AEW’s Rebel Heart edition of Dynamite was already going to be an emotional night because the show was built around Tanea “Rebel” Brooks and her battle with ALS. Then Ringside News broke the news that Andy Williams died just days before the September 9 broadcast, turning an already heavy night into something the commentary team had to somehow navigate live on television.
During an appearance on the Battleground Podcast, Tony Schiavone opened up about what it was like sitting behind the commentary desk with all of that happening at once. Schiavone explained that he has spent his career learning how to block out outside emotions when the cameras come on and focus on the job in front of him.
“Well, I think I’ve always been able to shut things out. I’m an emotional person, but I’m not a very over-the-top emotional person. Unless it comes to my dogs. But I’ve always been the type of person to shut things out and know that I’ve got a job to do and try to focus on that.”
Schiavone said that ability goes all the way back to the beginning of his television career. He recalled coming into wrestling after working minor league baseball and said nerves in front of a camera were never really an issue for him.
“It goes back to this too, Tim. When I first started doing TV, you know, I was just a minor league baseball announcer that the Crockett happened to like and pushed me into wrestling. Well, I lobbied for it hard because I was a wrestling fan and you couldn’t make a living off minor league baseball. So anyway, it goes back to this. I never ever have been nervous ever in front of the camera back when I was fresh out of college. All that stuff.”
That mindset has allowed Schiavone to stay locked into what is happening in the ring even when circumstances around a show get difficult. He said his love for wrestling is real, but he has learned how to push other emotions aside while he is working.
“I’ve always kind of been focused on what I have to do. And I’m such a big fan of wrestling that what I see in the ring I genuinely enjoy. So I’ve been able to kind of, you know, push all that to the side.”
Rebel Heart was different. Schiavone saw Rebel backstage that night, and he admitted that seeing the reality of her condition hit him hard.
“Now, if you saw the show that we did at Rebel Heart out of Athens, Georgia last Wednesday, you know that we did have a—there was a lot of emotions. I saw Rebel in the back and, you know, it’s startling to see, you know, how sick she is now and based on what a wonderful, vibrant young lady she was at one time.”
The September 9 episode was specifically built around Rebel following her ALS diagnosis, with AEW bringing back The Waiting Room alongside Britt Baker and giving Rebel several moments throughout the broadcast. Ringside News’ coverage of AEW Rebel Heart Dynamite also documented the emotional atmosphere surrounding the show.
Williams’ death made things even harder. The former AEW star known as The Butcher died at 48 after collapsing during an independent wrestling event on September 5. AEW opened Rebel Heart Dynamite with an in-memoriam graphic for Williams, and the emotion became impossible to hide once Excalibur began talking about his friend on commentary. Schiavone recalled watching Excalibur break down as he tried to speak about Williams.
“And then Andy, who we all love, passed away. And if you watched it, Excalibur talking about Andy started crying. It just broke apart. And he did the same thing when Brody died many years ago.”
Ringside News previously covered Excalibur breaking down in tears while paying tribute to Andy Williams during the broadcast. His voice cracked while discussing Williams before he eventually began crying on commentary. Schiavone said that while Excalibur couldn’t hold those emotions back, he has always had a different mechanism when he is working. He believes his ability to keep himself together during difficult moments may actually be one reason he has lasted so long behind the microphone.
“He couldn’t hold his emotions back. I can do that. And I think that I think that’s one of the things that may have helped me in my career. Although, I like to think that my emotions are pretty high in my love of wrestling. And those emotions come across when I call matches.”
None of that meant Schiavone was unaffected. He made it clear Rebel Heart was difficult because the commentary team still had an entire wrestling show to sell while their minds were somewhere else entirely.
“So, it was a difficult night. I’m going to be honest with you, it was a difficult night because we’re doing these matches. We’re trying to put the guys over. We’re thinking about Rebel. We’re thinking about Andy and we had to differentiate the two.”
That sums up just how brutal the situation was behind the desk. AEW was trying to celebrate Rebel while she continues her battle with ALS, mourn Williams only days after his death, and still put on a live wrestling show. Schiavone may have kept his composure on camera, but by his own admission, that didn’t make the night any easier to get through.
What did you think about the way AEW and its commentary team handled such an emotional night at Rebel Heart Dynamite? Leave your feedback in the comments below.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
