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From Wondery, I'm Andrew Mayer, and this is Who's Amazing Life?
You've heard of people who changed the course of history, but before they made their mark on the world, they were people like you and me still figuring out what they wanted to do with their lives.
On this episode, you will be that person everyone knows.
You might be a musician, or an athlete, a scientist, or a painter.
You may know what the person accomplished later in life, but now you can experience everything they faced along the way.
From challenges and heartbreak to triumphs and excitement.
All the moments that built this person into someone who would change the world.
There will be clues, so pay attention, but only at the end will you find out who you are.
So sit back and imagine your amazing life as the heavyweight.
Imagine you are six years old.
You, your dad and older brother steve, are sitting on the couch watching television.
It's the weekend and normally you'd be playing outside, but you live in massachusetts and it's a cold, snowy winter day, which means you're stuck indoors.
It's not so bad though, because you're not just watching any old tv show.
You're watching wrestling, and Hulk Hogan, your favorite wrestler of all, is in the ring.
He's competing for the world championship.
It's been a close match, and you're not sure if he's gonna win it.
Your dad jumps up from his seat as Hulk gets body slammed.
Come on, Hulk!
Don't give up!
Hulk pulls himself to his feet almost as if he can hear your dad through the television screen.
Then he pumps his fists and charges.
You gasp as Hulk body slams his opponent, hits him with a leg drop, and pins him.
He did it!
Hulk has won the world championship.
The crowd goes wild and you feel your heart racing with excitement.
That was incredible.
Your dad puts his hand on your head and pulls you close to him.
That's what perseverance gets you, son.
A world championship.
You look at him, puzzled.
What does perseverance mean?
Your dad chuckles and points to the television.
It means you keep going.
No matter how difficult things get, never give up.
Never give up.
Huh.
I like it.
You leap off the couch and flex your muscles just like Hulk Hogan.
Suddenly, your brother comes charging at you.
I'll make you give up!
Steve tackles you to the floor as you let out a huge laugh.
You and your brother wrestle all the time.
Your dad lets you play as long as you're both safe with each other and you love it.
But Steve always beats you.
He's the champion.
He even gets to keep the cardboard championship belt you guys made.
You try to fight off Steve, but your brother pins you.
Again.
You try to move, but you're stuck.
Maybe you should just give up.
But from the corner of your eye you spot Hulk Hogan on the TV screen holding up his championship belt.
Hulk would persevere.
He wouldn't give up.
And neither will you.
You take a deep breath, summon as much strength as you can, and push Steve off.
Then, you quickly flip around and reverse his pin.
Steve tries to move, but you don't let him.
Victory is almost yours.
Your dad falls to the floor like a referee.
One, two, three!
You did it!
You and your brother get up from the floor with huge smiles on your faces.
Steve shakes your hand.
You finally beat me.
Good match.
I guess you get the championship belt.
For now.
Your dad was right.
Perseverance does get you championships.
Steve hands you the belt and you hug it tightly.
In this moment, you make a promise to yourself that from now on, you are never going to give up.
You might be a champion at home, but life at school is a different story.
You have a unique sense of style, from how you dress to the music you listen to.
Your classmates don't appreciate your taste, so they make fun of you.
It's hard to feel confident when you're getting bullied every day.
But you remember what your dad says.
Never give up.
And in order to not give up, you know you have to be strong.
Inside and out.
When you are 12 years old, you learn about weightlifting and you ask your dad to buy you some weights.
He does.
And you discover that you like working out.
It's fun and it helps you build your confidence.
Over the next few years, you really get into it.
You work out all the time.
And in high school, you start doing a sport called bodybuilding.
Then in college, you study health and fitness to learn more about how the human body works.
With your degree in hand, you move from Massachusetts all the way to Los Angeles California, to pursue a career in fitness.
You get a job working at a gym, but life doesn't look like you pictured it.
Your job isn't training people to become stronger, fitter versions of themselves.
Instead, you're working in the gym's protein shop.
It's a fine job, but it's not what you imagined you'd be doing with your degree.
You like to talk with the customers about health, fitness and nutrition, but the people aren't always the nicest.
They are rough, tough, and sometimes they fight each other.
Some of them even remind you of the kids who used to bully you, and you're having a hard time making enough money there to support yourself.
You want to persevere just like your dad told you but it's getting harder and harder.
Maybe this isn't the right path for you.
Maybe it's time to give up.
It would be easy to leave Los Angeles and move back home, but something inside you tells you to stay.
So you continue working at the gym.
You know that one day your perseverance will be worth it.
But for now, it's time to go to work and start your shift.
You pull into the gym parking lot like usual.
As you step out of your car door and go to close it, you see a shirt hanging out.
You open the door and a pile of clothes falls onto the pavement.
You try to stuff the clothes back in the car, but then your pillow tumbles out onto the ground.
You sigh.
This isn't just your car.
It's also where you're currently living.
You can't afford an apartment or a house.
So for now, your car is your best choice.
Once you finally manage to get everything back into the car, you walk toward the gym, feeling low.
You didn't picture that life in LA would mean so much struggle.
You open the glass doors to the gym, but to your surprise there's a crowd of people blocking the entranceway.
Gym goers are surrounding someone.
But who?
You push your way through the crowd and gasp when you see who it is.
It's Dwayne The Rock Johnson.
He's an amazing wrestler and someone you've looked up to for a while.
You take a deep breath and make your way to the front of the crowd.
You nervously approach The Rock.
Hey, Rock.
Sorry.
Mr. Johnson.
I loved your match with Stone Cold Steve Austin last year.
Could I get a picture with you?
The Rock grabs you by the shoulder, pulls you in, and strikes a pose.
Of course.
Thanks.
Can I ask you something?
Anything.
How do I become you?
The rock laughs.
Well, you can't become me.
But if you're asking how I got to be where I am, I never gave up.
That's how you do it.
Never give up.
Did that just happen?
You stand there in disbelief.
You know from watching his matches that The Rock is really confident and strong, but you never imagined that he could be so kind and helpful too.
You walk into the gym with a newfound sense of purpose.
Things may be hard right now, but today will not be the day you give up.
You continue working at the gym.
One day, a bodybuilder who works out there suggests that you should try wrestling.
The idea sparks your curiosity.
You haven't been happy at your job for a while, so maybe it's time for a change.
There's a gym that trains wrestling hopefuls not too far away from where you live.
You've always loved wrestling, so you decide to give it a try.
As soon as you get in the ring, you are hooked.
You continue to train and once you feel ready, you start competing in small matches and you discover that you're pretty good at it.
You're able to combine your passion for wrestling along with your strength training skills.
It feels great to finally apply what you learned in college.
It's not long before talent scouts spot you and invite you to compete for Ohio Valley Wrestling.
This is where talented wrestlers go to develop their skills for the next level.
The World Wrestling Federation.
You spend the next year training hard and competing in matches for OVW.
It's more difficult than you thought, but you continue to persevere, waiting for the day when you can prove that you have what it takes to make it to the WWF.
Pretty soon that day arrives, and now it's time to put all your dedication and hard work to the test.
You're 24 years old and laying on your back in the middle of a wrestling ring.
Unfortunately, being on your back on the canvas is a pretty familiar position for you.
You've been losing a few matches lately, but you've earned a shot at the OVW Champion.
He's your biggest challenge yet.
The way this match is looking, you don't know if you'll win this one.
Your opponent just took you down, but you're not ready to give up.
You catch your breath and slowly drag yourself to your feet.
You lock eyes with your opponent, and you see your opportunity.
You run forward and throw him to the ropes.
But it's not enough to stop him.
He bounces off the ropes, comes running towards you, and boom!
He hits you with a clothesline.
Back to the mat you go, but you get right back up.
He runs back towards you, another clothesline.
This time, You stay on the mat.
Your opponent pins you down.
The referee kneels on the mat next to you.
You kick out, frustrated.
Your opponent slams his fist to the floor and runs to the ropes.
You watch your opponent climb until he stands on the top rope.
Then, he jumps. hurling his body through the air towards you.
You want to get up, but you can barely move.
You feel like you're stuck to the floor.
But you've faced bigger challenges than this.
And through it all, you never stop trying.
Hulk Hogan and The Rock never gave up, and you're not giving up either.
You use whatever strength you have left to dive out of the way.
Your opponent hits the mat hard as you scramble to your feet.
That was a close one.
Maybe you can do this after all.
Your opponent comes charging at you, but this time you're ready.
You get a jolt of energy and catch him when he lunges at you.
You pin his legs and look over at the referee.
Whoa!
You release your opponent's legs and roll onto your back on the mat.
You're exhausted.
The referee helps you to your feet.
He presents you with the OVW Championship belt and raises your hand in victory.
Then, it hits you.
You just beat your opponent.
You're the OVW Champion!
You climb the turnbuckle, stand on the ropes, and raise the belt to the crowd.
You can't believe it.
You are the champion.
All of your hard work paid off.
As you look into the crowd, you notice someone who works for the WWF.
They came to watch your match, and they look pretty impressed.
They give you a thumbs up.
You may have won the championship tonight, but you know your wrestling journey is just beginning.
And no matter where that journey takes you, you will never give up.
After you win the OVW Championship, the WWF, now called the WWE, decides to call you up to the main roster.
Your journey with the WWE isn't easy, but that never stops you.
You lean into your unique sense of music and style of clothing, and the fans love it.
You go on to become a WWE superstar.
You're a 16-time WWE World Champion, 5-time WWE United States Champion and 3-time World Heavyweight Champion.
You have an impressive career outside the wrestling ring as well.
You become a New York Times number one bestselling author.
You appear in multiple movies and TV shows, including films from the Fast and the Furious series and Barbie.
You are also passionate about helping others.
You frequently work with Make-A-Wish Foundation and have granted over 600 wishes.
Many fans love your catchphrase, you can't see me, but never give up is your personal favorite.
And you live by it every day.
You are John Cena.
From Wondery, this is Who's Amazing Life?
This episode contains reenactments and dramatized details.
While we can't know exactly what was said, we use many sources when researching our stories.
Some that were particularly helpful include ESPN, CNBC, and the Boston Globe.
I'm your host, Andrew Mayer.
This episode was written by our managing producer, Matt Gant.
Sound design by Andre Pluss.
Additional audio assistance is by Sergio Enriquez.
Desi Blaylock is our managing producer.
Jennifer Klein Walker is our producer.
Megan Begala and Ginny Bloom are our senior producers.
Executive producers are Jenny Lauer-Beckman, Marsha Louis, and Erin O'Flaherty for Wondery.
If you like, Whose Amazing Life.
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