L’artiste. Courtesy RWA.
Friday night the Renegade Wrestling Alliance put on Ring N’ Ears 2 at the Opera House in Toronto. The highlight of that show saw a man climb to the top of speakers stacked 12 feet in the air, and leap to the concrete floor below.
This man, is L’artiste.
The native of Paris, Ontario took some time to talk with Slam Wrestling at that show as well as at a previous card in Hamilton.
L’artiste first got involved with pro wrestling the way a lot of people do, watching it on TV and thinking he could make it big. Now however, he is the first to admit that it’s very difficult to get recognized in Canadian wrestling.
“All Canadian wrestling is [hard to get started in], the States is such a larger place, there’s more people there… so obviously more recognition is available,” he says.
So would he advise wrestling as a career choice?
“If your going to put your heart and your soul into wrestling, then I’d say go for it because unless that’s what you give your going to go nowhere. I’ve busted my ass off for four years, and I’m just starting to get recognition in the States. You gotta stick it out and be tough and you have to be in it for the long haul.”
He deserves every bit of that recognition he gets. At the first Ring N’ Ears in August he took a hellacious dive from the balcony into the ring, and he is never afraid to take a flip to the outside. Why does he do such suicidal moves in the ring?
“I do those things for one, my personal satisfaction of doing something that not a lot of people would do… it makes me feel good. It also makes me look good … Second, I do it for the fans who like to see high flying stuff like that … It gets them excited, and makes me feel good when they get excited.”
The hardcore matches do take their toll however. After his match his elbow was battered and his back was hurting.
Other than wrestling in the RWA, L’artiste — who is 5’9″ and weighs 165 pounds — says he always has things going on.
“I’m the Pro Wrestling Worldwide Cruiserweight champion down in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I’ve wrestled in Cleveland, Cincinnati, South Bend, Indiana and all around Southern Ontario. I have a lot stuff going on right now, but I don’t want to let things out of the bag. If they don’t happen they don’t happen, but I’m always working hard sending out promo tapes and hopefully something will come of it.”
Trained by Dewey Robertson and Steve Hart, L’artiste is in arguably one of the best indy wrestlers on the Ontario wrestling scene now. His main objective every time he steps between the ropes is for the fans to have a great time. Just before his match at Ring N’ Ears 2, he promised: ” I’m going to tear this place apart.” And for about 20 minutes, he did. L’artiste is an artist in the ring.