Cathy Kelley reacts to WWE star's return to RAW after 5 years
The May 13 episode of Monday Night RAW saw the return of one of the most iconic voices of WWE after five years. Former ring announcer Lilian Garcia returned to the red brand and was welcomed by Samantha Irvin to the show in Greenville, South Carolina.
Lilian Garcia signed with the company as an announcer in 1999 and also has her name in history as the first female WrestleMania announcer. Garcia praised RAW’s current announcer Samantha Irvin and also gave kudos to freshly promoted WWE SmackDown announcer Alicia Taylor.
“I'm in the house. I'm in Greenville, South Carolina and of course, I had to come say 'hello' to my WWE family and this girl right here (Samantha Irwin). I'm so proud of her. Alicia, who's now on SmackDown. All women announcers. I love this!"
Lilian Garcia made her last appearance on the Stamford-based promotion for the RAW Reunion episode on July 22, 2019. Lilian Garcia discontinued being a full-timer at WWE in August 2016 to pay more attention to her singing career and work on a follow-up album. Today, she returned and announced the entrance of New Day member Kofi Kingston for the King of the Ring Tournament. Interestingly, WWE’s backstage interviewer Cathy Kelley posted an amazed reaction to the veteran’s return on X.
“I’ve been busy doing interviews, but i just wanted to say… LILIAN 🥹🥰 @LilianGarcia.”
While Cathy Kelley was overjoyed to see Lilian Garcia back on RAW, the veteran announcer was just as happy to be back. In fact, she also had a trip down memory lane when she was surrounded by the cheering fans once again.
Lilian Garcia expresses her nostalgia after showing up for WWE RAW
Lilian Garcia marked her attendance in the arena of Greenville, South Carolina, via several Instagram stories. She expressed how good it felt to be back on RAW and immediately recalled her days as an announcer in one of her story captions.
“Wow, being here never gets old. Seeing those words, RAW, like god, the years that I spent in buildings and announcing, it is just so good to see everybody. It is just great to be back for the night to say hello. Alright, I hope you guys are watching tonight. Make sure you watch tonight Monday Night RAW. And if you are here in the audience, make sure you make a lot of noise. Everybody here works so hard, alright, love you guys.”
While Lilian Garcia has an irreplaceable legacy to her name, as she said, Samantha Irvin and Alicia Taylor are also doing great jobs. It would be interesting to see the heights RAW and SmackDown reach with them as ring announcers in the future as well.