'Often imitated, never duplicated' - Former WCW Star comments on John Cena's rapper gimmick (Exclusive)
Most fans consider John Cena's Doctor of Thugonomics gimmick to be his best version, but not many would remember that he wasn't the first wrestler to have a character modeled after a rapper.
Former WCW Star Paul Neu, popularly known by his in-ring name 'P.N. News,' was the guest on the latest edition of S.K. Wrestling's UnSKripted with Dr. Chris Featherstone.
The fans who watched P.N. News back in the 90s would remember him as the original rapper, much before John Cena came along with his Doctor of Thugonomics avatar.
S.K. Wrestling's Riju Dasgupta asked P.N. News about his views regarding John Cena's rapper gimmick during the UnSKripted Q&A session.
P.N. News spoke highly of John Cena and praised the Cenation leader for being at the top of his game for several years. News even revealed that he once saw a sign that compared him to John Cena.
Here's what P.N. News had to say about John Cena's gimmick:
"You know, why not? I did it. So, the thing is, I watched it a few times and John Cena, what can you say, the guy was on top for a long time, and he's just a good talent that he is doing rap like I said, I was doing a rap, so why can't he give a performance as well?
I've seen a sign. I was watching one time, and someone says John Cena = P.N. News. I got my accolade out of that, and then so my answer to that is, often imitated, never duplicated."
John Cena's WWE status
During his breakout years in the Ruthless Aggression era, John Cena became a household name with the Doctor of Thugonamics gimmick. The 16-time World Champion would later alter his character drastically; however, he did return with his braggadocious rapper gimmick for a one-off WrestleMania 35 segment with Elias.
John Cena is reportedly scheduled to compete at WrestleMania 37, a two-night event that will take place at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on April 10th and 11th, 2021.
As for P.N. News, the former WCW and ECW star spoke on several topics during the latest UnSKripted episode, including Paul Heyman, the controversial incident with Rick Rude, working with Stone Cold Steve Austin, and much more.
If any quotes are used from this article, please give a H/T to S.K. Wrestling and link it back to this article.