I’m saying? And there were times when not only me, there’s several of us guys that would go to the owner and put him in his place, and then he would chill but then he would still go back to the b.s., you know what I’m saying? It was very disrespectful to the women bro. Very disrespectful.
It wasn’t, it wasn’t cool because women go through enough b.s., you know what I’m saying? And not only in wrestling, in all forms of entertainment, they go through enough b.s., that they shouldn’t have to go through. For somebody that has a — that’s an owner that has a leadership role. For you to try to use that to make women do what you want them to do, it’s clown sh*t and it shouldn’t happen, you know what I mean?
Thoughts about Ruckus going into Indie Wrestling Hall of Fame (Jeez & Ruckus were five-time CZW Tag Champions): Yeah definitely, it’s well-deserved man [Ruckus going into the Indie Wrestling Hall of Fame]. Ruckus is an innovator man. A lot of the guys that have the popular style now, Ruckus is the father of that, and also, even back then, when other guys were getting more recognition than Ruckus, a lot of these guys, they were only good in-ring. Ruckus, not only was he good in the ring, he was a character, you know what I’m saying? He held it all down, you know what I mean? So like, it’s real cool that he’s getting in that Hall of Fame man. He definitely deserves it, definitely. If it was up to me, Ruckus would be a millionaire right now if it was up to me.
Interested in doing agent work for the NWA, initially wasn’t interested until he saw Homicide on the job: Before, that was something I never wanted a part of [producing/agenting]. I never wanted to do anything behind the scenes. I just wanted to be a performer. But like, real sh*t, once Homicide became an agent and I see how he does things and how he’s treated as an agent, it opened my mind to in the future [about] wanting to be a coach, wanting to be a trainer, wanting to be an agent, you know what I’m saying? It’s an important job to have. It’s like, it’s very important. It’s like the guys who have a match, they have an idea of a match, the agent is the third set of eyes. I would love to do it in the future, definitely. With a lot of things happening right now, it’s opening my eyes to different things in wrestling and again, going back to how NWA is really big on being able to talk, when you’re a strong talker, that can lead to other things as well. That could lead to commentary, that could lead to, for example, take somebody like MVP, hell of talker. You remember when he had his own show on Raw, you know what I’m saying? That type of stuff bro so like, when you’re a strong talker, when you can put words together, when you can talk people into the building, however you wanna word it, that can lead to a lot so, I’m loving it bro, loving it [being with the NWA].
