Interviews

Published on August 21st, 2022 | by Darren Paltrowitz

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Billy Corgan On “NWA 74,” The Success Of The National Wrestling Alliance, His Run-Ins With Comedy & Music Greats, Goals & More

Founded in 1948, the National Wrestling Alliance — or NWA, for short — is one of the oldest and most prestigious professional wrestling brands in the world. In 2017, GRAMMY-winning international recording artist and producer William Patrick Corgan (a.k.a. Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins) purchased the NWA with the intention of reinventing the brand for the modern era whilst still honoring the legacy of its heyday in the 1980s. Beginning with the critically-acclaimed Ten Pounds Of Gold docu-series, the NWA has since expanded its programming to include two weekly broadcasts (NWA Powerrr and NWA USA) and six annual pay-per-views. All of those events and more are available via NWA All Access, the company’s paid subscription service via Triller’s FITE streaming platform; replays of NWA Powerrr are available for free on the NWA YouTube Channel Friday evenings while NWA USA is available for free via the NWA YouTube Channel at 12pm EST on Saturdays.

On August 27 and 28, 2022, the NWA will continue to honor the history of its storied 74 years existence by returning to St. Louis for NWA 74, a two-day, pay-per-view event and arguably NWA’s biggest event of 2022; NWA 74 will air live on the FITE TV streaming platform for $39.99 for both nights, as a stand-alone purchase, and via the earlier-referenced $49.99 NWA All Access annual pass. As part of NWA Outreach — the company’s ongoing effort to help the communities it travels to — the NWA recently announced that it was offering complimentary tickets to some of the patients at the St. Louis Children’s Hospital and their families. In conjunction with this, on the morning of August 27, 2022, a group of NWA stars will visit patients and their families at the hospital. Per the NWA 74 event at the Chase Park Plaza Royal Sonesta itself, its matches will include major stars (e.g. Bully Ray, Matt Cardona, Taya Valkyrie, EC3, Tyrus), up-and-coming wrestling stars (e.g. VSK, Madi Wrenkowski, Flip Gordon, KiLynn King) and wrestling legends (e.g. Baby Doll, Austin Idol, Father James Mitchell) alike.

Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of speaking with the aforementioned Billy Corgan via Zoom, as embedded below. Beyond NWA 74, we talked about his purchase of the NWA, how and when his musical endeavors have crossed paths with his wrestling life — this indirectly led to some anecdotes related to Van Halen’s David Lee Roth and Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen — and what goals he has for the future of the NWA. More on Corgan and the NWA can be found online by clicking here, here and here.


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About the Author

Darren Paltrowitz is a New York resident with over 20 years of entertainment industry experience. He began working around the music business as a teenager, interning for the manager of his then-favorite band Superdrag. Since then, he has worked with a wide array of artists including OK Go, They Might Be Giants, Mike Viola, Tracy Bonham, Loudness, Rachael Yamagata, and Amanda Palmer. Darren's writing has appeared in dozens of outlets including the New York Daily News, Inquisitr, The Daily Meal, The Hype Magazine, All Music Guide, Guitar World, TheStreet.com, Businessweek, Chicago Tribune, L.A. Times, and the Jewish Journal. Beyond being "Editor At Large" for The Hype Magazine, Darren is also the host of weekly "Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz" series, which airs on dozens on television and digital networks. He has also co-authored 2 published books, 2018's "Pocket Change: Your Happy Money" (Book Web Publishing) and 2019's "Good Advice From Professional Wrestling" (6623 Press), and co-hosts the world's only known podcast about David Lee Roth, "The DLR Cast."


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