Brandi Rhodes discusses all things AEW.
As the Chief Branding Officer and head of the women's division, Brandi Rhodes wears multiple hats for All Elite Wrestling. On top of her work behind the scenes, Brandi is also an active competitor, sporting a 1-0 record after her victory over Allie at AEW Fight for the Fallen. On Oct. 2, AEW will premiere on TNT and crown the first-ever AEW Women's Champion. It's unknown if Brandi will be part of the match, but that doesn't make her any less excited to go head-to-head with NXT when AEW finally debuts on television.
"I definitely can’t speak for them and their business planning and thinking, but as far as AEW is concerned we’re all for it. We are excited to be on Wednesday night," Brandi told TribLive when asked about going up against NXT. "We’ve got amazing things lined up. We can’t wait to get to air. We’re actually on the TNT campus right now with a ton of meetings and going over all sorts of aspects of rolling into Oct. 2. It’s a wild and great time for everyone. Our fans are going to be shocked, satiated and I think they will keep coming back for more."
On the topic of AEW being on TNT, 20 years after WCW Nitro on TNT famously went head-to-head with WWE Raw on Monday nights, Brandi said, "All of that was the handiwork of Tony Khan and his relationship with Kevin Reilly (President of TNT/TBS). It was their vision and worked hard to make it happen. We were kind of on the back end of that to make sure we are supplying best on our wrestling shows and content. Tony and Kevin worked behind the scenes to made it all come together. It is serendipitous to be on TNT almost 20 years later, kind of in a similar position. It’s cool to see it all come full circle, and it feels just right."
On Oct. 23, AEW on TNT will travel to Pittsburgh. Announced for the show thus far are the semi-finals of the AEW Tag Team Tournament and Jon Moxley being in action. Pennsylvania native Britt Baker is expected to play a big role on the Pittsburgh show, with some in AEW already renaming the town "Brittsburgh."
"Britt has always been on the cusp of doing something different. She’s a very talented wrestler, and she’s had a lot options in her career and life," said Brandi "The path she wanted to take is the one of the disruptor, and that’s who we are. AEW is kind of a rebel group making a lot of noise. From the first show we all did together, All In, before AEW was formed where we sold out Sears Center in Chicago — which was first time in many years a rogue group like us could sell out over 10,000 seats — and Britt was one of those ladies who really rallied to be part of the show. She was a core element of that show. She’s in line with our thinking and how we want to present our brand, so she was just the perfect woman to be the first announced."
Both Brandi and Britt will be part of the Casino Battle Royale at AEW All Out. You can view the current lineup for the event by clicking here.
