The Grown Ass Women is a YouTube channel hosted by SoCal Val, Mickie James and Lisa Marie Varon. On a recent episode, they discussed Mickie James’ release from WWE shortly after WrestleMania 37. Mickie discussed her frustrations near the end of her WWE run and some ideas she put forward to the company. The trio also discussed the now infamous returning of Mickie’s belongings. The most notable quotes can be found below:
On Mickie’s feelings towards WWE towards the end of her run:
“I honestly feel in the last 2 years I’ve been really comfortably uncomfortable. I feel like I’ve been trying to be pigeon-holed fit into this square mould. Like this is what we want you to be and this is what we want you to believe that you are, and I’m just not that. Over the last 2 years with getting switched to SmackDown, then not being used. I was never debuted on SmackDown, then I tore my ACL. I kept feeling all these things like ‘Oh we [WWE] want you to retire and we want you to be an agent behind the scenes.’ Like what they wanted for me. It wasn’t that I wasn’t grateful for those opportunities, but at the same time, I see the agents and what they have to deal with. They don’t get any of the praise or the thanks that they deserve. They have to deal with a lot of crap. I don’t know that I could personally handle that. I am too much of a creative person, the ideas that I had fell on deaf ears. I personally think that if I ever fight for something, it’s what I genuinely believe. I have tons of ideas, not all of them are great, but if I think it’s a great idea, I’ll promote it, as like I think you should take a listen to this.”
On her ideas that got rejected:
“There’s this moment over the weekend where I have this eye opening experience. Because I feel like among all of this, I was at a space where I was like ok I’ll compromise, in the sense of there’s not this moment that’s going to happen where I bow out and not wrestle anymore. I’ve been made a legend on the internet, I’ve just been waiting. Anything I pitch, you guys just aren’t interested. All these little layers to it, I go OK if we do this, can we find this balance in-between. There was this moment where I go ‘OK, what if we do an all female brand of product.’ If I could help lead up and head up that. We have an awesome team of women that we could really lean on. We have all this talent we have all these women. We have the tools, we have the facilities, we have everything that we need. It could literally be all these little things that would help all these girls that aren’t getting the time. I sh*t you not, this one person says to me ‘They’re never going to do it ever. Women’s wrestling doesn’t really make money. The Women’s Evolution pay per view, lowest rated pay per view ever in the history of WWE pay per views. So I don’t know, I get what you’re trying to do, but I don’t get why you are fighting so hard. You should just play the cards you are dealt, and see if there is a way to incorporate that into another show, rather than fight for it to be it’s own show.’ I’m like OK, and every decision they do is some genuine stuff behind it and they do some amazing work, but a lot of it is business. It’s hard to think like that. So every decision here on out I make, no hard feelings, we all busted our butts. But it’s really disheartening. I’m disappointed in them as a whole. When I am made to feel old with a walker, the whole ageism thing. I’m 40! I just felt like I was never put in that position. I think we missed out on a lot of moments and a lot of cool stuff. Whether I tie Trish Stratus’ record and then Charlotte tied that. Like beat me and retire me. Or the whole Chelsea angle. I pitched that for Liv. All these little things we could have and should have done, but we missed the boat on that one.”
On her thoughts once the release was confirmed:
“I think it is a blessing in disguise. The day before, I was in this space. I came back from WrestleMania with all these things from the whole week. But also combined with the experience of seeing my friends come together, but also all of these things that had happened. I was at this place where I knew I needed to make a decision. I prayed that night, and I prayed in the sense of please God, let them in my way understand this. I just sat back and went I just need to stop trying to control this. Whatever is stopping me from my greatest blessing, I’m OK with you cutting that sh*t out and I can be released from it. That wasn’t the answer I was expecting but it was the answer I got.”
On a new show idea and more why it didn’t take off:
“I’ll be honest, two or three years ago, I pitched a show similar to [GAW] with two or three girls on a panel and similar concept. ‘Who are you wearing? what are you drinking? what’s going on in the fashion world?’ I pitched it for the Network and I might as well have been talking to her [my dog]. I had 3 heads going no. I pitched a game show idea. I wasn’t even the star. If I’m going to be working behind the scenes, this is how my brain operates. But cheers to all the opportunities because they are coming.”
On the love she has for wrestling:
“It’s really hard, because we are so passionate about this sport. I say it’s equivalent of loving someone who is incapable of loving you the right way back. You sacrifice and you give so much, you give them blood sweat tears and soul. You completely invest yourself into being what you need to be. When it’s over and that string is cut, they can sometimes make you feel like you need to prove yourself that you are worthy.”
On the trash bag incident:
“I never wanted to trend over a trash bag, nor do I want to be known as the trash bag lady. You know I’m going to get asked about this. All I can do is laugh about it. When I look at it and I’ve been asked about it for media requests and stuff. It’s ironic that we had just wrapped up [the previous episode]. The whole time I’m trying to be pleasant and honest. I’m not trying to be bitter or angry, it’s not about the trash bag. I was astonished about how it took off. I almost deleted the post because I feel like this comes off too nasty. I’m being sarcastic and trying to laugh at myself and the situation. To be honest, I got my stuff the same way 10 years ago. The difference is at that point in my life, I believed it and took to to heart. I’d given everything to them. I know I made bad decisions and it didn’t spark there. It sparked between the Piggy James stuff and there’s all these things. Even in this last month and my response, this is how I have been positioned in these past 3 years. It’s good now, because I’m in a good space. I can really express myself in a true fashion without holding back. I was just so like wow they still do this, this is bullsh*t. It’s kind of comical when you think about this, because it’s literally like how I felt they thought about me for the past 3 years.”
On WWE executive Mark Carrano being fired over this incident:
“It was pretty insane. I know this was not a direct thing. I empathise with Mark Carrano, and I feel bad he has taken the full brunt of all this. But at the same time it sucks. I guarantee you his pension package is more than what I got paid in my last WWE run. I don’t feel that bad for Mark, he was not happy in that situation. I was p*ssed. I don’t want to come across as just angry, because it’s just more of like a direct reflection of everything I’ve experienced in coming back. I was happy to take a backseat or a trainer role. All I asked for is hey can I get an out. Something that just can curtsy out the door. It was never I want a last run or I want to be a wrestler for the next 5 years. All I wanted was just a littler respect. So I could parlay and not feel like this unfinished business.”
On Vince McMahon’s reaction to everything:
“I do have pretty thick skin and I have put up with a lot of crap. Whether it was coming back and being booked in this lacky position or never quite getting that moment for myself. Or if I did it came at a cost. I felt like sometimes specifically because I was asking for this one thing, it was going to come with a price. I’m not saying that a directive from Vince, because he has always been respective towards me. Vince called me on the phone to apologise for this incident and for me to know it wasn’t what he thought of me. I tagged Vince in the tweet because he needs to know. There’s a lot of stuff that happens underneath his nose that he is oblivious to, because he is running a multi billion dollar corporation. It’s publicly traded. For me to be constantly presented as old or being made to feel like you’re old. I’m 41 and every single male champion that has come back or anything has always been my age or older. They have been champions at that and glorified, as they should be. They absolutely should be, they’re f*cking amazing. But why is it different for women? Ageism is a real thing and it’s bullsh*t. I am truly grateful for the strides that we have made. To be seen as more equal, but it’s not true for every person and that’s truly unfortunate. I did everything in my power to be a company girl. But you’re still providing a service and I don’t know why I was always made to feel like I don’t quite deserve it.”
On this not being the first time and her thoughts on fan’s reactions:
“I don’t feel like I am a bitch. I can be a bitch when I am pushed to be a bitch. But it’s very rare. If I snap, it’s because I truly snap. The trash bag thing, when it showed up on my door I’m like oh how appropriate. Taking out the trash, awesome. I know it wasn’t meant to come off that way, it was probably the easiest and most effective way. There’s thousands of dollars of gear and costumes and jackets and all kinds of stuff. It’s happened for so long and I know it’s happened to countless girls. The fans were way more offended over this than I was. I just feel like the person that is responsible for me feeling like sh*t and made me feel like I am less than, is still very much employed. That’s you know what I mean. If you would have asked me if I was shocked after the NXT thing vs. after WrestleMania. If you asked me after Takeover I would have been like actually this could be a cool thing. I was in a good space because I went to Florida knowing they won’t give me an out. I had a great time. But after going to mania, I don’t know if it was a certain energy or that conversation. I left mania going I think I’m done. I was already mentally in that space. Even in compromising it doesn’t feel good to me.”
Full video interview can be found below:
Featured image credit: Web is Jericho
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