WWE's Kayla Braxton Discusses The Difficulties Of Being A Ring Announcer

When it comes to televising wrestling matches, several things factor into making a show flow perfectly. Pre-match, several employees have to make sure the presentation is right, with ring announcers playing a crucial role. This is something Kayla Braxton did in her early stages with WWE. In a recent episode of Chris Van Vliet's "Insight" podcast, Braxton discussed her time as a ring announcer, as well as the difficulties she had with it.

"When I came in, I was a ring announcer," Braxton said. "People tend to forget that I ring announced for my first several years. I hated it so much." Braxton believes that current WWE ring announcer Samantha Irvin does a sensational job in the role.

"[Samantha] is going to be historical for this company," Kayla said. "People don't give ring announcers the credit they deserve a lot of times because they are just this voice of God. That is the hardest job I've ever held. When I say that, it's not because it's not a great gig, but it terrified me." Braxton says that she's better suited to in-studio appearances, as live performance in front of an audience causes her anxiety.

"I have extreme stage fright in front of people. Like, that's a fact," Braxton exclaimed. "I have a hard time with people. Then you have to memorize all those things like the weights, the hometowns, the monikers, everything. It's just a lot to put on the ring announcer and they make it look so freakin easy." 

As difficult as it was, Braxton kept pushing and eventually found her niche with WWE, including a role as one of the hosts of "The Bump." Braxton felt that she thrived once she found herself on the popular YouTube show.

"I made it clear that I'm a journalist at heart," Braxton explained. "Then when the opportunity came up for 'The Bump,' they came to me and asked me if I wanted to host it, and then that revived my career here."