The Disruptors: Brandi Rhodes’ Journey From Ice Skater To Wrestling History

In the pursuit of your dreams, life often presents difficult choices. Brandi Rhodes understands this better than most.

From the age of 4, she knew she wanted to be a figure skater. “I watched Debi Thomas compete in the Winter Olympics. I loved what she was doing and wanted to try it. And the rest was history,” says Rhodes, born Brandi Alexis Reed.

The Canton, Mich. native trained at the Detroit Skating Club, home to Olympians like Tara Lipinski and Todd Eldridge. “By her teens, she had become one of the top skaters in her region, with dreams of competing in the Olympics. But at 16, Rhodes made a life-changing decision. Torn between fully committing to skating or embracing high school and college life, she chose the latter. “I loved school. I just wanted to have that full experience,” she says.

Though her Olympic dream went on the shelf, she continued skating while excelling academically, earning a scholarship to the University of Michigan. During her sophomore year, she decided to retire from the sport. Soon after, she found a new passion, putting in the work to become a news reporter.

She studied, interned, and eventually graduated with a degree in Communications, ultimately landing a job at a small TV station in Flint, Mich. However, the experience wasn’t what she expected. “Some people want to see others do well, and some people don’t,” she recalls. “I did everything I could…but when I was ready to be done, I was ready to be done. I was pretty sure I did not want to be in a TV studio ever again.”

Rhodes still had a deep passion for broadcasting. At another crossroads in her life, she boldly chose to leave Michigan and move to Miami. There, she pursued a master’s in broadcasting at the University of Miami and tried out modeling to support herself. This decision would lead her to unexpected opportunities and experiences she could never have imagined.

In 2011, a call from her agent changed everything. “Don’t hang up!” the agent said before asking how Rhodes felt about an interesting career pivot: professional wrestling. WWE had launched a new “Divas” division for women, and the agent had secured her a tryout. “I don’t think that’s for me,” she recalls saying, her skepticism due to the mistreatment of women in the business. “I remember seeing videos of women in the rings barking like dogs,” she says.

However, after attending a WWE live event, Rhodes was intrigued by the athleticism and theatrics of the sport, which reminded her of her first love: figure skating. While she started as a wrestler, there were more avenues open than she realized in the sport. After signing with Florida Championship Wrestling, she began a career as a ring announcer, putting her broadcasting talents to great use. During her time there, she met wrestler Cody Rhodes, now one of the biggest names in the sport and a current Wrestlemania 2025 headliner. The two would marry in 2013.

Rhodes faced challenges transitioning into the ring as a wrestler for the WWE, the biggest wrestling company there is, but she eventually found her way and would make history in 2015 as the first Black woman to serve as a ring announcer at WrestleMania. “When you’re in the moment, you don’t think about it,” she says, reflecting on the achievement. “Later, when someone comes up to you backstage and says, ‘Hey, do you realize that you’re the first person to do this?’ That’s just really cool.”

Doors continued to open and her roles continued to evolve. After leaving WWE in 2016, Rhodes continued to break barriers, becoming the first Black woman to compete in New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s Wrestle Kingdom event in 2018. By 2019, she joined All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as their Chief Brand Officer, becoming the first African American woman to hold an executive role in a major North American wrestling promotion.

During her time at AEW, Rhodes championed inclusion. “I just wanted people to get chances,” she says. “People who have done a lot of solids for other people in wrestling…I liked seeing people like that get their shot and the chance they never got.” She also helped establish partnerships like one with KultureCity, a nonprofit that makes events more accessible to those with sensory needs. 

In 2021, Rhodes became a mother, giving birth to her daughter, Liberty Iris. By 2022, she retired from wrestling to focus full-time on family and fitness. Her growing passion for yoga and Pilates evolved from an in-home workout to opening a 2,700-square-foot fitness studio to share it with others. She opened Naked Mind Yoga + Pilates Studio in 2023. Located outside Atlanta, the studio offers a range of services and childcare, making wellness accessible to everyone.

“People deserve to have an hour,” she says, reflecting on the importance of everyone, including busy moms, being able to carve out time for self-care. Though Rhodes has no plans to return to wrestling, she fully supports her husband Cody’s 2022 return. Their mutual understanding of the business is the key to balancing their lives. “We have both ‘been there before,’” she says.

At 41, Rhodes’ career is defined by groundbreaking achievements and reinventions, but her greatest source of pride is the example she’s setting for her daughter.

“Nothing’s ever enough. I have these accolades that are so cool, and they’re things that I did not set out to do. But God placed me in the place that I was able to do them,” she says. “All I think about are ways for her to see me thriving so that she can thrive.”

She wants her daughter to understand that there are endless possibilities. Whether she wants to be an ice skater, wrestler, or maybe even a pro basketball player, you can do it all. “And when that part of your life is over, you can create another path.”