Before becoming a rising WWE star, Damian Priest ran a popular strip club in New Jersey.
“It was a good job, very well paid, including an apartment on the promenade in which Al Capone apparently lived, and a free vehicle. I was ready,” said Priest, who will perform on Monday Night Raw at Madison Square Garden.
Before hitting the biggest stage in wrestling, the 39-year-old Bronx native, real name Luis Martínez, ran the Stiletto Gentlemen’s Club in Atlantic City.
He threw in the towel in 2012 when one of the club’s owners asked him to choose between the club and his job at the time: wrestling.
“I don’t know why, at that time, it was instinctive… Now, doing this and not really having anything, I was like, ‘Oh no, what did I just do? And that’s when I changed my life,” he said.
The road to professional wrestling was a tough one for the 6-foot-5 powerhouse that included a 100-pound weight loss, eviction notices and days he couldn’t afford to eat.
“It was brutal for a while… You make little to no money, you just hope to get a handshake and a hot dog sometimes and that’s it,” he said.
That struggle and hard work paid off when he signed with World Wrestling Entertainment in 2018. But Priest never forgets his roots, especially when he returns to fight in the Garden.
“My dad used to take me to every event WWE would have at Madison Square Garden,” he said. “That’s when I literally, I knew I had to do this with my life. I wanted that feeling, to see the crowd and hear it and feel the electricity in the air.
After the show at MSG, Priest – who lived in the Bronx until the age of one and spent part of her childhood in Puerto Rico before returning to Boogie Down at the age of 10 – will extend his journey to visit his family and friends in his native town.
While there, he goes to his favorite restaurant, Made in Puerto Rico, where he orders trifongo, a signature island vegetable dish.
He will even jump on the subway from time to time. “I put on my Clark Kent outfits and fit in as best I can,” he said with a laugh.
But fans still recognize it.
“Especially if it’s a Puerto Rican fan, they’re grateful that I’m representing the island and the culture,” he said. “And still, New Yorkers are like, ‘Yo, keep representing New York.’ They are grateful to have someone who is proud of where they come from.
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