Royce Keys shares how Cody Rhodes, CM Punk helped him after death of mother
Cody Rhodes and CM Punk helped Royce Keys get through a difficult time when his mother passed away in 2021.
All three of Rhodes, Punk, and Keys were with AEW at the time Keys’ mother passed away five years ago. On a new episode of Stephanie McMahon’s “What’s Your Story?” podcast, the former Powerhouse Hobbs detailed how he reached out to Rhodes when his mother was sick. Though Rhodes’ daughter had just been born, he dropped everything to check on Keys.
“I remember getting on the phone and I called Cody Rhodes to tell him, like, I don’t know what to do. I just got off the phone with my sister, my dad, my mom’s sister, my auntie Joy. And she went straight up to the hospital. And it’s just like, I guess maybe Cody thought I was talking about wrestling because I always bug him with wrestling,” Keys said. “And I’m like, ‘No, my mom is sick.’ He immediately dropped everything and called me. Like, he called me, he checked on me. I believe his daughter might have been a month old, and he still called me.”
Keys worked a match against Punk on AEW Rampage shortly after his mother’s death. Punk made sure to dedicate the moment to his mother and let Keys know that her presence was still there, even if she couldn’t be in the building physically.
“And I remember having a match with CM Punk a month after my mom died,” Keys said. “And he goes, ‘None of this sh*t matters. Your mom’s sitting front row there tonight.’ And after the match he pins me and he taps me on the chest. And, you know, my mom’s nickname was Nita. And he goes, ‘This was for Nita.’ And I just lost it.”
Keys has been through a lot of tragedy in his life, but he’s grateful to have been surrounded by love throughout it all. He’s also grateful to be raising amazing children, including his son Royce who his WWE name is inspired by.
In the environment Keys grew up in, being open about your struggles wasn’t encouraged. But he hopes that he can help other people by sharing his story. Keys also hopes that his deceased loved ones are proud of him for what he’s accomplished in wrestling.
“Everything that’s happened to me, whether it’s just like being shot, losing my mother, you know, I’ve had guns pulled on me, knives, like guns jam up in my face where I shouldn’t be here. All that has shaped me to be here,” Keys said. “And I think to myself, like, there’s somebody out there in this big world that if I tell them my story, it could help them.”
Keys spent nearly six years with AEW before arriving in WWE last month as an entrant in the 2026 Royal Rumble. His goal is to make his mark on WWE and become a Hall of Famer.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.