All Elite Wrestling’s Shawn Spears has shared big plans for the rest of his 2020. AEW’s resident “Chair Man” discussed his intentions during a recent interview. He also opened up about his thoughts on the importance of talent being given creative freedom, something he believes AEW provides its roster.
Shawn Spears’ 2020 Goal
One 2020 goal stands out more than others for him: to be more challenged. He explained how, with the help of Tully Blanchard, he wants to evolve and challenge himself as a performer. He wants to be put into situations where he can “rise to the occasion” and how the responsibility currently lies with him to do so.
“[…] there’s no one to blame but me if something works or doesn’t work and I love that. I thrive on that environment, that’s when I feel most alive, especially in this industry so that part I’m looking forward to the most,” Spears explained to Wrestlezone. “In terms of personally, I just hit 18 years in January at wrestling. I’ve always said that if I can make 20 years in-ring, anything beyond that is just a cherry on top, so 2020 I’m looking to challenging and healthy so hopefully if I can do two of those things, I’m pretty sure it’s going to be a good year for me.”
Creative Freedom
When it comes to creative freedoms, Shawn Spears noted how AEW don’t micromanage their performers. He conceded that there are people in place who make the final decision, but that the talent still has freedom “in the palm of their hands” to create and display the performance they want. It’s an aspect he called a “very, very, very rare and beautiful thing” in pro wrestling.
He stressed how not everybody needs a push or title opportunity. According to him, people that make it all about these elements are missing the point entirely. “All talent needs is credibility and the freedom to create. That is all. That’s what will make the talent happy, that’s what makes me happy to this day.”
Spears continued, “I maybe wrestle once or twice a week, I have all the freedom in the world, I have all the time in the world, and that is something that any kind of artist, whether you paint on canvas, whether you write in a novel, or whether you perform in sports, that’s all we can ask for is that creative freedom to hopefully show an audience something a small piece of ourselves so whether they like it or not it’s a different story, but at the end of the day, that’s all we ask for.”
Shawn Spears is currently on the hunt for a tag team partner in AEW. He has partnered with several wrestlers in his efforts to find the perfect partner but has yet to find that elusive person. He lost a match with Colin Delaney to the team of Best Friends during last night’s episode of AEW: Dark.
H/T to Wrestlezone for the transcription.
