Water Will: Within Me, WWE Music & Songwriting—OFF THE CUFF

Updated on August 24, 2020

This week we go Off the Cuff with New York-based recording artist and painter Will Roush. In this freewheeling, light-hearted interview, Will provides insights into his creative process, revealing how he locks in mentally to produce his incredible artistic creations.

Will Roush, a.k.a. Water Will, painting on a big canvas. — Willcasso (Image Source: Instagram)

Watch The Full Interview on YouTube

Interview Key Points

In this interview, Will discusses the following topics:

The importance of focusing on the ‘why’ of what you are creating
How finding what you are passionate about and love doing will make the doing automatic
How love and passion for what you are doing will allow you to counter negative outside voices
How his rapping and painting reflects his own life’s experience
The importance of being genuine with your art

About Will Roush

Will Roush is a New York-based recording artist and painter. In 2016, Will paired with the songwriting and production team CFO$ to provide theme songs and soundtracks for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). His song ‘Dreams That I Have’ has become an official theme song for WWE Raw. Will also features on WWE Pro Wrestler Tino Sabbatelli’s theme song ‘G.O.A.T’ Will’s hit song ‘Watch This’ was the official theme song of WWE Fastlane.

Will Roush's Watch This poster. — ‘Watch This’ was the Official Theme Song of WWE Fastlane (Image Source: Amazon)

In 2011, Will released the album ‘Know My Name’, featuring the singles ‘Been a Long Time’ and ‘Where Roush Happens.’ Other singles available through iTunes include ‘Fitch’, ‘All Mine’, M.O.M, ‘White Yeezy’s’, ‘Steppin’ ‘Do Dat Do’, ‘Sauce’ and ‘Water and Condoms.’

Will Roush's M.O.M poster — M.O.M – Will Roush (Image Source: Amazon)

Find Will Roush online:

Watch The Full Interview on YouTube

Thank you for joining me today, we’re going Off The Cuff with Water Will aka I Will poppy, aka Will Rouse, definitely thank you for hopping on here with us for a quick interview. You know I appreciate you, one of my really good friends near and dear, one of my best clients, we used to get before Corona three days a week you know, always getting after it. Great conversations great workouts. So it’s definitely good to have you here man. I’ll let you go just introduce yourself real quick and we’ll just kinda jump into some topics and
You wanna try something or you wanna buy something? You know what I’m saying bro we could eat, the sale could go down anyway you want it, test drive straight to the lease baby, the test drive is to the lease.
I liked it, I liked the promo mode, I must be doing a good job as a trainer.
Cory is an amazing trainer, Cory is a great trainer, he’ll stay on you, he’s not one of these trainers that’s just like, you know, he’s on 24/7. Some people just like when you train with that trainer is just like, okay if you have the hour with them that you spend in the gym then that’s it.
Right, right.
You know, when you train with you, it’s like a real relationship. Like it’ll just be like a random day that we’re not training like, you do your push up today, did you weigh in today, like what did you eat today? People need that. I think when you train and you wanna improve your lifestyle, like what’s great about working with you is that you really do a good job of developing that relationship where like, it turns into more than just, we train for an hour today. It turns into like, a friendship, it turns into I mean, you’re also, people might not know but like Cory is a really good as like we’re talking about you to you but like you’re really good fantasy football consultant. I would say consultant ’cause if you wanted to like, you can totally just quit everything you’re doing and just open up like fantasy football consultancy. You could do it and like I honestly think it would be crazy like you would get hundreds maybe thousands of dudes who play fantasy football every week hitting you up being like, “What does big C think I should do at the flex?” That’s a flex baby! Where we find it a flex.
We might need to work together on forming that out because I do take my fantasy football very seriously. Last year was a little bit you know, I had a lot going on. So it wasn’t as daunting as I should have been. But this year, I’m back on it and you’re gonna do well, I’m gonna do well, everybody
I won, I won fantasy football.
I know yeah, you were great, your team is
When I met you, I was in last place. We started working together now I’m a champion. I’m a champion, its like I got really lucky in my draft. I got really lucky in my draft.
Hey, sometimes part of it, I mean hey, who cares champions is a champion? We don’t really care that’s all that matters so…
Exactly.
Yeah man, just if you wanna tell our viewers a little bit about yourself real quick you know, nothing crazy just, I know you got some new music coming out.
Yeah.
A lot of good music out and then you got some more. Tell us about that.
So I mean, you know if you look at Water Will on the Gram, you’ll just see kind of the few arenas that I dabble in, my mom is an artist so, I love painting, it’s just something that I’ve kind of been like brought up around, I think when you’re in that environment and like surrounded by art, it’s just something that you naturally gravitate towards. So I’ve been working on my art, love making music, I’ve just always kinda had a lot of you know, drive to be creative and try out different things as a side from that invested in a few companies that are really starting to do well, gotta plug Dream Pops
Dream Pops. check out Dream Pops,
Dream Pops,
Dream Pops, Dream Pops are awesome, great snack. So, bro, we gotta bring you, I gotta get a protein Dream Pop.
Hey that’s what I’m saying shout to my guy Dave you know, there was amazing stuff with Dream Pops. I’m excited to potentially become a part of that and you guys are doing amazing stuff over there. So shout the Dream Pop, shout out to what you’re doing Water with the music and artsy stuff and you know. Obviously like for me I appreciate you so much because obviously, you’re funny and humorous and crack jokes and, you know, you always keep it light as as people can see. But I think between your music and your artwork, I think it really shows how creative you are mentally. And that side of you, I don’t think people get to really see because obviously, you’re typically alone, not alone alone, but you have a few people with you in the studio or whatever. But that’s when you really lock in and it’s probably a different side of you. Even I haven’t seen it, right? So, that’s kind of the beauty of who you are as a person that yeah, you’re funny and do all that good stuff but you know how to lock in and really unlock that creative side of you. What does that do for you especially like the art because it’s great artwork. You know like, what I know when you lock in and you send me a picture after going dark for like 48 hours of the artwork and I always love what I see. But what does that process do for you mentally and you know, and if you wanna challenge what the music does for you, that will be great.
I think for me, it’s just what it boils down to is like the why or why you do something. And, you know, for me my reasons just been I love painting, I love making music, I love helping businesses, I love introducing people and so like, if you love doing something you’re gonna just wanna do it.
Right.
And it’s the same way like, if you love someone, you’re gonna wanna be in a relationship with them. And like you follow through on that like undeniable passion. So for me a lot of people who might think I’m crazy or nuts for trying to do a bunch of different things that oh, he looks, you know, it’s easy to say like, “Oh, he looks unorganized, varies all over the place, “like what does this guy really do or how does he…” And it’s always funny to me because no matter how many outside voices there are, it never it can’t alter or change, like the internal love you have for something.
Right.
And so for me it’s there all these quotes right like you miss 100% of the shots that you don’t take. And if you don’t have to kind of take that even a step further is just like, if you love doing something, you just gotta do it.
Yeah.
And it doesn’t matter like I’m not doing these paintings, I’m not making this music for like any other reason than just the fact that I love doing it. You know whether someone will listen, if someone likes it and supports it, wants to buy it, wants to play my music that’s amazing that means the world to me and I have like tons of appreciation for the people that like genuinely support my endeavors. And it’s obviously amazing when you know, a company like WWE wants to license a song from me. Or one of my buddies Mason Plumlee wants to, you know, jump on a track with me and use his platform and celebrity to you know, I’ve had some cool things happen. And I think they’ve happened or whenever something winds up manifesting to like a bigger level than what I had thought it’s just because I think it reflects that love and that just unique, when you hear my music, it’s like I’m just being me. You can tell I’m not rapping about stuff that I haven’t done, it’s gotta be genuine. So yeah, I mean, I think that’s really what it’s all about is like identifying what you love. I mean look, and it’s okay to love more than one thing like, you love training with people, you love helping people improve their lives. But you know, you also love being entrepreneurial.
Yep.
You love growing relationships, business endeavors, brands, you know, so you’re a perfect example. I think that’s why you and I have like what is continuing to become like a better and better friendship. It’s just that I think we share like, a love for doing multiple things.
100% and we go after it, you know like for me, a lot of people be like, “Well, you’re so successful,” you know, outside of training people and all that good stuff and I get it like, yeah, I am. Obviously I can’t train as many people as I used to because it does take time to train people in person and do all that. But you know, I appreciate the connections and the social interaction from training people, which is why I enjoy training people that I do train. And you know, I like to hold on that because as you touched on earlier, to me it’s more than just training someone for an hour, it’s a friendship that you build with that person, that now I’m a part of who you are, I’m a part of your transformation or your health and wellness journey and I don’t wanna just be a part of that for the couple hours I see you every week, it’s more than that to me. And I think all of that kind of flows right in everything that else that I do in the business world. So I love that aspect of training and I always will. I always try to find a way to train people in a way just ’cause like I said, I love that interaction. And I love the ability to help people get to somewhere they wanna be or get to somewhere they didn’t think they can get to. And you know, I think it goes a long way with that accountability of showing up in person or getting on a virtual FaceTime session or whatever it may be. But you know, that’s why I enjoy checking in outside, of just our training sessions, to make sure that I’m holding you accountable to make sure that you know that I care about not just your fitness journey, but your life journey as well. So, you know, I try to score everything, all my clients do, you and all that good stuff. So you know, and I love all my clients and all the people I work with, and I’m friends with all of them, I build relationships outside of the training with all of them. So it’s great seeing you continue to do your thing and all the areas that you’re doing man and it’s really good stuff so all that’s good. Tell us about…
You like how I hit the ball to you and that kind of, do you like to transition from how I like…
Oh, it was great, I knew this was gonna be a smooth flowing conversation, I knew it was gonna be…
Like Roger Federer of conversation of just growling, fucking slice, forehead, back head.
Well, that was good, you know, you kind of just easy transition is like, you know, finding your why which is a very important topic for 1AND1 is and we like to help people find, discover their wellness, discover their fitness journey. So, finding your why for why you like to do things and you know, if it’s a multitude of things, yeah, like find a way to make it organized. But that’s not to say you can’t do multiple things at once. You know like, it’s possible people own multiple companies. There’s a reason like it’s possible to do multiple things at once. There has to be a strategic organized way of doing it, so you’re you’re effective and the execution is there but it’s very possible yeah.
Honestly I think Derek Zoolander said it best with the quote, “There’s more to life than just being “really, really, really good-looking” and like you and I, we could just be good-looking and that would be enough but we want more than that.
Right, right, exactly.
Like I don’t want people just to know me for being this hot guy, like I want more right? I’m joking.
No I know, where did your love for lamb chops come from? See it’s a great, it’s a delicious meal.
They’re lean, they’re super the wall, I mean you gotta obviously not eat like the fatty part but like first lamb chops just super dynamic, like they’re first of all you hold them by hand, you don’t necessarily even need… It’s one of the like more appropriate handheld meat items they’re like is around. But then also I had a friend who like just straight up told me that he was I love that we’re talking about lamb chops right now.
Well lamb chops are literally your background so it feels necessary.
Yeah I mean well my nickname is the lamb chop lord
Exactly.
If anyone wants to slide in my DMs for some lamb chop tips or locations or suggestions I can help out for sure. But I was told, hold on this actually funny. I was told that the production of lamb or like lamb chops is a lot smaller than obviously like the production of meat, like red meat and basically that lamb chops are healthier because they’re not like feeding them as many hormones and you know like GMO, corn processed bullshit. So basically I was sold on this idea that like, if you can eat lamb chops, eat lamb chops because hypothetically they’re not like as bad for you they’re just a better more, I could totally be wrong I’m all…
Yeah, yeah.
I didn’t fact check any of this, I just got sold an idea and I ran with it.
Right you’re not sitting here tryna be a nutritionist or anything so which I appreciate but hey that happens to me sometimes I get told something and I don’t even think twice to like just google it and I run with stuff so…
They’re also delicious. I mean they’re delicious, I think they’re.
Yeah lamb chops are amazing, I will take you up on an offer and try to figure out or maybe we just go. We had some at Carbone together shout out to our guy Julian.
Shout out to Julian.
Shout out to Julian, like I can’t wait.
I haven’t talked to him in a while hope he’s good.
No he’s good, I’ve been in touch with him you know, so I can’t wait till we get to go back to Carbone. We definitely got…
I feel like it could be soon.
Oh yeah, I feel like it could be for sure so I hope it is and I hope we’ll have to get on the reservation asap. So Julie if you’re watching you know when this goes out please make sure Corey Lewis and Water Will are good to go.
Get the Acqua Panna on ice, get the Acqua Panna ready baby!
So how have you been you know, just in terms of obviously making music etc still painting and all that like how is this coronavirus or COVID 19 I should say, this whole pandemic how has that kind of altered things for you mentally, physically and just the way in which you’re doing things in general, how is it, how has it affected it, has it made it better, has it allowed you to get more things done you know, just I would love some insight on I think myself and others would just love some insight on how you’ve handled these times.
I’m lucky in the sense that heading into this I had a lot of music, like I have a lot of music that I’ve just been working on for a long time that’s you know just all I needed was getting mixed and mastered which can be tedious. So I mean, I’m lucky that I don’t need to like go to the studio and record anything like I have a lot of music that I’m sitting on but I’ve been working with my engineer just mixing and mastering it and getting it really right, it’s kinda giving me more time to make sure that it sounds better. This Wednesday I have a new song coming out, this coming Wednesday June 3rd and like I can’t go shooting a music video right now because I just don’t think it’d be the smart thing to do to just interact with as many humans as it takes to make a music video You know right now with the COVID situation it really was about just like having as little human to human interaction as you can past right? So instead of shooting a real music video I shot a lyric video. I’ve been working on that for the past like two, three weeks just working on it and it’s really just given me a chance to kinda like you know, I don’t know have you ever seen someone who loses their ability to see like they go blind but then all of their other senses become more amplified, they can hear better, they can smell better, they can… So I think when at least for me with the music and also with the art like when you lose that ability to kind of go and push the music and work with people you start to hone in more on like the small details of things because that’s just all you got right? That’s all you can really focus on. So for me I think in a weird way the song that’s coming out this week like, I’m really excited about it just because I mean, I don’t think there’s anything I’ve missed.
Right, right now I love that analogy that you just used for kind of these times in terms of you know, basically your senses getting stronger when you lose something that you’re used to having you know such as eyesight. So obviously in this instance of COVID 19 and the global pandemic we lost the ability to do a lot so I agree that you know, for some and not for everybody there’s a lot of people who are affected by this negatively and you know obviously may not be in position to be agile and maneuver in a way and my heart goes out to those people, really trying to find a way to help those people but just going back on to your point, you know for the people who are blessed to have the ability to be agile and be nimble during these times I know for me and my business partner and just all people I know in business they found other ways to really have growth during this time to make progress in different areas that they may not have paid attention to if things were normal. So I think that was an awesome analogy man so, I’m really excited for your song coming out on Wednesday
Yeah.
Starting off June right? Summer banger I’m excited, I’m ready to hear it.
I mean listen the climate right now, like putting out a new song is I mean it’s a crazy time like I’ve had a few doubts about like maybe I shouldn’t put it out but the reality of the situation is that you know, with like a digital distributor and like putting your music out independently like you load up the song and you set it up for release like weeks ahead of time. So I mean like I submitted this song to, you have to do it you know, it’s not like you just load it up and then it’s on Spotify the next day.
Right, right.
And I think sometimes people don’t realize that and because they’re not putting music out they wouldn’t know unless they do it. Like it takes sometimes you know, people will put a song out to get released a month ahead of time.
Right.
Three weeks ahead of time. So for me like I mean literally weeks ago I picked June 3rd, I had no, I mean I didn’t have a crystal ball, I couldn’t tell that it would be you know we’d be where we are right now.
Right.
Few weeks ago, it’s just insane you know the song is like a real pump up motivational anthem, it’s not anything that’s like ignorant or dumb. So it kind of fits well ’cause I just think it’ll inspire people and hopefully just give them I mean, the song’s like two minutes and 30 seconds so hopefully it’s just… We hope everyone can take you know, 30 minutes to an hour to like just breathe and listen to music and everyone there right now it’s like, you gotta balance it out, so hopefully putting this song out like if one person you know, if it helps one person just feel inspired or feel good or motivated to to do something positive which is what the intention of the song is then it’s worth it. And actually it already has because the guy who did the lyric video was like, “Bro I love this song, it pumps me up, “I’ve listened to it a hundred times you know.” He said he listens to the song a hundred times. Like I’ve gone on runs to the song, he has a song to make the video I told him and so I mean for me that was already like validation right?
Right.
That was validation, I was like, “All right “if it can help this one dude,” who’s like, I mean obviously he’s not neutral because he’s working for me, I know that but…
Yeah he doesn’t have to mention that like he could just….
He doesn’t have to tell me that he’s you know, he just like it you know cool song whatever. He’s going like above and beyond to let me know how much he loves it, so for me that’s awesome. Like that’s already, okay cool it’s helped one guy, it’s already helped one person so it’s cool, it’s exciting. So I mean you know fingers crossed it just resonates well and inspires more people.
Right, no man, that’s awesome. That’s what you want from your music I mean, to be honest I know a lot of people were like, I don’t know if it’s a good time to do certain things but I think now is the perfect time to release music because at the end of the day people aren’t gonna stop listening to music it’s affordable, it’s accessible you know, it’s not hard to get to and music in a lot of ways it doesn’t heal all but like it’s so valuable to so many people.
Oh dude it’s therapeutic.
Yeah it’s therapeutic like it’s good, the lyrics and the messages and the beats everything like I know how certain songs make me feel and you know that’s it sounds like that’s what your song is gonna touch on and I think this is the perfect time for a song like that a feel good summer jam. So I’m excited for it.
If this song had been about like fucking bitches, like copping lambo, I’m in South beach, I just hit Louie, Virgil, I would have pumped the brakes. I would like you know what? Not the song for right now.
Right.
Right let’s wait till everyone gets you know, a little bit more settled in and things make a little bit of profit but actually for some crazy reason the song that I’m putting out on Wednesday is anthemic and motivational and really, it’s deep. The song is called “Within Me.” So it’s all about people you know, looking in the mirror and seeing kinda of like the individual power that you have to do something good, overcome a challenge. I mean I’ve gone through some crazy health stuff, you obviously know about it more so than the random people listening to this but like you know for me I really touched on certain situations where I was in the hospital, I was going through, I’ve been through a few situations in my life where I felt like there was no light at the end of the tunnel. And I really touched on those moments and those feelings to make this song. So it’s a special song to me just because a lot of really challenging experiences went into like the making of the song and also I mean there are a few really awesome people in the organizations that are excited about the song and I think it could just have a bigger, I’m excited for you to hear bro. I gotta send it to you.
No I’m excited ’cause I mean that sounds with everything we just talked about today and obviously everything you know that I believe in and just what my company with 1AND1 Life we believe in like digging deep to find your purpose find your why you know, like this stuff and really figuring out what you’re passionate about, this is perfect for these times man, so I’m really looking forward to it I’m actually gonna, it’ll probably be out by the time this video comes out. So I will make sure it’s a part of this video you know, get a little Will feel it in and do all that good stuff so you know I actually…
Lamb chops on me baby, next lamb chops on me, Julie fire them up.
We’ll fire them up, I’ll probably call this video “Within Me with Water Will” you know, I think that’s everything we touched on. I think it’s the perfect for this and everything you’re about, you have been a lot of people and we won’t obviously go too in depth there but you have been through a lot especially physically with your health conditions but you continue to stay positive and you continue to be enthusiastic, you never really, you’re not a debbie downer so that’s what I love about you, you’re always appreciative of the moment, you live in the moment, you’re always out to have a good time so you know that’s awesome stuff and again I’m excited for that song. One last thing before I let you go to end on a high note, we’ll probably even cue this clip up for this. There’s a viral video of you at a Rangers game, sitting I guess, it’s not necessarily court side, its a …
Ring side.
Yeah, ring side. Sitting dead front center I think pretty sure it was a Rangers playoff game.
Yeah.
Hottest ticket in the city.
It was hot, it was a hot one.
It was a hot ticket. And one of the broadcasters come up to you and I believe they ask you, this is a hot seat like blah, blah, blah and you’re like, I think you said 40 yeah man, $4500 cash.
Bro I honestly blacked out, it was just like it was a blur and they told me that it was only gonna be on in Canada. They were like this is just for Hockey Night in Canada and the rest is just like history. I don’t know that was…
Did the guy just come up to you and say like, he saw you in the front rows like I gotta go?
No first the guy came up to like to a group of us and was like, “Hey this the show for Canada Hockey Night “in Canada can we interview one of you?” I’m like, “Okay cool” and then the actual interviewer guy came up with mic and you know he asked me a few questions. I didn’t think anything of it and I actually have some boys, I have some good friends in college that are in Montreal.
Right.
And they’re like I just looked at my phone I got like a few text messages they were like, “Holy shit dude, like you were just…” And I was like “Oh okay well this makes sense right?” Like my friends in Canada saw it and that was it for the whole rest of the game I didn’t hear anything about it like… Okay my friends in Canada saw it. I thought the road would end there. I really didn’t think anything and we’re walking out of the game and my friend’s like, “Yo,” my friend that i went with was like, “Yo look at Twitter” and it was just like Rangers fan, I mean it just went nuts I was like, “Oh my god!” So yeah fun times.
Well definitely I know that was a long time ago but I’m definitely gonna cue that video because it’s one of my favorite videos that you’re in of all time. That video and your video I think of the video, maybe just a song but you have a song with Jim Jones.
Oh Bruh, Bruh.
Bruh bruh.
Bruh, bruh is on, and shout out to Jim Jones but BruhBbruh is probably the best music video that people don’t know about.
That’s my point, I love it, I love you know.
It’s a fucking sleeping giant. One day, I don’t know like 10 years from now I’m gonna be like 44 years old 12 years, I’m 32, but I can do math. But I don’t know why, I just have a funny feeling that I’m gonna be like a middle-aged man and it’s just gonna blow up.
No, Jim Jones is a rap icon obviously and he’s done a lot for the rap game. Jim Jones is the man man, dip set shout out to the diplomats man, so you got a lot of sleepers and that and obviously your music video with Mason Plumlee is also one of my favorites. You guys are straight clowning on there and it’s so good. So, a great time.
We’ve had some fun, the best is yet to come, the best is yet to come.
Well I’m excited, maybe I’ll hop into the next music video for sure.
Oh bro we have to actually talk about this.
We got off the record, off the back. We gotta actually talk about it because it could be fun. Trust me there’s gonna be a lot of Dream Pops in the next video.
Oh I’m looking forward to that, I’m looking forward to it man
I might be in the Dream pop factory just slang and pops.
Hey shout, you know we definitely gotta make it happen. We gotta get there, I need a nice order of dream pops shout out to
Can I just, can I ask something?
What’s up?
How many different chandeliers are in this room that you’re in right now? It just looks so plush oh my god, there’s a third one back there, wow, wow. I’ll trade you a lamb chop for a chandelier.
Thank you for joining us Water you’re the man. You know we’ll probably have you on here again I’m sure at some point but excited for your new music and shout out again to Dream Pops and all the wonderful stuff you’re doing with your art your music and all that good stuff. Thank you for joining us and going Off The Cuff with myself and 1AND1 man, so you’re the man and…
My brother thank you for having me, you’re the best.
for having you back on here brother, you the man.

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