Kofi and Austin Creed have opened up about their WWE departures, including the significant pay cut they were reportedly asked to take before deciding to leave the company.
After more than a decade together as The New Day, Kofi and Creed departed WWE in May. Four months later, they debuted for AEW as New Level at All In from Wembley Stadium.
Speaking with Ariel Helwani on The Ariel Helwani Show (see video below), Kofi explained that he and Creed didn’t believe the terms WWE offered reflected their value to the company.
“We just thought the terms that they wanted us to perform under were not fair based on what we brought to the table, based on what we’re worth, based on the knowledge and prowess we have as performers and wrestlers,” Kofi said. “What we can give back to the younger people and do in entertainment. Being able to go out there and garner a reaction as good guys or bad guys, no matter the situation.”
Kofi said they took pride in their versatility throughout their WWE careers, but money wasn’t the only factor behind their decision.
“We took a lot of great pride in being Swiss army knives. Whatever the situation was, we would make it great and make it entertaining,” he continued. “Compensation was definitely a big part, for sure, but more so, we wanted to work.”
That desire to wrestle regularly ultimately made AEW an attractive destination. Kofi pointed to teams including The Young Bucks, FTR, Cope and Christian, Private Party and others while discussing what they saw happening in AEW’s tag team division.
“We wanted to work. When it came to tag team wrestling, it really wasn’t a priority, so we looked across the pond and saw the Bucks, FTR, Cope and Christian, Private Party, the Dogs, all these tag teams having bangers. ‘Man, what if we could be involved with that?’” Kofi said. “They look like they’re having so much fun. You watch AEW pay-per-views and I’m jumping out of my seat, like a fan again. It excites me to watch that show.”
He added that the opportunity to test themselves against AEW’s tag teams became a major factor in their decision.
“We’re thinking, ‘What if we could be part of that and add ourselves as one of, if not the greatest tag team in history?’ That was really the determining factor,” Kofi continued. “Let’s go and try to do what we love to do and feel passionate about our craft and feel like we’re able to give in a way that is significant and matters. To go have bangers every night.”
Kofi also described their departure as another opportunity to bet on themselves despite everything they had already accomplished.
“When you’ve had the career that we’ve had, you feel like you’re not going to be in the position that you have to bet on yourselves again, but we found ourselves in that position,” he said. “If we didn’t try to do this and follow our hearts, how can I go back and tell my kids to follow their dreams and believe in themselves?”
When Helwani asked whether WWE’s proposed pay cut was 50 percent, Kofi revealed that it was actually greater.
“I will say, it was more than 50%. It was more,” Kofi said. “The compensation is a big part of it, for sure, but the bigger part is being able to go out and live your dream in a way you want to live it out and be appreciated for it. We took it all into consideration and we knew this was the only path to take.”
Creed was then asked whether they were blindsided by what happened. He recalled being at one of his children’s football games when he received a call from an unfamiliar number.
“A few minutes later, I’m like, ‘It’s close to after Mania, usually there are releases. We’re not getting released. We’ve been helping out and pulling our weight,’” Creed said. “That was a flicker of a thought in my mind that it would be a negative conversation.”
Creed said Kofi called him after receiving his own call from WWE, leaving both men surprised by what was being proposed.
“I get a call from Kofi and he’s like, ‘They called me, they said this and this.’ ‘How is that the conversation?’” Creed recalled. “It doesn’t make sense to me because of what we’ve been able to do, what we bring to the table, how much we have left to provide for the landscape of pro wrestling.”
After Creed returned the call and spoke with Kofi again, the two reached the same conclusion.
“That was the first time we have the conversation and realized, ‘We have to go. This doesn’t work for us. This isn’t what we want to be doing,’” Creed said. “We want to work. We want to be able to have these matches and fulfill these goals and dreams.”
Kofi received his call under similarly memorable circumstances, as his family was celebrating his son’s birthday at the time.
“When I got the call, it was my son’s birthday. We were celebrating at the RetroCade and I’m like, ‘Why is he calling now?’” Kofi said. “I pick it up, he says what he says and is offering the terms and the renegotiation and all that.”
Kofi admitted the conversation left him stunned, but he couldn’t allow it to take away from his son’s birthday.
“I hung up, and the most bizarre feeling was like the world had been flipped upside down, getting a call that you never thought you would have or make a decision with, but it’s my son’s day,” he continued. “I can’t emotionally let myself go or fall apart or be pissed off or worried because it’s his day.”
After speaking with Creed, Kofi said they knew almost immediately that remaining with WWE wasn’t going to work. They still took time to examine their options and make sure their families would be financially secure.
“We knew that we couldn’t stay, but you want to do your due diligence and weigh your options,” Kofi said. “Am I okay financially? Is my family going to be okay? What do I have to do to be okay? The next couple of days was talking with the financial advisor to make sure things were fine.”
Once those concerns were settled, Kofi said their outlook changed.
“Once we realized the freedom we had, it became very exciting, very quickly,” he said.
Creed was also asked whether he believed WWE was happy that he and Kofi ultimately decided to leave.
“Honestly, I don’t know. I’m not sure. I don’t know who makes the decisions,” Creed said. “We didn’t really have the conversation with anybody super high up.”
When asked whether anyone higher up in WWE contacted them after they made their decision, Creed responded, “Nope,” adding that there was no phone call, thank you or text.
Despite the circumstances surrounding their exits, Kofi stressed that they aren’t bitter about how things ended and remains grateful for his time with WWE and everything the company brought into his life.
