(NOAH) "If things continue like this, the number of wrestling fans will decrease", Pro Wrestling Noah's Kenoh reveals why he continues to post on YouTube.
5th July 2023
Sportiva
On June 24th, the Debut 15th Anniversary Tournament of Pro Wrestling Noah's Kenoh, an event which was held in his hometown of Tokushima City. After the match, Kenoh spoke on the microphone in the ring and said, "If you want stability, there will be no evolution", and declared, "I will disband Kongoh today". The curtain fell on Pro Wrestling Noah's representing unit "Kongoh", which was formed by Kenoh on May 4th 2019, and ended after four years and one month. Kenoh continued passionately, "From now on, I will think about the top of the pro wrestling world and push forward. I will take the top of the pro wrestling world. That is Kenoh's vow in the 16th year". His teaming up with Kaito Kiyomiya at the Hachioji event on July 9th is also a hot topic, but Kenoh's "new step" is attracting attention.
Speaking of Kenoh, he is also known for having one of the best communication skills in the professional wrestling world. At a press conference in April 2022, he said "Fuck professional constraints", and with that declaration, the YouTube "Kenoh Channel" was born. As of July 3rd, the channel boasts popular content with 62,700 registered users, more than 200 distribution videos, and 10 million total video views. The channel distinguishes itself from other pro wrestling channels by collaborating with other martial artists, introducing the backgrounds of his opponents, trying "○○ for the first time", and supported by a wide range of people, the channel makes a clear distinction from existing pro wrestling channels, such as past stories and revealing stories. So, I asked Kenoh why is started YouTube and what he is aiming for.
Q: Please tell us about the circumstances of you starting a YouTube channel.
KENOH: For a long time I thought that it was necessary to appeal to the public by transmitting that "I want to deliver professional wrestling to people other than professional wrestling fans". I felt a sense of urgency when I won the GHC Heavyweight Championship in December 2017, I started to feel that "there is no future in the pro wrestling world, unless people are interested in it".
Q: The "Kenoh Channel" opened on April 15th 2022, it has been more than a year now, but when did you start feeling the response?
KENOH: About two or three months after the site opened, and people other than Noah's fans are starting to respond.
Q: Do you come up with the plans yourself?
KENOH: Not only myself, but the staff think about it also. We have staff who are familiar with live streams after matches, and so can respond flexibly. I really appreciate that.
Q: Well, the live steaming after matches is great for fans, but on the other hand, I think they are worried as they want you to take care of your body as a priority.
KENOH: I am always thinking, "If I were a fan, what would make me happy?" Live streaming after a match is certainly physically painful, but if those mutherfuckers are happy, I'll continue to broadcast.
Q: You have posted over 200 videos so far, but are there any videos that left an impression on you?
KENOH: "The Karaoke Battle" that was released before the GHC Heavyweight match with the champion Satoshi Kojima on July 16th of last year, and the "Tetsuya Naito Exposed Chronology" video for the match against Tetsuya Naito on January 21st this year received a lot of response. The video received a great response, and I think it raised the expectations of many wrestling fans for the match.
Q: It must be a new amusement for fans that you yourself researches opponents and tells them.
KENOH: Studying my opponent makes it easier for me to work out my own countermeasures. I'm sure there were people who were like, "The video caught my attention, so let's watch the event". The WRESTLE KINGDOM 17 at the Yokohama Arena on January 21st was a pay-per-view, and I was happy to hear someone say, "I can't go to the venue, and I was interested after watching The Kenoh Channel, so I will by a PPV and watch".
Q: There is also the involvement with All Japan. At the 7th May Ota Ward show, Suwama and SAITO BROTHERS, who were your opponents in the tag match, put you in a bodybag in the ring, and then carried you away. However, this didn't happen on a free broadcast, and the next morning you did a live stream about it and protested furiously.
KENOH: I contacted the staff and asked them to come early in the morning to shoot. I would have been stumped to be asked, "Why did you do that livestream?", but it was just an intuition. I'm always thinking about whether people watching YouTube will enjoy it, and at that time I just thought, "This is the time".
Q: Do you have any plans to advance the Kenoh channel in this way in the future?
KENOH: Earlier, I said that I would try to spread professional wrestling to the world, but I don't think it's a good idea to pursue just that. It's also important to respond spontaneously to things that come to mind on the spot, "that sounds interesting!". One of them, I think, was one of the funniest projects I did was a video that verified whether I would be noticed on Takeshita Street in Harajuku.
Q: At first you didn't get noticed, but at the end I felt a sense of professionalism when I saw you wearing your ring gear at the end (laughs) Before this years 21st February Tokyo Dome event, there was also a video of drawing a lottery for All Japan's 50th anniversary, until an opponent in a tag match appears. How did you come up with that idea?
KENOH: It's a project to think about that what kind of videos would be interesting for non wrestling fans, and especially for small children. The content is should be easy to understand with the focus on winning or losing the lottery.
Q: At your 15th anniversary debut event held in Tokushima the other day, students could enter for free if they said the password announced on the Kenoh Channel. I felt your desire to have people to feel free to come and watch pro wrestling, and to make professional wrestling more accessible.
KENOH: If this continues, the number of pro wrestling fans will decrease, so from that sense of crisis I lowered the hurdles for watching pro wrestling at the anniversary event. Just like when I was a child and admired Jinsei Shinzaki (Michinoku Pro), I want the children of today to fall in love with pro wrestling.
Q: Please tell us about your future goals.
KENOH: I don't want to make money as a YouTuber. It would be great if we could share interesting things, and get you interested in professional wrestling. So, you fuckers, please continue to support The Kenoh Channel!
Comments
Post a Comment
Spam will be deleted immediately