Summary

AEW ring announcer Arkady Aura has named former WWE ring announcer Justin Roberts as the single biggest influence on how she approaches her craft, while also acknowledging the impact of Lillian Garcia and Samantha Irvin on her development. Aura discussed the balancing act between absorbing inspiration and carving out a distinct identity in a recent interview with Denise Salcedo.

Quote from Arkady Aura

Speaking to Salcedo, Aura was candid about how she got into studying ring announcing in the first place and what she's learned from doing so:

"A little bit of both. I think watching, I didn't grow up watching it, but when I was trying to wrestle, I was watching a lot of wrestling, so you hear all the announcements. Obviously, Lillian Garcia, I mean, Samantha Irvin, whatever. But also, Justin Roberts, I think, has been probably the biggest inspiration for me. However… I think it's really hard. You don't want to copy someone's voice. If you're listening to someone's voice all the time, I think it's so important to study and learn. But I found that if I listen too much, then I'm imitating it, and I just want to find my own voice. Justin really encouraged me finding my voice, not trying to emulate him or sound like him or whatever. So I've worked on that a lot over the last year, I would say. I'm trying to just find my voice and bring that out more. But obviously inspired by so many people, just… trying to find my voice in there, too."

Justin Roberts and the Making of Arkady Aura's AEW Style

Roberts was WWE's lead ring announcer for over a decade, widely regarded as one of the best in the business for his controlled delivery and ability to build a room before a match even began. For Aura, his influence goes beyond technique. His advice to her was pointed: find your own voice rather than chasing his.

That framing matters for where Aura sits in AEW right now. She came to the role without a background in ring announcing, and the interview makes clear she has been putting in deliberate work over the past year to develop something that feels authentic rather than borrowed. The praise Renee Paquette has publicly given Aura and Lexy Nair for their growth in AEW tracks with that story of steady, self-directed improvement.

Sources

As reported by Fightful.