Before They Were Famous: Anna Jay

“The Star of the Show”, #99 of The Dark Order, “Queen Slayer” – no matter the name, Anna Jay is one of the fastest rising stars wrestling fans have ever seen. She has a plethora of nicknames, but if there is one thing fans shall be calling her for years to come, it’s “Superstar”. A natural in the ring and oozing with charisma to boot, Anna Jay was made for this industry. Her stunning stare and confident demeanor are among the many traits that set her apart. 2020 might not have been the best year for the world, but it was certainly the greatest year of Jay’s young pro wrestling career, with many more great years to come.

Wrestling fans saw a young upstart ply her trade every week and they would go along for the journey. Anna Jay’s improved by leaps and bounds every time she was on everyone’s TV screens. Week in and week out, it seemed Jay was getting better and fast. Nobody could argue that hard work does pay off and Anna Jay has not let a single moment slip by as far as her wrestling career was concerned. It was just a little under a year into her professional wrestling debut when she got the opportunity of a lifetime, being signed by All Elite Wrestling. Her journey is a very inspiring one and the work ethic she exhibited is second to none. Let’s take a look at the early parts of the very promising career of Anna Jay and how she achieved her dreams.

Love for Wrestling at an Early Age

Anna Jay was born in Brunswick, Georgia, only an hour away from AEW’s spiritual home, Jacksonville. Her love of wrestling started at a young age. She would hang out with her father, who was a big wrestling fan as well. It became a tradition for them to watch wrestling every week. It was in her middle school days that her love for professional wrestling had her dreaming about a career in the business. Jay saw the storytelling, entertainment, and performance aspects to be very fascinating. Those factors would draw her closer to making a life-changing decision to be a wrestler one day. A natural performer herself and no stranger to the stage, Jay danced from ages 2 to 18. She would showcase her amazing talents in Broadway dances. To nobody’s surprise, she became a natural when it came to performing.

She would cite the likes of Naomi, Charlotte Flair, and Becky Lynch as great influences on her. Above all, it was The Bella Twins that lit a fire in her to be in the wrestling industry.

Training, Setbacks, and the Path to Stardom

Anna Jay would get her first taste of what it meant to be a professional wrestler in late 2017. Ray Lloyd, a family friend, better known as Glacier in WCW, would hold a Super Camp at the One Fall Power Factory; this is better known now as the Nightmare Factory in Atlanta, which Anna Jay attended. This single day of training made her fall in love with the wrestling business even more. Looking to take it up a notch, she would move to Atlanta in mid-2018 to start her training full-time with her now mentor QT Marshall and Glacier. She would make her professional wrestling debut in September 2019 at a charity event held by Glacier called The Battle of Altama.

Opportunities left and right would come for Anna Jay. She would do shows for Empower Wrestling as well as Georgia Premier Wrestling before she got her big break in AEW. She even competed in a “Hair vs. Hair Match” which she was victorious in. During her training days, she would suffer injuries very early on. No stranger to adversity, she overcame and laughed in the face of tribulation. Her resilience brought her back into the ring stronger and more ready than ever.

The Start of the Show for Anna Jay

They say that when one door closes, another opens. For Anna Jay, the gates of opportunity would open in a big way. In the midst of the global crisis, AEW was shorthanded in their tapings because of traveling issues brought on by the pandemic. This would give chance to a whole host of stars; thankfully, one of those stars was Jay. She was just a short drive away, so Cody Rhodes got in touch QT Marshall to see if any of his students were willing to step in for AEW. Jay took the bull by the horns and capitalized on the chance.

Anna Jay made her AEW Dynamite debut against Hikaru Shida in only her seventh career match. Jay also competed beforehand on AEW DARK opposite Penelope Ford. This string of matches would not only endear her to AEW higher-ups but adoring fans.

In the following months, her stock would skyrocket to an all-time high. She would compete in the AEW Women’s Tag Team Cup Tournament: The Deadly Draw.  She would tag with Tay Conti. Their chemistry was undeniable in the ring right off the bat. As Jay stated, she and Conti hit it off quite well backstage. They would get to know each other over the course of the tapings of Dynamite. Competing in the tournament, as well as hanging out with each other outside the ring, brought them closer together. The onscreen partnership would spill into reality and they became the best of friends quickly. The duo would be lovingly known as TayJay. 

In her short time with AEW, she would learn from a whole host of professionals. Jerry Lynn was very instrumental in her growth as the legend would offer advice as well as encourage her to do better time in and time out. Another figure of the industry who helped her in her path to success was Dustin Rhodes. The former Goldust would not only help her but every man and woman in the AEW roster, offering veteran knowledge for their blossoming careers.

The Dark Order and the Bright Future of Anna Jay

Anna Jay would get her biggest break to date when she was recruited by The Dark Order. Christened as #99, she would make a huge impact by choking out Brandi Rhodes, thus being given the moniker “Queen Slayer” by “The Exalted One,” Brodie Lee. Jay hasn’t looked back since. She’s on her way to mega-stardom sooner rather than later. She was recently nominated for Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Rookie of the Year and was the first runner-up in the category.

Unfortunately, an injury that will keep her out of the ring for 6-12 months puts her promising career on pause for a short while. Rest assured that, at only 22 years of age, Anna Jay will be back stronger than ever. She’s a resilient human being with amazing skills that fans will miss in her time away. However, the AEW women’s division and the whole wrestling world should keep a watchful eye on her. When she comes back, she will be looking to claim the division as her own. There is not a doubt in anyone’s mind she will be AEW Women’s World Champion sooner rather than later. That’s not only a prediction or statement but a promise.

Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world.  You can catch AEW Dynamite Wednesday nights at 8 PM ET on TNT and AEW DARK Tuesday nights at 7 PM ET on YouTube.

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