Max Caster is aware there’s a line he doesn’t want to cross while performing, but he just focuses on being clever and creative about his approach.
The Acclaimed‘s Caster and Anthony Bowens recently spoke with WrestleZone and talked about the creative process behind their rap battles fans have grown accustomed to hearing on AEW TV. Caster, the emcee to Bowens’ hypeman, says his main thing is trying not to curse, citing his background on the radio, but says he’s not too worried about crossing the line and just tries to appeal to kids and adults that might hear him.
“It depends. If it has something to do with what’s happening on the show or within the company, I think that’s perfectly fine. If it’s ‘some guy has a girlfriend everybody knows about’ or something like that, maybe. Overall I try not to curse. I know I cursed on Dynamite the other week, they told me not to do that. And you know, there really is no line,” Caster explained, “it’s just being creative enough to say things without getting in trouble. I think that’s where I’ve trained myself over the last, I don’t know, probably my whole life, being able to say things. I used to be on the radio, I would say things in a way that wouldn’t get me in trouble.”
“Most of my raps have no curses. Sometimes you can’t replace it, but a lot of times, I have to think, ‘OK, a kid’s gonna listen to this, so how do I say this without the kid knowing but maybe the parents know?’ It’s like an episode of Spongebob,” Caster noted, “ you have jokes in there that adults get on a different level than kids. So I approach it that way. I try and keep it clean but clever enough to really let people know that I know what I’m doing.”
Referencing a previous interview with Doc Gallows, who told WrestleZone that nothing is off-limits and everything is fair game when it comes to Talk’n Shop A-Mania, Caster said he’s respectful of some things, but it still goes back to knowing when you’ve gone too far and approaching that line.
“I’m respectful to a point, I’ll say. If it’s on the show—there’s some things that we can throw in there that aren’t on the show necessarily. In our music video, having one of the Young Bucks be bald, right? A lot of people think that Nick Jackson is bald. Okay, I’m sure that bothers him,” Caster explained, “so let’s put that in our music video. So, it’s a weird line. You just have to find it but be clever about it.”
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