TNA star Austin Aries more than a wrestler
http://www.postandcourier.com/artic...32/tna-star-austin-aries-more-than-a-wrestler
Two parts.
For many professional wrestlers, the business is everything.
For a select few, such as Austin Aries, the business is just part of who they are.
If the TNA star's pro wrestling career were to end tomorrow, it would only mark the end of one career and the beginning of the rest of his life.
It's not that Aries isn't passionate about the business. He has been following the sport for as long as he can remember.
Nor is Aries still trying to make a name in the profession. The 35-year-old Wisconsin native is widely regarded as one of the top workers in the game, and no less than Kurt Angle once called him the best performer in the business.
He's also one of a handful of performers to claim the distinction of being a TNA Triple Crown champion, having held the TNA heavyweight title, the TNA tag-team title and the X-Division title.
But pro wrestling doesn't define who Austin Aries — real name Dan Solwold — is.
“Once you feel like you're trapped or a prisoner to the business, that's a dangerous thing,” says Aries, pointing to the character who played the title role in “The Wrestler.”
“That movie was sensationalized to an extent, but there are guys like that. That's all they know and that's all they can do. They're on the hustle for a lifetime.”
That's not the case with Aries.
“I love wrestling, and I want to do it for as long as I'm successful and it makes me happy. But there are other things that make me happy too,” he's quick to add.
In other words, pro wrestling isn't the be-all, end-all for Aries.
“I want to be diversified as I can. I don't want to throw all my eggs in one basket, but right now the wrestling basket has been good to me. I'm thankful for that.”
Aries has seen a number of performers from his industry allow the business to consume them. He doesn't want to be one of them.
“Sometimes the guys who are most passionate like myself ... if we don't have other outlets to focus that passion on and get that energy out, it can become too much. I've gotten in a little trouble over the years because I've been outspoken and been passionate about things. And I've discovered that the more outlets I have, like my music, have helped me in my wrestling career. You have to have something else besides just wrestling in your life.”
Like “ordinary” individuals, he has varied interests in such subjects as music, food, fitness and current events. On his rare days away from the mat grind, he's just “Dan,” “Daniel” or “Danny.” And that's fine by him.
Aries now lives in Clearwater, Fla., closer to his TNA base but far removed from his former home in Wisconsin. “I'm done shoveling show,” the lifelong Green Bay Packers fan laughs. “I just visit snow now.”
An accomplished vocalist (“I can rock the mic”) who sang in school and community choirs when he was young, Aries is a self-described “hack” guitar player who gravitates toward alternative rock but appreciates anything that's “good” — from rap and hip hop to reggae and classic rock.
Aries has an even greater interest — more of a cause — in fitness and nutrition. He has been a devout vegetarian since he broke into the business in 2000. “A few years ago I went completely vegan and cut the dairy and the eggs out of my diet as well.”
Aries is vocal about his concerns over the “corporate food system” and how it has affected nutrition and the overall health of Americans.
“Whether or not you believe in veganism or vegetarianism, we've handed over our sustenance to corporations, and we're expecting them to use guidelines with us in mind. The reality is that their overall objective is profit, and they'll compromise whoever or whatever they have to in order to make more profit.”
Aries evolution
Aries, whose strong mic skills complement his superb in-ring ability, has used a number of monikers over his 13-year career.
With an arrogant and boastful ring persona, billed as “The Greatest Man That Ever Lived,” Aries came up with his current moniker quite simply.
“I'm an Aries — born on April 15, 1978. I was reading about the Zodiak signs and such. I really kind of embodied the characteristics of the Aries. As for Austin, I was honestly throwing first names out there, and I remembered Austin Idol and thought that was a catchy name. I really wasn't thinking long-term at the time. But Austin Aries had a ring to it, and it just stuck.”
http://www.postandcourier.com/artic...32/tna-star-austin-aries-more-than-a-wrestler
Two parts.
For many professional wrestlers, the business is everything.
For a select few, such as Austin Aries, the business is just part of who they are.
If the TNA star's pro wrestling career were to end tomorrow, it would only mark the end of one career and the beginning of the rest of his life.
It's not that Aries isn't passionate about the business. He has been following the sport for as long as he can remember.
Nor is Aries still trying to make a name in the profession. The 35-year-old Wisconsin native is widely regarded as one of the top workers in the game, and no less than Kurt Angle once called him the best performer in the business.
He's also one of a handful of performers to claim the distinction of being a TNA Triple Crown champion, having held the TNA heavyweight title, the TNA tag-team title and the X-Division title.
But pro wrestling doesn't define who Austin Aries — real name Dan Solwold — is.
“Once you feel like you're trapped or a prisoner to the business, that's a dangerous thing,” says Aries, pointing to the character who played the title role in “The Wrestler.”
“That movie was sensationalized to an extent, but there are guys like that. That's all they know and that's all they can do. They're on the hustle for a lifetime.”
That's not the case with Aries.
“I love wrestling, and I want to do it for as long as I'm successful and it makes me happy. But there are other things that make me happy too,” he's quick to add.
In other words, pro wrestling isn't the be-all, end-all for Aries.
“I want to be diversified as I can. I don't want to throw all my eggs in one basket, but right now the wrestling basket has been good to me. I'm thankful for that.”
Aries has seen a number of performers from his industry allow the business to consume them. He doesn't want to be one of them.
“Sometimes the guys who are most passionate like myself ... if we don't have other outlets to focus that passion on and get that energy out, it can become too much. I've gotten in a little trouble over the years because I've been outspoken and been passionate about things. And I've discovered that the more outlets I have, like my music, have helped me in my wrestling career. You have to have something else besides just wrestling in your life.”
Like “ordinary” individuals, he has varied interests in such subjects as music, food, fitness and current events. On his rare days away from the mat grind, he's just “Dan,” “Daniel” or “Danny.” And that's fine by him.
Aries now lives in Clearwater, Fla., closer to his TNA base but far removed from his former home in Wisconsin. “I'm done shoveling show,” the lifelong Green Bay Packers fan laughs. “I just visit snow now.”
An accomplished vocalist (“I can rock the mic”) who sang in school and community choirs when he was young, Aries is a self-described “hack” guitar player who gravitates toward alternative rock but appreciates anything that's “good” — from rap and hip hop to reggae and classic rock.
Aries has an even greater interest — more of a cause — in fitness and nutrition. He has been a devout vegetarian since he broke into the business in 2000. “A few years ago I went completely vegan and cut the dairy and the eggs out of my diet as well.”
Aries is vocal about his concerns over the “corporate food system” and how it has affected nutrition and the overall health of Americans.
“Whether or not you believe in veganism or vegetarianism, we've handed over our sustenance to corporations, and we're expecting them to use guidelines with us in mind. The reality is that their overall objective is profit, and they'll compromise whoever or whatever they have to in order to make more profit.”
Aries evolution
Aries, whose strong mic skills complement his superb in-ring ability, has used a number of monikers over his 13-year career.
With an arrogant and boastful ring persona, billed as “The Greatest Man That Ever Lived,” Aries came up with his current moniker quite simply.
“I'm an Aries — born on April 15, 1978. I was reading about the Zodiak signs and such. I really kind of embodied the characteristics of the Aries. As for Austin, I was honestly throwing first names out there, and I remembered Austin Idol and thought that was a catchy name. I really wasn't thinking long-term at the time. But Austin Aries had a ring to it, and it just stuck.”
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