'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Eli Drake is so good on the microphone that the popularity of his promo work with the crowd is slowly turning him face even though he's a heel character. This is partly to do with the fact he has a number of usable catchphrases the crowd can pick up on, but also because of his natural talent with a microphone in his hand.
I wanted to talk to Drake about his promo work and the process behind it. Did he come up with the ideas himself? And how much freedom was he allowed when he was stood in the ring cutting a promo?
When you came up with some of the catchphrases did you have any idea that they would catch on or was it more of a case of just throwing things out there and seeing if anything sticks.
Drake: Yeah I think it's kind of that, there was so many times when I just spent time either in the shower or in the car just like trying things out on myself like a psycho. I'd hear certain things or say certain things and be like 'damn, okay that would be good' and I always wanted to have an 'open' and a 'go home'.
I feel like as long as I have a way to open every time I talk and a way to go home every time I'm going to talk I can fill in the middle with anything else.
So do you improvise a lot when you're out there then?
Drake: Oh yeah, I can't tell you the amount of times I've walked out through the curtain and I've been like 'I don't know what I'm going to talk about but here we go'.
Specifically last year when they had the title on me, I was working so much, so there was no down time, because we'd tape three or four episodes a night, I think now they cut it down to two, but we were doing three or four episodes a time, I'd have to go out there and do four, five, six segments in one night so there's no down time so everything was improvised.
It was just like 'alright, I need to talk about this, cool, here we go' so there's no rehearsal, there's no nothing, it's just say it from the top, say it from the heart.
I think a lot of the time that feels more natural and comes across better on screen. Do you think that's one of the good things about working for Impact, in that they give you more creative freedom?
Drake: Hell yeah, Only because you're going to say things the best in your own words. If somebody tells me the point they want to get across I can that point across but I'll get it across in my words.
I can't get it across in your words, I can't say what I want to say the way you'd say it and you probably can't say what you want to say the way I'd say it. So when there's a room full of writers, and the funny thing is I've had people in the past try and write for me, and t's funny to read because they'll try to plug-in catchphrases and stuff and I'm like 'this is ridiculous, I can't even read this shit' so instead of reading that verbatim or using it, I'll probably take one or two things from it and just be like 'get rid of this, I'll fill in the blanks.'"
Next: Eli Drake reveals his thoughts on Impact Wrestling attempting more controversial storylines and signing former WWE guys like Chris Jericho and Neville?
