iHeartRadio show DC101’s Mike Jones held a recent interview with Charlotte discussing her new book, the impact wrestling has had on her life, NXT’s Sara Del Rey, and more.
On the topic of her new book, Charlotte stated she feels amazed to have a book and the project taking two years to complete. She revealed the toughest part was opening up more than normal due to feeling ashamed at parts of her life.
“I worked on this project for two years, and it’s kind of like when you finally debut on the main roster, you’re like ‘gosh I’ve been doing this for so long!’ Well, I didn’t really do it that long but you know what I mean. You work towards a goal and then it’s finally accomplished. I just can’t believe I have a book. It’s crazy!”
“When this opportunity first came to me, I was really hesitant. Because for so long, I was so ashamed of my past and embarrassed. I spent the whole time I’ve been in WWE trying to build this character who is unbreakable, who is not vulnerable and who is not relatable. For me to let down my guard and let people in, I had to make that decision and once I did I had to own it.”
During the interview, Charlotte revealed both wrestling and her deceased brother Reid Flair have been major impacts on her life. In regards to wrestling, it gave her the chance to go in a new direction for her life. In regards to her brother, she learned from his struggles on how to deal with the tough issue of having to follow in the footsteps of her father.
“The message that I really want people to know is that no matter how old you are and no matter how bad it is, you have the choice to change. That’s what wrestling did for me. Believe it or not, it was wrestling. If you had asked me in my early 20’s or in high school if I was going to wrestle, I would have laughed at you. I found something that I was passionate about and that changed my life.”
“Reid wanted to be Ric Flair. And I think part of what drives my character is my brother struggled so much with being compared to my dad when he was on the independents and it really frustrated me. No one understands what it’s like to walk in the shadow of a famous father, let alone Ric Flair, in the wrestling industry.”
On the topic of NXT, Charlotte revealed Sara Del Rey was very instrumental for the successes she has had so far in the WWE.
“She told me to believe in who you are. She could see the insecurities and because I didn’t come from modeling and I was taller, she just knew I wasn’t comfortable in my own skin. She was the one that told me to be strong, be athletic, be you. She brought that out of me.”