MacDirectory Magazine

MacDirectory 91 EXCLUSIVE CJ "Lana" Perry has worked her entire life to be where she is today. The WWE Superstar was born to entertain. Since the age of three, she tells us, that all she wanted to do was to tell stories. "I always wanted to be a great sports entertainer," said Perry. "I wanted to put smiles on people's faces." Today, Perry entertains fans on the WWE mainstage, as well as on E!'s Total Divas. Perry's career with the WWE started in 2013. "I was called for a tryout. I never thought that was a dream that I would accomplish," she said. But before Perry's career with the WWE took off, she was living in LA, and taking an abundance of acting classes to become the best. "I dived into trying to become the best actress," she said. "We are actors at the WWE. We are absolutely 100% athletes." It was Perry's dedication, passion, and natural talent to adapt to various gimmicks which made her a favorite on the ring. Her career took off with the WWE before she knew it. "I remember my first day on the WWE, I had to create five compelling character," she said. "They immediately paired me with my now husband, Rusev, and I immediately was put on TV after three months of the development program." Her life quickly changed after this, Perry tells us most Superstars are in the development program for a year. "I had to learn how to wrestle on-the-road, while on TV. My road has been really different," she said. Perry's career with the WWE was unlike any other. "My first match in front of 100,000 people at the Dallas stadium. I almost passed out. My first singles match was for a title," she said. "I thought I was going to throw up. But when I walk out of the curtain, my nerves go away." Living the life of a Superstar is no easy task. And like any performance there is a lot of pressure from the audience. But Perry has been training to be on the mainstage since she was a child growing up in Russia, where she studied ballet. Becoming a WWE Superstar takes a lot of training, practice, and determination, and Perry was not going to stop until she accomplished it. "If you have a dream, you have to chase it. My dream was to wrestle." When Perry is not competing on WWE, she is filming E!'s Total Divas. She tells us that these are two very different experiences for her, but no matter what, she is always true to herself. "I am pretty transparent with who I am. I am not perfect. We all have flaws. You learn from it and do your best to not do it again," she said. "You see me acting out on Total Divas. And I definitely apologize when I am wrong." Being part of the cast of Total Divas has been an adventure and something that Perry has always wanted to do. It gave her the opportunity to show the world who she truly is. "I've had an unconventional journey—she is a pretty face, she cuts a good promo—but people don't know how passionate I am," she explained. "People get to see another side of me. People have no idea who

• 1
• 2-138