Five questions with Paul Sayers
With two episodes of That Young Podcast available online, NZPWI spoke to its creator, former New Zealand wrestler Paul Sayers, about his latest venture.
Sayers shared his thoughts on starting the podcast, whether 2015 is the right time for another wrestling podcast, and his aspirations for the future of That Young Podcast.
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NZPWI: When did you decide to step away from the ring, and into the realm of podcasting?
Paul Sayers: It wasn’t until the day before I did the first one that I thought I would actually give it a crack. A lot of people have told me to do a podcast in the past but I’d never really been that keen, but after I broke my neck and knew I couldn’t wrestle again I needed to find something to do. Then this podcast happened, and it’s all go.
What’s involved in recording That Young Podcast?
Not a lot goes into recording an episode of That Young Podcast, it’s more organising than anything and a few hours spent in post-production editing the podcast and recording a few last things. A simple Facebook chat with some mates starts the ball rolling.
Do you listen to a lot of other podcasts, wrestling or otherwise?
Not a lot of them. For the past five or so years I’ve been the biggest fan of The Art of Wrestling and Colt Cabana continues to be one of my favourite guys in the world of wrestling. I listen to a bit of Gallows and Anderson [Talk’n Shop] but more for the comedy factor of them just turning on a mic. I really am aiming to be a lot like The Art of Wrestling – it’s just so great.
It seems like there are more options for entertainment than ever before these days, both in terms of the number of wrestling podcasts and the availability of services like NJPW World and WWE Network. Is 2015 a good time for a new podcast?
I honestly feel like I might have missed the boat in some ways, with there being a lot of podcasts out that cover wrestling. But the OSW Review guys who run The Piledriver Network giving me the rub must mean I’m onto something good, and I hope that I’m offering something a little different – podcasting with people from New Zealand, it should make a bit more of an impact. I feel like the beauty of a podcast is that you can chuck it on on your drive to work, or on a run, or on the bus. I don’t think WWE Network is competition for the world of podcasts.
How do you hope to develop That Young Podcast? Where do you see it going over the next few months?
I really hope it will get a good run going into next year. I have a few super-cool guests lined up if all goes to plan and hopefully some sponsors on board that will help a load. But if people who listen can get more people to listen that would be great! I’m hoping this will turn into something people 50 years from now will say, “Oh you remember that podcast that Paul guy did years ago? Jeez, that was bloody good.”