A WWE star has revealed that creative changes made by Shawn Michaels initially left them feeling a sense of frustration.
Signed through WWE Next In Line (NIL) in 2021, Oba Femi made his on-screen debut in November the following year and has gone on to hold the NXT Championship and North American Championship.
A main roster call-up earlier this year now sees him on course to face Brock Lesnar at WWE WrestleMania 42 in April.
Appearing on the recent episode of What’s Your Story? With Steph McMahon, the former track and field athlete spoke about the parallels between art and wrestling.
Speaking about frustration when artistic pursuits wouldn’t go how he planned them, Femi revealed he learned how the story would occasionally have to change to fit specific circumstances that may be beyond his direct control.
McMahon would then ask if Femi thought perfectionism was a path for WWE stars, with Femi sharing past frustrations, saying:
“You can but I don’t think that’s going to work. You will be very frustrated, and I learned that lesson quickly. Here in NXT, when I was in developmental, I would come up with these matches and come up with these elaborate finishes and stuff like that, and Shawn would always change it.
“It used to eat at me at first. He knows where we’re going after this, I don’t know where we’re going after this. So, you kind of have to just lend yourself as a tool to make the art come to life and be ok where it goes.”
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With co-host Elyse Dudzinski noting that this meant that Femi was putting a lot of trust in Michaels, the main roster star would reflect:
“Yeah, that’s reassuring trust. He’s Shawn Michaels. If there’s anyone that’s going to tell me what to do, please, it’s him.
“But you have to square with that in yourself, in your own mind and be like I’m willing and able to take this where it needs to and has to go.”
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McMahon would explore the possibility of patterns in what Femi was trying to do and whether he was constantly encountering the “same wall” to his progress, with the star stating:
“No, I can’t say I tried the same thing over and over. I’m one of those people who’s like, depending on the situation, I know which route to take. Whether that’s the best route or not, I don’t know, but it’s my route.
“At the end of the day, I’m like okay, whatever I have in mind, I have to put that to the side. This is what Shawn wants and I will give him what he wants. That’s part of being a student of the game.
“Sometimes I would ask him what he’s looking for and then go draft something, and if he still doesn’t like it, that’s fine too, but that’s part of the learning process.
“Seeing where his mind is at, what direction he’s trying to go and learning from him because I don’t know how to book wrestling, I’m not a booker but it’s an important skill to learn, I feel.
“I feel like a lot of guys are like, ‘Make me champion, do this for me, do that for me.’ But they don’t even understand the patterns and the way in which the booking works. The why. So, I just lend myself to Shawn and let him take me where I’m needing to be.”
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Having held two championships in NXT, Femi would also discuss the pressure of being a WWE star, reflecting on his shotputting career and lessons he learned from coaches for tackling that mindset.
Shawn Michaels Leads The Way In WWE NXT
The Senior Vice President of Talent Development, Shawn Michaels has run WWE NXT since September 2021, with his executive role expanding to add ‘Creative’ the following year.
Following in the footsteps of Triple H, who founded the ‘developmental’ brand, NXT has continued to deliver weekly wrestling action, having started as a scripted reality television show in 2010.
Michaels maintains an occasional on-screen presence in NXT, following the template started by his fellow Hall of Famer, with Robert Stone acting as the interim general manager, a role that may become permanent if former GM William Regal follows up on his recent comment.
Currently airing on The CW in the United States, NXT’s roster find their way to the main roster through regular call-ups, with Femi being a recently example of that progression.
With WrestleMania 42 just around the corner, and an NXT roster with the pick of stars from WWE ID, the potential for further call-ups in April of this year exists, as does introducing new stars for the Tuesday night show.
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