Along with being one of the most recognizable referees in pro wrestling right now, Aubrey Edwards wears many hats for AEW. She co-hosts the AEW Unrestricted podcast with Tony Schiavone, and is involved with AEW Games — logical, given her background as a video game developer.
Yet somehow, Edwards still has time to be one of the driving forces behind AEW Heels. Though it started as a community “where women and female-identifying fans can come together and celebrate their love for professional wrestling,” and that’s still a big focus, Edwards told Under the Ring host Phil Strum that it’s become much more than that.
“As our membership has grown — I think in the last year, we’ve tripled our membership — we’ve just, as a result, kind of had to change what we offer and how we manage this community,” Edwards said. “A number of our community members are now moderators; they’re sort of helping us run the community and making sure that all of the pillars of what we’re trying to do is held true.
“We also have started kind of offering more content that is outside of focusing on just AEW talent. We’ll talk a lot about mental health. We’ll talk about LGBTQ+ issues. Because not only are we wrestling fans, that’s sort of the thing that brings us together, what makes us unique is that we’re people with different backgrounds and different successes, different failures, different things going on in our lives. So we’ve sort of had to adjust for what the community has grown into, but I think it’s been a really beautiful thing.”
Listen to the full discussion between Edwards and Strum to hear more about:
- AEW Together and how Amanda Huber has made herself an integral part of AEW’s behind-the-scenes processes
- The feedback Edwards gets from Tony Khan on everything she’s doing
- Why she “never, ever in a million years would have imagined” herself building a career in the wrestling business
- How being a wrestling referee is “surprisingly similar” to being a background dancer in a ballet production
- What qualities are necessary to be an excellent referee — and a very common misconception about the role
- Which matches were the wildest ones she’s ever worked
- Why it wasn’t a big deal for her to referee men’s matches in AEW
- Whether all pro wrestling refs all know each other
- Tons about AEW Games
Under the Ring drops new episodes every week, with Strum utilizing contacts gleaned from years of pro wrestling fandom and coverage to have an in-depth conversation with a wrestler or other notable personality. Recent guests have included NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship No. 1 contender EC3, Lucha Libre (and WCW) legend Konnan, and WWE superstar Drew McIntyre,
To make sure you don’t miss an episode, subscribe to Under the Ring on Apple Podcasts or your podcast provider of choice, or check out the Under the Ring YouTube channel to see all of the interviews in video form.