LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Ohio Valley Wrestling CEO Al Snow started in the wrestling business in 1982. He said in addition to learning “the show must go on,” he also learned another valuable lesson.
“You always gotta take crap and make shoe polish," he said.
The shoe polish, if you will, is turning Davis Arena, the home of OVW events, into a concert hall for a good cause. The state shut down wrestling in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so the arena remained dark until last Saturday. So OVW brought in local music group, Drunk and Sailor, to perform in an empty arena. The concert was streamed on Facebook Live, along with an on-screen instruction on how to donate using GoFundMe.
“This is a tough time for everybody. And that includes OVW. That includes musicians, magicians, comics, the whole gamut of entertainers here in Louisville," said Bryan Kennison, OVW’s promotions manager. "We needed to do something to pull everybody together. We are all in this same situation. The only way we are going to overcome that is together."
Kennison said the Facebook Live stream garnered 10,000 views and raised $800 that night. A portion goes to the band and a portion goes to OVW.
Another concert is set for 8 p.m. Saturday with a different band.
“Unfortunately, this is hitting them pretty hard, because there’s no place to perform," Snow said. "So they have no way of making a living. If we can do a little bit to help them out and raise awareness for OVW as well, then it’s a win-win for everybody."
To keep the event as safe as possible, OVW used a skeleton crew, just enough personnel to get the show up and running. Snow even acted as technical director, hitting the buttons to call up different camera shots on air.
“The band itself stayed about 6 feet apart from each other as well," Snow said. "So we were trying to be as socially responsible ... and to be a good example to everyone at home."
Snow and Kennison said there’s discussions to bring in not just musical acts who have had gigs canceled around town but also even magicians and comedians who have no venue to perform at right now.
“It was one of those things that you start out, and you’re very apprehensive, and then it just gets knocked out of the park. I’m really glad I did it,” Kennison said. “We needed to do something to pull everybody together. We are all in this same situation. The only way we are going to overcome that is together.”
Kennison encourages other acts who want to take part to reach out via Facebook or email him at kennison@gladiatorsportsnetwork.live to secure a spot.
Copyright 2020 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
