WrestleMania weekend is always packed with events. There are indie pro wrestling shows going on, and other fan conventions. WaleMania went down at the Philadelphia at Franklin Music Hall on April 4, and there are a ton of highlights.

Since its first show in 2015, WaleMania has combined hip-hop and wrestling. It stands apart from other events during WrestleMania weekend, serving as a gathering where fans and wrestlers come together, and every year it’s usually the best party all weekend. 

Pro wrestlers from practically every company on the planet linked up for WaleMania this year. As you can see, it was quite a party, and there are many highlights to feature.

WaleMania 2024 Highlights

First off, we have to give Samantha Irvine all the flowers for this one. She not only rocked Razor Ramon’s theme music, but she did it on a flute. 

Samantha Irvin, singing and playing a flute to razor Ramon’s theme was not in our bingo card today. pic.twitter.com/7geSUH2XPF

— SEScoops (@sescoops) April 5, 2024

Rob Van Dam was there, smoking on stage, alongside Katie Forbes. It was quite a party as the crowd fed into the performance on stage, who were having just as much fun as the fans.

?ROB VAN DAM #Walemania #WrestleMania pic.twitter.com/G84PyaJv9f

— Damian Walker | "Showtime2Wavy" | Unrivaled (@2WavyWrestling) April 5, 2024

R-Truth was present at WaleMania, and he gave fans in attendance a different kind of show than they’re used to seeing from him. He grabbed the microphone and spit some fire bars for the fans.

Don’t forget @RonKillings really be rapping out here #Walemania pic.twitter.com/YKsiGZLTiC

— Papa Worm ??? (@Aye_Yo_Worm) April 5, 2024

Although he’s not booked for WrestleMania, WWE Hall of Famer RVD was also present. NXT Superstar Kelani Jordan couldn’t resist the opportunity to snap a photo with the Whole F’n Show.

Two of a kind ??#Walemania pic.twitter.com/AjMmWmotwY

— Kelani Jordan (@kelani_wwe) April 5, 2024

Big E couldn’t miss WaleMania, either. The New Day member cut one of his trademark promos for fans, where he introduced Wale. As you can see in the clip, Trick Williams was there as well, and he had a wonderful time ahead of his main event match at NXT: Stand & Deliver against Carmelo Hayes.

#WaleMania pic.twitter.com/Svy31Yc95J

— ? ?????? ? (@itsJustinRitch) April 5, 2024

Zilla Fatu didn’t miss the show, either. He was there in attendance at WaleMania, and he had a great time. As you can see in the video below, he also spent some time on the stage.

#Walemania zilla fatu at walemania? @Zillafatu pic.twitter.com/7oyral01ZK

— ??????????????????????? (@JayBands24) April 5, 2024

Although it was all fun at WaleMania, things did get a big tense as Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes had a chance to trade some words on stage.

Yooo @Carmelo_WWE and @_trickwilliams bout to squabble at #Walemania ??? pic.twitter.com/juX7NLPXOl

— Jeff Johnson (@JeffJSays) April 5, 2024

Kiera Hogan stunned the crowd with her dancing skills. Willow Nightingale didn’t miss WaleMania, either, as the two AEW stars had a great time on stage in front of the live crowd.

Where else can you party with @willowwrestles and @HoganKnowsBest3 than #WaleMania pic.twitter.com/OoWQ2OmeHG

— Brian H. Waters (@brianhwaters) April 5, 2024

Grammy-nominated rapper Wale joins the commentary team for tonight’s edition of 205 Live on the WWE Network.  Wale will call the action alongside Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness and Percy Watson. At this time, it’s unclear if this is a one-off appearance.

Wale is a longtime WWE fan. Fans might remember the Washington D.C. native hosted a rap battle between The Usos and The New Day last year (video below).

For the past 4 years, Wale and MLW have hosted WaleMania, the official kickoff party for WrestleMania weekend. WaleMania V is scheduled for Thursday, April 4th, 2019.

Tonight’s edition of 205 Live will feature Buddy Murphy and Tony Nese vs the Lucha House Party and Noam Dar vs TJP.

Wale hosts Rap Battle between The New Day and The Usos (2017): 

AJ Styles had strong praise for Chad Gable after their match on this week’s SmackDown Live. Styles picked up the victory, but declared Gable as last night’s real winner.

@WWEGable is scary good. I've got 10+ years experience on the guy and he gave me all I could handle. Last nights real winner…#wweuniverse

— AJ Styles (@AJStylesOrg) July 5, 2017

Gable later replied,

It's scary how motivating a night like last night is for a guy like me.

Thanks for bringing it, @AJStylesOrg… but I'll be back for more. pic.twitter.com/U8CpfI4BYL

— Chad Gable (@WWEGable) July 5, 2017

Gable appeared on SmackDown Live Fallout and commented on his future in WWE, whether it’s part of American Alpha or going off on his own as a singles competitor. Gable said he’s looking to challenge himself by wrestling the best talent WWE has to offer. He’s not discouraged about losing to Styles, since he lost a lot of matches during his amateur wrestling career and it was those losses that helped drive him to the success he ultimately attained.

When asked about the future of American Alpha, Chad Gable said he and Jason Jordan are hungry for competition. They had a run with the SmackDown tag titles, but have since been bumped down the ladder. He says Jason Jordan will soon prove what he can do as a singles competitor, but made it sound like the two of them will continue teaming together while also showing what they can do individually.

– After hosting the rap battle between The Usos and The New Day on SmackDown, Grammy nominated hip-hop artist Wale signed with Titus Worldwide on 205 Live.

Triple H is amongst the celebrities who make cameo appearances on rapper Wale’s new mixtape, Summer on Sunset. The 17-track mixtape, which you can listen to above, was inspired by his last summer in Los Angeles. Track 16, titled SmackDown/RAW, features clips of Jim Ross’ commentary and an “outro” by The Game.

https://twitter.com/Wale/status/743987037586415617

dat boy @wale got 'Triple H' on his tape ??

— Yung Rénzél ? (@RickRoss) June 18, 2016

Glad I could be a part of it. Best of luck on the west coast @Wale… #SeeYouAtStaples #BlessUp https://t.co/E9NVVeLf9S

— Triple H (@TripleH) June 18, 2016

The whole #mmg squad coming back thru @TripleH !! @wale

— Yung Rénzél ? (@RickRoss) June 18, 2016

https://twitter.com/Wale/status/744004866339528704

Rapper Wale is interested in getting into the pro wrestling business as a promoter and reached out to fellow artist Rick Ross over the weekend in an effort to make it happen.

Wale, who was backstage at RAW last month and recently told TMZ that he wants to work for WWE, doesn’t sound like he’s playing around. He’s got a vision for his dream company, which includes signing the likes of The Young Bucks, Ricochet, Will Ospreay, Moose, ACH and The Briscoe Brothers.

Wale even included Jim Ross in his tweets assured people that he knows he’d have to hire some bright wrestling minds to handle the creative side of the operation.

https://twitter.com/Wale/status/703778010181328896

https://twitter.com/Wale/status/703779616134135808

https://twitter.com/Wale/status/703777797014216704

https://twitter.com/Wale/status/703780471503720448

https://twitter.com/Wale/status/703793738557038597

– WWE Studios and Blumhouse Productions have acquired the rights to the movie Sleight, a dramatic thriller that just premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. The Hollywood Reporter has a detailed writeup of the movie and got this synopsis:

“Written by Dillard and Alex Theurer, the film centers on a young street magician who is left to care for his little sister after his mother’s passing and turns to drug dealing in the L.A. party scene to keep a roof over their heads. When he gets into trouble with his supplier, his sister is kidnapped and he is forced to rely on both his sleight of hand and brilliant mind to save her.”

– Rapper Wale wants to work for WWE. He was backstage at RAW from Miami and told TMZ, “I actually want to work there, and I don’t know if [Vince and Triple H] heard about good Wale or bad Wale. Or if they even know what a Wale is.”

The Washington D.C. native is a huge fan but thought he got blackballed by WWE after getting into an altercation with a fan at a live show back in 2014. Everything has been smoothed over and he was hanging with Triple H, Vince, The Rock and others in Miami. A WWE rep told TMZ he was never blackballed.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BA_FFIBtOwo/?taken-by=wale

https://www.instagram.com/p/BA8uPJbtO40/?taken-by=wale

– Summer Rae reportedly took a shot at Lana on Twitter after the angle she did with Rusev on Monday night’s edition oRAW in Chicago, Illinois. She wrote that after what she did on RAW, Lana is finally “relevant again,” a comment Rosa Mendes was more than willing to agree with publicly. You can check out Summer and Rosa’s comments below.

@RealSummerWWE @LanaWWE amen ???

— MilenaRoucka (@LaRosaMendes) October 13, 2015

– Chris Jericho mentioned on social media that he has been working on new music with hip-hop star and noted WWE super fan Wale. Jericho posted the following photo of the two together recently on his official Instagram page.

https://instagram.com/p/8wu3B1mDk_/

As we reported earlier, the WWE announced today that AJ Lee has retired from in-ring competition. Since the announcement, WWE employees (both past and present), as well as thousands of fans have commented on the situation. Here is a sampling of tweets that have been sent out since the announcement.

#ThankYouAJ

— player/coach (@CMPunk) April 3, 2015

Big loss 4 the Divas Division 2day. Wish @WWEAJLee the absolute best! Want 2 c who wants 2 take the Champ on..Train harder..Ready 4 anything

— Nikki & Brie (@NikkiAndBrie) April 4, 2015

https://twitter.com/realmickfoley/status/584115638135820290

While not 'shocked' to hear of @WWEAJLee leaving @WWE, I will miss her work. She lived a dream & went out on her terms. #ThankYouAJ

— Jim Ross (@JRsBBQ) April 4, 2015

Thank you Aj for giving me my 1st televised singles match and my 1st title match! Wishing you all the best of luck in whatever you do! ?

— Ariane Andrew (@ArianeAndrew) April 4, 2015

https://twitter.com/Wale/status/584122448091688960

Share your thoughts on AJ Lee’s retirement in the comments section.

As reported on Sunday, Rey Mysterio, who recently parted ways with WWE, will be taking part in a WrestleMania-week party on March 26th in San Jose, California with Konnan and hip-hop artist Wale.

Below is the official press release with more details on the party:

For Immediate Release

REY MYSTERIO AND WALE COMING TO SAN JOSE ON MARCH 26TH FOR WALEMANIA FEATURING A MAJOR REY MYSTERIO INTERVIEW, FAN Q&A AND PARTY WITH A LIVE PERFORMANCE BY WALE

San Jose, CA (March 2nd, 2015) – REY MYSTERIO is coming to San Jose on Thursday March 26th with his friends to talk about his trailblazing career and what’s next in a live interview before the audience. Mysterio will also participate in a fan Q&A and there will also be a one of a kind VIP cocktail party where you can chill with Rey Mysterio and friends. If that wasn’t enough, Grammy-nominated artist WALE will bring the house down with a special live performance as he presents WaleMania on Thursday night March 26th at Taste Nightclub at 2909 Lakeside Drive in Santa Clara, CA 95054.

WaleMania is your official landing party for a weekend celebrating professional wrestling. Tickets start at $20 and are on sale now exclusively at www.WaleMania.com and www.TheTicketGroup.com.

Mysterio will speak candidly with his best friend Konnan, ex-WWE Creative Executive Court Bauer and MSL of MLW Radio about his meteoric rise from Mexico to the global grappling phenomenon he is today…. and what’s next.
The After Party will feature a sneak preview of Wale’s highly anticipated new album, The Album About Nothing, with a special performance by the artist. Wale collaborated with Jerry Seinfeld for this high concept album that comes out March 31st.

Event Information:

– 6:30 – 7:30pm: VIP only cocktail party with Rey Mysterio featuring a Don Julio sponsored complimentary open bar and hors d’oeuvres
– 8 – 10pm: Rey Mysterio interview with MLW Radio and fan Q & A
– 10pm – closing: After Party featuring with Rey Mysterio and friends plus a special live performance by Wale performing songs from his new album dropping March 31st, The Album About Nothing.

VIP ticket holders attend an exclusive pre-show cocktail party with Rey Mysterio featuring complimentary drinks and hors d’oeuvres for VIP ticket holders. VIP ticket holders are guaranteed seats for the live Rey Mysterio interview with MLW Radio featuring a fan Q&A. VIP ticket holders have access to the After Party with Mysterio and friends featuring a special live performance by Wale.

General Admission ticket holders will see the live Rey Mysterio interview with MLW Radio and can participate in the Q & A as well as the After Party with Rey Mysterio and friends featuring a live performance by Wale.
Buy tickets exclusively at www.WaleMania.com and www.TheTicketGroup.com.

Don’t miss a legendary night of rap and ‘rasslin. Join Wale, Rey Mysterio and friends and celebrate wrestling with the hottest party of the weekend!

WaleMania is an Every Blue Moon and Court Bauer concept.

Learn more about Wale and his new album, The Album About Nothing, dropping March 31st at: http://www.WaleMusic.com.

Check out The Album About Nothing trailer at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmQ7a5kpr28& and The Vlog About Nothing (Episode 2): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7EaMeTk-U8.

MLW Radio is a weekly top ranked podcast on iTunes hosted by Konnan of the hit El Rey Network series Lucha Underground, producer and former WWE Creative Executive Court Bauer and Mister Saint Laurent!

Learn more about MLW Radio at: www.MLWRadio.com and on twitter @MLW.
Learn more about Taste Nightclub: http://tasteonline.biz/nightclub
Taste Nightclub is located at 2909 Lakeside Drive in Santa Clara, CA 95054.

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– The El Rey Network will be airing a Lucha Underground marathon tonight, featuring eight hours worth of shows, beginning at 4pm EST.

– Hip-hop artist Wale, who is friends with Paul Heyman and is a Washington D.C. native, was in attendance at Monday’s RAW.

– Several NXT talents sent congratulatory messages to The Ascension after their in-ring debut for the main WWE roster on RAW. Paige noted that she actually went out into the arena to watch their match.

The Washington Post has an article up on their website today featuring comments from hip-hop artist, noted WWE fan and recently confirmed “Paul Heyman Guy” Wale talking about his feelings on the current WWE product during a recent interview with HOT 97 radio out of New York.

“It’s been bad, man,” said Wale. “You think it will get better, but then you see the top stars, Roman’s hurt, Bryan’s hurt. What do you do?”

Wale continued, “It almost seems like they’re throwing in the towel.”

You can check out the complete interview above.

BRAND NEW: HOT AJ Lee Photo Gallery JUST ADDED! [View Here >>]

Jared St. Laurent from MLW sent along the following …

WHO IS PAUL HEYMAN MENTORING FROM THE WORLD OF HIP HOP?

On today’s episode of MLW Radio (www.MLWradio.com), top recording hip hop artist Wale, who just released a new single called ‘The Body’ stopped by to talk his two passions in life: pro wrestling and music.

Wale has been a fixture at major WWE events for years. During the course of the conversation with Konnan and Court Bauer, Wale revealed that he’s been recently sitting under the learning tree of prolific wrestling mind Paul Heyman:

“He’s a smart guy. He gets it…. He knows the game. It’s always good to get advice from guys like that. He’s been so influential on so many guys’ careers.”

Wale is hard at work on his next album, “The Album About Nothing,” which features comedian Jerry Seinfeld. ‘The Body’ is currently available at www.walemusic.com, iTunes and AmazonMP3.

MLW Radio is available for free on www.MLWradio.com and iTunes, with new episodes released each and every Monday.

As previously reported, rapper Wale was involved in a physical altercation in the crowd at this past Monday’s WrestleMania XXX “go-home” edition of WWE RAW, which took place in the rapper’s hometown of Washington, D.C.

Following the incident, Wale spoke to MTV to explain the story behind the scuffle. It was just a dude that was like, ‘I’mma kick your ass. I better not see you here,'” the rapper told MTV News on Tuesday.

“I was like, ‘Yo, is this you?’ And one thing lead to another, and I just kind of mushed him a little bit,” said Wale. “Honestly, if there wasn’t kids right there, it would have went a little bit differently, but I just wanted to be conscious of them. It’s not to say it was the right decision. But in the moment, you know.” “People get it misconstrued,” he went on. “Like, ‘Oh, you’re so butt-hurt.’ It’s not even that. I come from a place where when we was at the lunch table and n—as was jonesing on each other, I’ll respond. I’m gonna have something better, too. And now we’ve come to a place where, if you respond, you’re a bitch. Somebody could say ‘F— you’ 100 times, if I say ‘f— you’ back, then I’m a bitch. And people be like, ‘You’re famous, you shouldn’t care.’ ”

Wale concluded, “I care what people say because I try to be a man of the people. I just don’t understand, [in] society, why we champion people like that in this day and age. I remember when people used to admire real people that stand behind their words or are stand-up men. I come from that. I had to address him as such. It wasn’t nothing really serious.”

Check out the complete article at MTV.com.

Rapper Wale got into a physical altercation with a fan at Monday’s WWE RAW from Washington D.C.

According to TMZ, Wale was sitting ringside by the announcers table and was heckled by a fan. An eye witness told TMZ that Wale eventually out of his seat and “the next thing I know Wale is putting the smackdown on dude. Punched him dead in his face. It was a full fight.”

Security immediately rushed over and broke up the fight and took everyone outside of the main arena.

Both Wale and the fan eventually returned to their seats.

According to Wale, the fan he fought was threatening him. He tweeted on Monday night:

@MrBusby4o8 several times.. I don't understand the standards that I'm supposed to live by.. If I knew I honestly would adjust somethings

— Wale Folarin (@Wale) April 1, 2014

@bomani_jones I know not what u speak of brother Bomani I'm just watching the wrasselers wrassle

— Wale Folarin (@Wale) April 1, 2014

@al_uminati everybody can tell u how to live when they not in ur shoes.. U gon let somebody threaten u repeatedly ?

— Wale Folarin (@Wale) April 1, 2014

@BrandNewGuyx somebody threaten u . What u gon do? U throw around "soft" cuz I defend myself .backwards

— Wale Folarin (@Wale) April 1, 2014