Triple H Goes Sneaker Shopping With Complex
Summary
TLDRIn this engaging conversation, Joe from Complex interviews Triple H, WWE Hall of Famer, about his sneaker preferences and experiences. They delve into the evolution of wrestling footwear, from traditional wrestling boots to fashionable sneakers, reflecting the impact of popular culture and celebrity influence. Triple H shares anecdotes from his career, discusses the intersection of wrestling and sneaker culture, and shops for sneakers for his family, highlighting the ongoing relevance and excitement surrounding WrestleMania.
Takeaways
- 🎮 The interview features Joe from Complex talking with Triple H about his sneaker preferences and experiences.
- 👟 Triple H reminisces about his early sports days, mentioning cloth All Stars as his go-to basketball shoes growing up.
- 🏀 He discusses the transition from traditional wrestling boots to sneakers for their comfort and style in the ring.
- 👕 Triple H usually wears suits for work, but acknowledges the sneaker culture's influence even in the business side of wrestling.
- 🌟 The conversation highlights the impact of wrestlers wearing Jordans and other popular sneakers, and how it connects with the youth and enhances their superstar status.
- 💼 Triple H notes the change in wrestling culture where sneakers are not just for performance but also for showing off and competition among the wrestlers.
- 🎶 He mentions the use of wrestling entrance themes and catchphrases in other sports, indicating the crossover and influence of wrestling culture.
- 👟 The idea of a wrestler having a signature sneaker deal is brought up, with Triple H suggesting it could be a missed opportunity for brands.
- 🌐 The script discusses the power of celebrities like Travis Scott and Bad Bunny in influencing sneaker culture and product sales.
- 📈 The cultural impact of wrestling figures like Stone Cold Steve Austin and the DX era is highlighted, with their merchandise still being popular today.
- 🏆 Anticipation for WrestleMania 40 is expressed, with Triple H expecting it to be a massive event that continues the current high level of interest in wrestling.
Q & A
What was Triple H's first experience with basketball shoes?
-Triple H's first experience with basketball shoes were cloth Converse All-Stars, which marked the beginning of his interest in sneakers.
How did Triple H's mother influence his choice of basketball shoes?
-Triple H's mother was practical and believed that expensive shoes wouldn't improve his basketball skills. She encouraged him to stick with affordable options like Converses.
What was the significance of the photo shoot with Triple H wearing night sneakers?
-The photo shoot signifies an early instance of Triple H being associated with sneakers, despite not remembering the specific shoes or event.
Why did Triple H wear Chuck Taylor's during his time on the road?
-Triple H wore Chuck Taylor's because they were flat, took less room in his bag, and were easy to pack for his 300 days a year road schedule.
How has the wrestling world changed in terms of footwear?
-Wrestling footwear has evolved from traditional wrestling boots to sneakers, offering comfort and style, as well as the ability to flex new shoes to connect with the youth audience.
What is Triple H's opinion on the blending of wrestling and sneaker culture?
-Triple H loves the blending of wrestling and sneaker culture, as it provides another connection point with the youth audience and adds to the superstar status of wrestlers.
How did the entrance of Travis Scott, Reggie from Jordan, and Neil into the wrestling arena impact sneaker culture?
-Their entrance created a buzz and broke records on Nike sneaker apps, showcasing the significant cultural impact and crossover audience that celebrities like Travis Scott can bring to the sneaker world.
What is Triple H's view on the potential of a wrestler having a signature Jordan deal?
-Triple H believes it's a missed opportunity if a company doesn't consider a signature line with wrestlers like Cody Rhodes, Jay Uso, or Roman Reigns, as they have a significant impact on culture.
How did Bad Bunny's debut of his Adidas collaboration on Raw reflect the changing landscape of product promotion?
-Bad Bunny's debut on Raw demonstrates the shift from traditional platforms like The Tonight Show to larger, more interactive platforms where celebrities can generate buzz and promote their products effectively.
What was a defining moment for Triple H in realizing the impact of his wrestling career?
-A defining moment for Triple H was when he was mobbed at Pheasant Lane Mall, which made him realize the extent of his fame and the impact of wrestling on popular culture.
What can we expect from WrestleMania 40 according to Triple H?
-Triple H expects WrestleMania 40 to be massive, with a white-hot level of excitement and sold-out events, and they will do everything they can to make it the biggest WrestleMania in history.
Outlines
🎥 Shoe Shopping with Triple H
The paragraph begins with a setting up of a video shoot featuring Joe from Complex and WWE Hall of Famer Triple H in Stamford, Connecticut. They discuss Triple H's sneaker preferences and his past experiences with shoes during his athletic days, highlighting his transition from cloth All-Stars to leather high-tops like Pro Leather, popular during the Larry Bird and Magic Johnson era. The conversation touches on the practicality of shoes for wrestling, with Triple H noting the importance of comfort and functionality over fashion. The paragraph ends with a reflection on the changing times in wrestling and sneaker culture, with wrestlers now often wearing Jordans and other popular sneakers to the ring.
👟 Evolution of Wrestling and Sneaker Culture
This paragraph delves into the evolution of wrestling attire and sneaker culture within the industry. Triple H shares his traditional preference for wrestling boots but acknowledges the shift towards sneakers for their comfort and style. The discussion highlights the competitive nature of wrestlers' sneaker choices, both in the ring and backstage, where the 'flex' of having the latest or most stylish shoes is a significant aspect. The paragraph also reminisces about the Cena pump era and the impact of celebrities like Travis Scott and Bad Bunny, who have leveraged their influence to promote products within the wrestling audience.
🏆 Legacy of Wrestling and Memorabilia
The focus of this paragraph is on the lasting legacy of wrestling and its memorabilia. Triple H reflects on the Attitude Era and its enduring impact on popular culture, exemplified by the continued popularity of DX merchandise. He shares a personal anecdote about being mobbed at a mall, highlighting the peak of wrestling's popularity. The conversation also touches on the potential for wrestlers to have their own signature sneaker deals, comparing the cultural influence of wrestling stars to that of musicians and actors. Triple H expresses excitement for WrestleMania 40, hinting at surprises and the ongoing relevance of wrestling in contemporary culture.
🛍️ Wrapping Up the Sneaker Shopping Experience
The final paragraph concludes the video script with Triple H completing his sneaker shopping for his family. He makes selections for each member, demonstrating a blend of style and practicality in his choices. The paragraph emphasizes the cultural significance of sneaker shopping and the pressure of making the right choices. The segment ends with Triple H expressing gratitude for the assistance and encouraging viewers to watch WrestleMania 40, creating a seamless blend of personal experience and promotional content.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Sneaker culture
💡Triple H
💡WrestleMania
💡Sneaker shopping
💡Fashion
💡Authenticity
💡Endorsement
💡Attitude Era
💡Crossover
💡Competitiveness
💡Legacy
Highlights
Joe from Complex interviews Triple H about his sneaker preferences and experiences.
Triple H reminisces about his early basketball days and wearing cloth All Stars.
The importance of sneakers in wrestling and how they've evolved over time.
Triple H's recollection of the early 2000s and the high-tech sneaker boots popular among wrestlers.
The impact of sneaker culture on the wrestling world and the business side.
Triple H's personal preference for wrestling boots over sneakers for wrestling.
The influence of modern wrestlers like CM Punk and others wearing Jordans and sneakers.
The cultural crossover of wrestling and sneaker culture, with examples like Travis Scott and Bad Bunny.
The potential for a wrestler to have a signature Jordan deal and its impact on the industry.
Triple H's thoughts on the current state of wrestling and its potential to be another defining era.
The legacy of the Attitude Era and its lasting impact on wrestling and pop culture.
Triple H's personal experience with the growth of wrestling's popularity in the 90s.
The significance of WrestleMania 40 and the anticipation for its success.
Triple H's sneaker shopping experience and his choices for his family.
The importance of authenticity in the world of sneakers and celebrity endorsements.
The role of social media and digital platforms in promoting and discussing sneakers and wrestling.
Transcripts
time to play the
game time to play the
game come on guys the shoes are wrapped
in plastic you didn't think I was still
going to do this did
you it's all about the game and how you
play it all about control if you can
take it everybody it's Joe from complex
we're in Stanford Connecticut at L
streams with the CCO and WWE Hall of
Famer Triple H how you doing I'm good
man how are you we do some sneaker
shopping today see what he's feeling
what he's not and then hopefully he's
going to buy some sneakers hopefully
let's
[Music]
go Triple H I want to take it all the
way back two sport athlete coming up
baseball basketball do you remember even
back then what shoes you were wearing to
play basketball in uh you know I'm I'm
old so like for me the cloth all stars
were where it was started I'm old enough
to remember sort of where the um the the
all leather high tops probably like the
pro leather Like Larry Bird era Magic
Johnson even Larry Bird was the you know
look I where I grew up Nash New
Hampshire right the Celtics were the
thing yeah and I grew up in a Great era
so going to watch bird and Robert Parish
and male and all those guys was a
magical time you know those with the
shoes uh though for me when it came out
think my mom was pretty smart looked at
me and like you kind of suck at
basketball the $100 shoes aren't going
to make you any better at basketball so
just stick with whatever you can get for
30 and it was probably like Converses it
probably was and you know I love that
you pulled up in sneakers there's like
even like Reddit threads like the we
haven't seen Triple H wear sneakers in a
while cuz you're always in like suits
and stuff like that but special occasion
I love that you wore the Blazers yeah
look my kids got me these so I was
hoping when I walked in here you would
think they were cool awesome cuz I don't
know um yeah look I'm in suits uh 90% of
the time uh just for workwise and the
sneaker culture has hit that world as
well like the business um it's just a
tougher transition for us to go from uh
suit and dress shoes to a suit with
sneakers on but that's the thing now so
I got to get I got to up my game
absolutely you said that like early
basketball you were into like the first
iterations of Chuck Taylor's but flexing
Intercontinental Champion 2000 photo
shoot you're wearing these night do you
remember this photo at all I remember
the photo I don't remember the shoes and
my guess is at that time in my life
someone gave me those okay I probably
did a shoot somewhere or I probably did
something where they gave me the
sneakers at that time in my life that's
early 2000s we were running like that's
a 300 day a year Road schedule different
city every day right you know for the
most part we were looking for the
allpurpose do anything yes like that's
why the high-techs the boots at the
times like the sneaker boots were like a
big thing for all of us just because you
could it didn't matter if it was snowing
like you might be in a town one day it's
snowing the next day it's 90 you've got
to do a runin in them on TV it's
function yeah and and really that was
where it was at it was shortly after
that guys really started to get into the
fashion of the shoes when now it's it's
transitioned crazy another classic photo
we had Stone on around 2 years ago is
like a gril get for us you as well
rocking to Chuck Taylor with Stone Cold
WWE Magazine yeah there you go and and
so here's the thing on that like this is
a convenience why am I wearing Chuck
Taylor's cuz they lay flat in your bag
and take less room in your suitcase okay
and that was probably when you were on
the road 300 days absolutely okay so
easy condensable sneakers yeah you know
like it boggles my mind sometimes when I
see guys that have been on the road for
a couple of weeks and I'll see them two
or three times in a time that they're
gone and I see them in different shoes
every time and I'm like what do you have
like a a suitcase that you dragg for
your sneakers and they're like yeah I do
yeah like they have a bag that's pretty
much just shoes
[Music]
crazy getting to current day wrestling
like complex did a post recently about
how Jordan took over Monday night CM
Punk bought his first pair of Jordans on
this show then you have Dominic Mysterio
Kofi Kingston Roman Reigns what do you
think about like those two worlds
colliding and coming from like a
traditional wrestling background and now
seeing so many wrestlers coming out in
Jordans and sneakers what what do you
think about that I love it you know it's
if you're the Youth of the world that is
watching this show how do you connect
with our Superstars and that's just
another connection point that makes them
cool and and and puts them on another
plane of being a superstar and you know
it's funny that we have talent now that
will come up to me at TV and ask like
hey I got this run in later are you cool
if I go in my street clothes I got these
new Jordans or whatever wow they want to
flex yeah I want to I want I just got
these and I want to I want to run in and
do do you sign off mostly absolutely
yeah you know and and now like I'm old
school I'm traditional like I like
wrestling boots right but they've
transition now to a lot of guys like
wearing sneakers in the ring they they
like the comfort of it but they also
like to as you point they like that Flex
of it like to be able to go out there
and have that athletic ability but have
them in something that is that stylish
and it's a big thing in the locker room
too believe me comp competitive dude the
the competitive nature do you walk by
and your sometimes like enough or like
you like to see it no I don't even know
what they're talking about time but like
but they're all like I hear them talking
like do you see Roman shoes like you
know what I mean you see this or you
know somebody will walk up to gorilla
right before we they walk through the
curtain and I'll see them all walk over
like oh man you know like can just go
straight to the shoes you know it's
again it's not just a flex on TV
backstage def Flex in the locker room
you know you do have some history the
Cena pump era do you remember the rebok
pump era early 2000s he was rocking
those but I found this I love
this well excuse me if I'm not afraid of
the guy whose one big move is pumping up
his
Rebox do you remember that promo at all
or like at least his I don't know what
the [ __ ] I was thinking with my hair
right there yeah but the era of Cena
pumps was a big era of wrestling
stopping and pumping up his shoes was
like a huge thing right and at the time
there was some of us in that era where
like look Austin wor what he wore like
when you would see Austin and he had the
Jorts before Cena did right with the the
Jorts and the knee braces just C he
because what he wore to the building
that day yeah you know what I mean yeah
just came game ready it was
yeah
couple weeks ago big moment on Raw we
see Travis Scott Reggie from Jordan Neil
all walking like into the arena his
shoes break records we talked about it
kind of off camera always what do you
think about Travis's cultural impact and
like even then it's yeah these the sixes
and the ones breaks records on Nike
sneakers apps and like having him there
what do you think about like the
crossover of that audience and the way
he can move product look it's it's
massive
you know when you have somebody at his
level that can say hey this is cool and
it's the biggest thing that there is in
in some way and I've heard them say it
so I'm not saying anything uh that I
made it but like in in a way he might be
more important to the brand than Michael
is right now just cuz he's moving units
and he's like active yeah and and what's
cool you the thing about him his ears on
the ground at all times right so it's
not a hey I think kids will like this
it's not a hey I think this will work
it's like that'll work this will work
like I know what they want absolutely um
and I think that that's a a cool place
because in today's world if it's not
authentic you can't make it work totally
and you know have you had meetings with
Reggie Reggie's the guy like you know
there's so many Roman we see there's so
many wrestlers that are over do you
think it's time for a wrestler to have
like a signature Jordan deal or what I
do you know it's funny I've thought it
for a long time when when you look at
our world
much like what Travis is doing there
that's bigger obviously and how you can
affect that culture but I think that our
performers affect that culture just as
much as well you know when when you hear
uh if you go to a game in almost any
sport you'll hear our entrance themes
playing in that Stadium or that Arena
right like you'll hear the the sayings
and the chants and the catchphrases that
are Talent use you can't go to a game
without people wooing like flair you
know uh I see athletes doing the Roman
Reigns one all the time you know I think
the ye thing that Jay has now brought
back it it all affects culture in a big
way and I think um if somebody doesn't
do the signature line with some of our
talent you know a Cody rhods a Jay Uso
Roman Reigns I think they're missing the
boat on something that can be very
impactful towards their business
absolutely another thing we got to talk
about Bad Bunny another huge star I love
like I think 3 years ago in March he
debuted one of his new Adidas
collaborations on Raw which is amazing
someone that big using raw to debut it
was a backstage photo it wasn't like
anything that was so zoomed in on the
sneakers but just subtle and all the
blogs picked it up but yeah what do you
think about him debuting the sneakers on
Raw I love it name the bigger platform
right right right like it it used to be
25 years ago um somebody might go on
like The Tonight Show with a cool pair
of shoes on yes they always used to do
that and people would lose their mind
now the who watches the tonight's show
no no fans right but like what what is
that place where a celebrity can come
and get buzzed where can they go promote
their whatever they're doing whether
it's a film whether it's something else
they can come on our in our world and
the amount of eyeballs that they get on
them not not just in the programming but
digital and social right where the you
know we just got the I think the 10th
ever 100 saw that YouTube subscription
yeah got to talk about your legacy you
know you think back to the days of
Pheasant Lane Mall newshire you know
done your research the DX Legacy though
this vintage te it had like a whole
after like vintage te's super rare this
is like $200 I had to get like
overnighted from Texas but what do you
think about when you see kind of like
the aftermarket of like memorabilia DX
when I had stone cold I talked about
like the 316 shirts but how awesome is
it to see something like that and like
this live on it's it's crazy people talk
all the time about the Attitude Era we
didn't realize that's what it was at the
time it was just Thursday or whatever
day it was you were just doing what you
did you mentioned Pheasant Lane Mall one
of the times that I it really first hit
me of how big we had gotten was I used
to go there all the time there was a g
and C there I would get home off the
road for 18 days or whatever I'd need to
pick up some supplements I'd go to that
GNC at the mall I'd run in grab
supplements right before I have to leave
to go back on the road and I went to go
get supplements and it was maybe a 100
yard off the entrance pulled in walked
in the door by the time I walked to the
escalator to go down to the next level I
looked back there was like 200 people
following me and I was like holy [ __ ] I
never even made it to the store it
started to become a mob scene security
came and like they got me out of there
and people followed me leaving to try to
get home like I had to drive around for
like 45 minutes to lose people to go
back to my house and it was the first
time I was like well I get some done
going to the mall yes right it was the
first time that I realized how big it
was getting but to see that impact 30
years later yes kids who who didn't even
watch it wearing the shirts I I think
sometimes that there's kids wearing
those shirts that don't even know what
it is right dropping this week the
episode dropping big week WrestleMania
week I'm hearing Rumblings of surprises
how excited are you for this
WrestleMania a a really big one what
could we expect well you know it's it's
just look back and you go 40 years right
so 40 years as we roll into this um the
business is probably I can look at it
different now like where I just said a
minute ago like we didn't know was the
attitude ER the time having lived
through that I can look at it right now
and say we're in another era like that
yeah people won't put a tag on it like
we didn't call it the Attitude Era in
the Attitude Era you know what Ian yes
yes they'll put a tag on it later or
whatever it is but if we can maintain
we're we're in that same white hot level
of you know everything sold out
everything we we doing is just clicking
um and you see it Travis Scout wanting
to come in you see it Bad Bunny
wrestling with us you see it the rock
coming back Rock's got a busy schedule
if if wrestling's on the down he ain't
coming in yeah right um so you see that
you see that excitement Wrestlemania 40
will be massive and we're going to do
everything we can to make it the biggest
WrestleMania in history can't wait can't
wait well we talked about everything now
is the easy part browse the shells I
think you may shop for the fam and uh
we'll end there awesome man awesome
thank you of course thank you
[Music]
[Music]
man yeah we're going to start out with
these right the SP Blazer mids nice
choice thank you very much we're going
to uh make our way down here Travis
Scotch ah yeah just love my suit game
there you go all
black here you got to go with the nice
black and white again all right I think
so
cool I'll make this easy I'm going to go
for the family right now sounds good
here all right here all right my
daughter's going to Springfield we'll go
here we'll go here and we'll go here
that's a great choice
[Music]
perfect got everything you need think so
lot of great lot of great pickups I
appreciate it the total is going to be
44
47202
awesome go and I appreciate you guys
sneaker shopping is intimidating right
it's a cultural thing you got to get it
right you guys make it easy I appreciate
that it can be but but you did
good all right and then the shirts and
then you are all
set there you go am man thank you very
much thank you very much appreciate your
[Music]
help so Triple H came through told some
great stories Sho for the fam thanks so
much for taking the time I appreciate it
man appreciate you make sure everyone
checks out Wrestlemania 40 live in
Philly live on peacock April 6th April
7th don't miss it thanks again thank you
let me help you with these got a lot I'm
going to need a bigger
[Music]
vehicle
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