Carmelo Hayes Had A Michael Jackson Gimmick, Says It Made Him Comfortable Playing Characters

Carmelo Hayes used to wrestle as a Michael Jackson impersonator.

The former NXT Champion took part in a heated feud with Trick Williams over WrestleMania weekend. However, that was a far cry from his days moonwalking and “heeheeing” in the ring, dressed as one of the all-time great musicians.

Carmelo Hayes spoke with MuscleManMaclolm after WrestleMania 40. He talked about his Michael Jackson gimmick on the indies, and how it made him feel more comfortable in the ring.

Once he had spent time with the character, he became able to craft his own that was more true to himself.

“The Thriller of New England. I remember my coach was like, ‘You need something. You need to be something”. And I was like, ‘I don’t know’. So he was like, ‘Well, what do you like?’. I was like, ‘I don’t know. This, this. I like Michael Jackson’. Then I did a moonwalk or something and he goes, ‘Well, yeah. Play him that’. And I was like, ‘Alright’. I needed an identity, so I remember doing that kind of identity, and I kind of got stuck in it for a year and some change. And then finally I found myself, but it was really to get my feet wet. I used to tell people that all the time. Just to get my feet wet and just get comfortable being a character. Then, after that, I became more true to me.”