Before Sonny Kiss became a star in AEW, he was known as XO Lishus in Lucha Underground. Kiss was apart of season four of Lucha Underground and one of the highlights of the season.
Lucha Underground went through major issues following season four with season five never happening but talent still being under contract. Lawsuits ended up being filed and settled, which allowed the talent to finally get out of contracts and sign elsewhere. Though Kiss was not part of the lawsuit, he did have to deal with his Lucha Underground contract when talking with AEW.
"Brandi slid into my DMs [Laughs]," said Kiss on Talk Is Jericho when asked about signing with AEW. "She messaged me and goes, 'Are you signed anywhere? We'd like you to come to our first show.' I was like, 'Yes, but I can still do other bookings.' [I was signed] to Lucha Underground. Thankfully, we were allowed to do everything but the other company [WWE] so I was able to still do it, but I didn't get my official contract [with AEW] until way after. That contract issue [with Lucha Underground] it was a nightmare. We were maybe making four grand a year. We couldn't sign anywhere else at all. There were times when I couldn't pay my cell phone bill, anything. [Fenix and Pentagon] were one of the first to get out and I was happy for them. I was one of the last. Cody was like, 'Don't worry, we'll still book you and make sure you're still here.' I didn't get my [AEW] contract until TV happened."
Sonny went on to say that he thought Brandi's offer was for All In 2 and didn't realize it would be for an entirely new promotion.
Fortunately, Sonny did get out of his contract and has become a featured star on AEW television.
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