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Zema Ion spoke with Marcus Dowling of Do Androids Dance about his new DJ character in TNA (inspired by his real-life background). Below are the highlights:
How did your return as a DJ come to pass?
"I told TNA a year ago that I was trying to be a DJ. They thought it was cool, but it was left there. They didn’t understand it, but they kept hearing more and more about my development. Recently, they did a segment on TV where Robbie E and Jessie Godderz were celebrating their tag team title win and had a DJ with them in the ring. After the segment was over, they loved the idea of them with a DJ, but not the DJ they had that night. He didn’t look the part. They liked the idea of the Bro Mans with their own DJ.
"Robbie E mentioned to the TNA office staff 'hey, maybe we should use Zema Ion. He is an actual DJ.' TNA replied 'oh that’s right, we knew that!' Robbie, Jessie, and I have similar personalities, so me teaming with them is a no-brainer. This past weekend they gave it a test run. They gave me little direction, and it was creatively in my hands. Eventually I’ll have my own custom DJ booth, and I got them to install lighting based off of the lighting at Echostage in DC. They’re totally behind this. They feel like whatever makes this look authentic is what they want."
What led to you want to become a DJ?
"In 2012 I was on the road with TNA and I had just moved to Washington, DC with my girlfriend at the time, and I was bored. When I was not on the road, I was just sitting at home. I’d go to the gym, which would take an hour and a half out of my day, and while my girlfriend was at work, I’d be at home seeing Mark [DJ Subset] constantly posting pictures of DJing parties in New York City. I asked him how he did this, and he went to Dubspot, a DJ school in New York City. I was motivated by this so I Googled DJ schools in Washington, DC and I came upon the Beat Refinery. One of the two schools in the area was 10 minutes away from where I was living, so I took it as a sign that this was meant to be. I grew up watching professional wrestling and MTV since the age of three, so I wanted to be involved in music for as long as I could remember!"
What about your DJing do you feel best motivated your development as a professional wrestler now that you’re back in TNA?
"When I started DJing, I thought at first that 'this is going to be really good for wrestling.' Everyone in wrestling comes from a different background. Whether it is from wrestling on the independent circuit, the NFL, reality television, bodybuilding, or being a supermodel. I thought that if I really do good and develop at DJing that maybe this could be something to set me apart, a background for me that isn’t just being an independent professional wrestler."
How would you best describe the character of DJ Zema Ion, the character you’re now playing for TNA?
"They want me to be this over the top and obnoxious DJ. So I basically try to channel every stereotype that I can think of that would make a DJ annoying. We did a backstage segment where I named every annoying cliche in the dance music world that’s required to be a superstar DJ, including only playing songs off the Beatport Top 100 and having rave girls with green hair and severe daddy issues. That type of stuff. My character is to play a DJ that thinks he gets it, but really doesn’t have a clue of what he’s talking about. That’s basically what the whole character is."
How did your return as a DJ come to pass?
"I told TNA a year ago that I was trying to be a DJ. They thought it was cool, but it was left there. They didn’t understand it, but they kept hearing more and more about my development. Recently, they did a segment on TV where Robbie E and Jessie Godderz were celebrating their tag team title win and had a DJ with them in the ring. After the segment was over, they loved the idea of them with a DJ, but not the DJ they had that night. He didn’t look the part. They liked the idea of the Bro Mans with their own DJ.
"Robbie E mentioned to the TNA office staff 'hey, maybe we should use Zema Ion. He is an actual DJ.' TNA replied 'oh that’s right, we knew that!' Robbie, Jessie, and I have similar personalities, so me teaming with them is a no-brainer. This past weekend they gave it a test run. They gave me little direction, and it was creatively in my hands. Eventually I’ll have my own custom DJ booth, and I got them to install lighting based off of the lighting at Echostage in DC. They’re totally behind this. They feel like whatever makes this look authentic is what they want."
What led to you want to become a DJ?
"In 2012 I was on the road with TNA and I had just moved to Washington, DC with my girlfriend at the time, and I was bored. When I was not on the road, I was just sitting at home. I’d go to the gym, which would take an hour and a half out of my day, and while my girlfriend was at work, I’d be at home seeing Mark [DJ Subset] constantly posting pictures of DJing parties in New York City. I asked him how he did this, and he went to Dubspot, a DJ school in New York City. I was motivated by this so I Googled DJ schools in Washington, DC and I came upon the Beat Refinery. One of the two schools in the area was 10 minutes away from where I was living, so I took it as a sign that this was meant to be. I grew up watching professional wrestling and MTV since the age of three, so I wanted to be involved in music for as long as I could remember!"
What about your DJing do you feel best motivated your development as a professional wrestler now that you’re back in TNA?
"When I started DJing, I thought at first that 'this is going to be really good for wrestling.' Everyone in wrestling comes from a different background. Whether it is from wrestling on the independent circuit, the NFL, reality television, bodybuilding, or being a supermodel. I thought that if I really do good and develop at DJing that maybe this could be something to set me apart, a background for me that isn’t just being an independent professional wrestler."
How would you best describe the character of DJ Zema Ion, the character you’re now playing for TNA?
"They want me to be this over the top and obnoxious DJ. So I basically try to channel every stereotype that I can think of that would make a DJ annoying. We did a backstage segment where I named every annoying cliche in the dance music world that’s required to be a superstar DJ, including only playing songs off the Beatport Top 100 and having rave girls with green hair and severe daddy issues. That type of stuff. My character is to play a DJ that thinks he gets it, but really doesn’t have a clue of what he’s talking about. That’s basically what the whole character is."
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