Photo: Ryan Loco
We were joined on the Popternative show by WWE superstar Aleister Black who reflects on his journey through the WWE and NXT, including the influential “black and gold” era that helped shape his identity in the ring.
He also dives into how both music and the horror genre inform his character, why entrances matter as much as the match itself, and the important balance between craft and spectacle in modern professional wrestling. Beyond the ropes, Black also shares his desire to explore acting—particularly in horror films—while acknowledging that wrestling remains his lifelong passion.
On the importance of his entrances and the music influences behind them, Aleister explains, “A big part of me is the entrances and they were [also a big part] on the independent scene because I quickly got smart to [understanding that] it’s the first thing that the audience really sees. So, you want to make an impression, you want them you want them to feel something. And I remember very vividly that when I read this interview with Dani Filth from Cradle of Filth when I was younger, and he spoke about the reason why he does a lot of these theatrics [on stage]. It’s because he [noticed] in the in the early 80s and end of the 70s, that [artists] like Alice Cooper and Iron Maiden [had] these really big performances. For Iron Maiden, having Eddie on stage in a big puppet form, there were theatrics involved, and it’s the first thing people see so it sets the tone. So for me, an entrance has always [been] a big part of who I [am].”
Reflecting on NXT’s “Black and Gold” era, Alestair says, “I think that the good thing about the black and gold era, and people can debate me on this all they want, I think that [the] 2016 to 2020 era of professional wrestling, maybe even 2015 to 2020 because I want to be fair to all the people that made it that way and it, was certainly not me, I think were the best wrestling in the world. I think we had a perfect blend of the old school implementing into the new school. We had the guys like Terry Taylor that were in the old old school teaching us with guys like Shawn Michaels and and Scotty 2 Hotty that were teaching us their their more modern way of wrestling.“
Watch the full conversation with Aleister Black below.
Follow Aleister Black: Instagram