hero-image

Is AEW star Samoa Joe actually Samoan?

Samoa Joe made his AEW debut in 2022.
Samoa Joe made his AEW debut in 2022.

On April 13, 2022, edition of AEW Dynamite, Samoa Joe chopped and suplexed his way to the Ring of Honor Television Championship. By defeating Minoru Suzuki, Joe joined an elite group of wrestlers to complete the triple crown of ROH singles championships.

But one question that has always bugged wrestling fans for years is: Is Samoa Joe Samoan? Many have questioned The Samoan Submission Machine's heritage for not being related to the legendary Anoa'i family.

The answer is a little more complex than one may think. Real name Nuufolau Joel Seanoa, the former NXT Champion is of Samoan American descent and spent a lot of his childhood in Hawaii.

We are really witnessing @suzuki_d_minoru and @samoajoe facing off at #AEWDynamite right now. We are LIVE on TBS! https://t.co/YBeaFU29hj

In fact, at the age of five, Joe made his first public appearance as a performer when he was a member of his family's Polynesian dance troupe, who was a part of the opening ceremony at the Summer Olympics.

Samoa Joe's name stems from his heritage. The former TNA World Champion now resides in California but reps his heritage loud and proud.


Another question fans have: Is Samoa Joe OK after AEW Dynamite?

If Joe or Suzuki chopped a regular human being, that poor person would probably end up in the hospital. However, Joe and Suzuki aren't ordinary people and proceeded to beat the bone marrow out of each other for the ROH TV title.

If that wasn't enough, after the match was over, Joe got attacked by Jay Lethal, Sonjay Dutt, and the debuting Satnam Singh.

Former basketball player Satnam Singh signed with AEW back in September of 2021. He's been training at the Nightmare factory all this time.
I think it'll be good to have him in ROH to see what he can do. #AEWDynamite #AEWonTBS https://t.co/yNazQ4jOGR

If you want to read the rest of last night's AEW Dynamite results, you can find them here.


Did you know about Joe's heritage? Let us know in the comments section down below!

You may also like