when I was eight years old I loved
watching the WWF World Wrestling
Federation every Monday night I climb up
on the couch with my stepdad Ken and
we’d be screaming at the TV but he never
failed my mom would be in the other room
yelling at us turn that stuff off it’s
fake fake
we were watching a cartoon these were
real life Superstars and one night can
surprise me with two tickets to go watch
the show live we show up to the arena
we’re so excited because our seats are
right on the entranceway every single
wrestler has to walk right past us in
order to get to that ring and now about
halfway through the show out comes
dumping the bushwhackers but they
stopped right next to me I remember
looking up at them so excited and
nervous and I raised my tiny little hand
up there and one of them high-fived me
but do you guys realize what just
happened he’s seen professional
wrestling when somebody high-fives you
fast forward ten years later at 18 I
moved from Milwaukee Wisconsin to
Hollywood to make my dreams come true of
being a model and after ok waitressing
for a few years my agent calls me and
says hey Candace I’m not sure if you’re
interested in this or not but the WWE is
holding this like Diva Search contest
the winners gonna get a hundred thousand
dollars in a one-year contract to
wrestle hekia was interested what that
guy didn’t know is I grew up with a Hulk
auditioned and I landed a three-year
deal and that’s when the hard work began
we would rent our own cars we drove
three to five hundred miles a week I
perform four shows in four different
cities in four days 52 weeks out of the
year this isn’t some fancy sport like
basketball and football where you get
private jets in an offseason our only
offseason is injury and nobody ever
wants to be there regardless of this
schedule I got up and trained every
single day for three years and finally I
earned my championship match I mean can
you guys just imagine 20,000 fans
watching you live and millions around
the world and I take her down 103 the
crowd roared as I held this title high
and now I was living the life of a
champion I got to travel the world sign
autographs
pose on magazine covers but most
importantly I became that real-life
superstar that got to walk down that
entranceway and tag people into their
dreams as a champion the number one
question I always got asked is isn’t
professional wrestling fake
well after wrestling hundreds of matches
the number one concept that is stayed
with me to this day is this risk is not
fake but will have a fake side to us
right somebody says how are you doing do
you say good are you really good or is
there a risk and telling somebody how
you actually feel social media I can’t
even get my own name on social media
there’s so many fake accounts it’s
filters profiles there’s a risk insuring
your real flaws and telling somebody how
much you actually weigh fake IDs and the
infamous fake news there is a risk when
we uncover the truth so I invite you
guys today just step into the squared
circle with me as we body slam the three
limiting beliefs on why people think
professional wrestling is fake first
they think it’s fake as rustlers don’t
get hurt the truth is we learned a bump
a bump is when you attack the mat you
land flat on your back smack in the back
of both of your arms simultaneously oh
don’t forget to tuck your neck
scientific studies have proven that
every single bump a professional
wrestler takes it’s equivalent to
getting into a car accident at 30 miles
per hour can you just imagine how we
feel after one match when I first
started I would rent this wrestling ring
three bucks a day it was like half
inside this garage and half out and
there was these broken-down chicken
coops over here and a weird barking dog
over there and then the owner says to me
be careful for that part of the ring
because the boards are broken I don’t
want you to fall through regardless I
got into that ring and I bumped over and
over and over again and when I would
drive home after that session I cried
all the way home I could barely turn my
neck even an inch and if you see the
Rope runs on my back
you think there’s somebody I’d be in me
these are the things a professional
wrestler will never tell you and they
will never show you the bump is the
fundamentals to any match just as it is
to any dream the physical risk of
learning the basics it hurts but with
repetition not only do you build up a
callus to it and not feel it you
actually start to enjoy it and this
builds a strong foundation learn to bump
it took a boot to the face it’s a real
broken nose people think professional
wrestling is fake because it’s scripted
the truth is we live our script we
create our own characters and whether
we’re at the arena or we’re in the
airport we live that same character
every day but the magic it happens when
you connect to your audience and as long
as they’re cheering or booing we have a
job now we’re traveling on the road with
ee w e we would frequent stripper stores
a lot in search of ring gear and it was
Halloween time so there’s a lot of
costumes and this costume has this
flimsy star stripper wand
well I decide in that moment I’m going
to use this star wand the way the ledge
Darry Triple H uses his sledgehammer to
defeat his opponents I show up to the
arena that day and I go find my agent
Finley’s with my flimsy stripper wand
and I tell him and the other superstars
in my match what I plan to use it for
you just knew they were all laughing at
me but that wand eventually turned into
a steel weapon and it did defeat many of
my opponents and a few years later
backstage fit secretly asked me for an
autographed wand
he said all his daughter had been asking
him for for the past year was a wand
when we discover our core values we can
build that character and then you can
live your script but the emotional risk
here it’s sometimes much more painful
than the physical nobody wants to be
laughed at made fun of or talks about
behind their back live our script your
ideas are worth sharing if they inspire
just one little girl people think
professional wrestling is fake because
the winners are predetermined
the truth is WWE is our platform and our
hard work predetermines our win
look at me you guys fake hair fake
eyelashes fake boobs do you really think
that Vince McMahon looked at this model
in Los Angeles and said that’s my next
champion
no but when I signed on my dotted line
of that contract I predetermined that
I’d be the next champion and it was a
ton of work the naysayers every time I
got into the ring and I botched a move
or I made a mistake our dirt sheets or
the wrestling tabloids couldn’t wait to
blast it all over the internet about how
I couldn’t wrestle and I’m sure at some
point in your life a parent/teacher
probably even a close friend
I said to you you don’t have what it
takes to live that dream you’re not good
enough
well only we can predetermine our win
and one day they’ll be buying a ticket
to our event predetermine your win
through hard work that is a real dream
come true now a lot of people like to
tap out at this level you start to
realize that there’s a lot of physical
and emotional risk that goes into making
your dreams come true but this is that
pivotal moment when you earn the right
to go to the top but what’s at the top
it’s what everybody wants it’s where you
find your authentic self this is what I
call top rope risk the top rope is where
all the high-flying moves happen the
audience just can’t wait till you go to
the top are you gonna botch that move
inland face-first are you gonna soar and
live your wildest dreams I was on a 14
day European tour
I’d wrestled about 10 matches in 10
different cities and a few countries
when we land in Nebraska from Monday
Night Raw I was making history in the
women’s division I went from doing a
pudding and lingerie matches to a semi
main event and I was trying everything
in my repertoire to keep her down gloves
lying spinning clothesline drop kick
spinning heel kick I climbed up to that
second rope but nothing would keep her
down for a three count she was a bigger
stronger opponent over me and I knew I
needed to go to the top I sauntered so
tirelessly to that turnbuckle I remember
putting my first boot on the second rope
and he swung my other leg over my legs
felt like cement
Mir started to shake
but I pushed right through it up to the
the next thing I remember is barely
being able to see Stephanie McMahon
leaning over me saying don’t worry your
husband is being flown in I knew this
the diagnosis that night was a
concussion and I shattered my collarbone
and it shattered my dreams of ever
wrestling again risk is not fake the
definition of risk is exposure to danger
a harm but what it doesn’t tell you is
what’s on the other side of that and
you’re probably wondering why in the
world would I ever tell you to take a
top rope risk when I not only landed me
let me just show you why please meet my
three beautiful daughters
that’s aki ryu me and my aloha the best
title that i have ever held is mother
you see professional wrestlers we don’t
quit and if i didn’t go to that top rope
i never would have known how bad the win
is on the other side so whether it’s
professional wrestling or real life if
you choose to learn to bump and live
your script and predetermine your wing
my champions now it’s your turn and I
tagged you in thank you
[Applause] [Music]
watching the WWF World Wrestling
Federation every Monday night I climb up
on the couch with my stepdad Ken and
we’d be screaming at the TV but he never
failed my mom would be in the other room
yelling at us turn that stuff off it’s
fake fake
we were watching a cartoon these were
real life Superstars and one night can
surprise me with two tickets to go watch
the show live we show up to the arena
we’re so excited because our seats are
right on the entranceway every single
wrestler has to walk right past us in
order to get to that ring and now about
halfway through the show out comes
dumping the bushwhackers but they
stopped right next to me I remember
looking up at them so excited and
nervous and I raised my tiny little hand
up there and one of them high-fived me
but do you guys realize what just
happened he’s seen professional
wrestling when somebody high-fives you
fast forward ten years later at 18 I
moved from Milwaukee Wisconsin to
Hollywood to make my dreams come true of
being a model and after ok waitressing
for a few years my agent calls me and
says hey Candace I’m not sure if you’re
interested in this or not but the WWE is
holding this like Diva Search contest
the winners gonna get a hundred thousand
dollars in a one-year contract to
wrestle hekia was interested what that
guy didn’t know is I grew up with a Hulk
auditioned and I landed a three-year
deal and that’s when the hard work began
we would rent our own cars we drove
three to five hundred miles a week I
perform four shows in four different
cities in four days 52 weeks out of the
year this isn’t some fancy sport like
basketball and football where you get
private jets in an offseason our only
offseason is injury and nobody ever
wants to be there regardless of this
schedule I got up and trained every
single day for three years and finally I
earned my championship match I mean can
you guys just imagine 20,000 fans
watching you live and millions around
the world and I take her down 103 the
crowd roared as I held this title high
and now I was living the life of a
champion I got to travel the world sign
autographs
pose on magazine covers but most
importantly I became that real-life
superstar that got to walk down that
entranceway and tag people into their
dreams as a champion the number one
question I always got asked is isn’t
professional wrestling fake
well after wrestling hundreds of matches
the number one concept that is stayed
with me to this day is this risk is not
fake but will have a fake side to us
right somebody says how are you doing do
you say good are you really good or is
there a risk and telling somebody how
you actually feel social media I can’t
even get my own name on social media
there’s so many fake accounts it’s
filters profiles there’s a risk insuring
your real flaws and telling somebody how
much you actually weigh fake IDs and the
infamous fake news there is a risk when
we uncover the truth so I invite you
guys today just step into the squared
circle with me as we body slam the three
limiting beliefs on why people think
professional wrestling is fake first
they think it’s fake as rustlers don’t
get hurt the truth is we learned a bump
a bump is when you attack the mat you
land flat on your back smack in the back
of both of your arms simultaneously oh
don’t forget to tuck your neck
scientific studies have proven that
every single bump a professional
wrestler takes it’s equivalent to
getting into a car accident at 30 miles
per hour can you just imagine how we
feel after one match when I first
started I would rent this wrestling ring
three bucks a day it was like half
inside this garage and half out and
there was these broken-down chicken
coops over here and a weird barking dog
over there and then the owner says to me
be careful for that part of the ring
because the boards are broken I don’t
want you to fall through regardless I
got into that ring and I bumped over and
over and over again and when I would
drive home after that session I cried
all the way home I could barely turn my
neck even an inch and if you see the
Rope runs on my back
you think there’s somebody I’d be in me
these are the things a professional
wrestler will never tell you and they
will never show you the bump is the
fundamentals to any match just as it is
to any dream the physical risk of
learning the basics it hurts but with
repetition not only do you build up a
callus to it and not feel it you
actually start to enjoy it and this
builds a strong foundation learn to bump
it took a boot to the face it’s a real
broken nose people think professional
wrestling is fake because it’s scripted
the truth is we live our script we
create our own characters and whether
we’re at the arena or we’re in the
airport we live that same character
every day but the magic it happens when
you connect to your audience and as long
as they’re cheering or booing we have a
job now we’re traveling on the road with
ee w e we would frequent stripper stores
a lot in search of ring gear and it was
Halloween time so there’s a lot of
costumes and this costume has this
flimsy star stripper wand
well I decide in that moment I’m going
to use this star wand the way the ledge
Darry Triple H uses his sledgehammer to
defeat his opponents I show up to the
arena that day and I go find my agent
Finley’s with my flimsy stripper wand
and I tell him and the other superstars
in my match what I plan to use it for
you just knew they were all laughing at
me but that wand eventually turned into
a steel weapon and it did defeat many of
my opponents and a few years later
backstage fit secretly asked me for an
autographed wand
he said all his daughter had been asking
him for for the past year was a wand
when we discover our core values we can
build that character and then you can
live your script but the emotional risk
here it’s sometimes much more painful
than the physical nobody wants to be
laughed at made fun of or talks about
behind their back live our script your
ideas are worth sharing if they inspire
just one little girl people think
professional wrestling is fake because
the winners are predetermined
the truth is WWE is our platform and our
hard work predetermines our win
look at me you guys fake hair fake
eyelashes fake boobs do you really think
that Vince McMahon looked at this model
in Los Angeles and said that’s my next
champion
no but when I signed on my dotted line
of that contract I predetermined that
I’d be the next champion and it was a
ton of work the naysayers every time I
got into the ring and I botched a move
or I made a mistake our dirt sheets or
the wrestling tabloids couldn’t wait to
blast it all over the internet about how
I couldn’t wrestle and I’m sure at some
point in your life a parent/teacher
probably even a close friend
I said to you you don’t have what it
takes to live that dream you’re not good
enough
well only we can predetermine our win
and one day they’ll be buying a ticket
to our event predetermine your win
through hard work that is a real dream
come true now a lot of people like to
tap out at this level you start to
realize that there’s a lot of physical
and emotional risk that goes into making
your dreams come true but this is that
pivotal moment when you earn the right
to go to the top but what’s at the top
it’s what everybody wants it’s where you
find your authentic self this is what I
call top rope risk the top rope is where
all the high-flying moves happen the
audience just can’t wait till you go to
the top are you gonna botch that move
inland face-first are you gonna soar and
live your wildest dreams I was on a 14
day European tour
I’d wrestled about 10 matches in 10
different cities and a few countries
when we land in Nebraska from Monday
Night Raw I was making history in the
women’s division I went from doing a
pudding and lingerie matches to a semi
main event and I was trying everything
in my repertoire to keep her down gloves
lying spinning clothesline drop kick
spinning heel kick I climbed up to that
second rope but nothing would keep her
down for a three count she was a bigger
stronger opponent over me and I knew I
needed to go to the top I sauntered so
tirelessly to that turnbuckle I remember
putting my first boot on the second rope
and he swung my other leg over my legs
felt like cement
Mir started to shake
but I pushed right through it up to the
the next thing I remember is barely
being able to see Stephanie McMahon
leaning over me saying don’t worry your
husband is being flown in I knew this
the diagnosis that night was a
concussion and I shattered my collarbone
and it shattered my dreams of ever
wrestling again risk is not fake the
definition of risk is exposure to danger
a harm but what it doesn’t tell you is
what’s on the other side of that and
you’re probably wondering why in the
world would I ever tell you to take a
top rope risk when I not only landed me
let me just show you why please meet my
three beautiful daughters
that’s aki ryu me and my aloha the best
title that i have ever held is mother
you see professional wrestlers we don’t
quit and if i didn’t go to that top rope
i never would have known how bad the win
is on the other side so whether it’s
professional wrestling or real life if
you choose to learn to bump and live
your script and predetermine your wing
my champions now it’s your turn and I
tagged you in thank you
[Applause] [Music]
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