Kai Greene: Will He Compete Again? | Kai Files Oct
Kai Greene: Will He Compete Again?
By Ron Harris
Kai Greene is one of the best bodybuilders of this generation, yet we have not seen him on a contest stage in nearly six years. In 2021 Kai signed with supplement industry powerhouse Redcon1, and there was new hope that he might return to the stage. That same year, Ron Harris spoke with Redcon1 owner and founder Aaron Singerman about that possibility.
Q: First off, Aaron, how did you get to know Kai?
A: I’ve known Kai for over a decade, back from when I was traveling the world covering contests as a reporter and journalist. I spent time with him in places as far away as India. Initially he didn’t like me because I wrote a gossip type of column and he didn’t always appreciate things I said. Kai is a very private person. People say he’s a mysterious character that nobody really knows about. We know his achievements, but not the man. That’s something that Redcon1 and I plan to rectify, because he’s somebody worth knowing. He’s kind of introverted and shy even though we know him from his onstage persona doing his thing for the fans. He doesn’t want people to know a whole lot about his life. I think that’s changing as he’s getting older.
Once he got to know me, we became friends, and about five years ago we started a company together called Dynamik Muscle as 50/50 partners. He had just left another company, and I convinced him it was time to move on in his career beyond being a sponsored athlete. Starting that company cemented our relationship as friends and business partners.
The following year I started Redcon1, and it took off like a rocket ship. By 2017 we were already doing several times more revenue than Dynamik Muscle. It was even more dramatic a year after that. I then realized I wasn’t really putting in the marketing work on my end for Dynamik that I’d told him I would, and I felt terrible about it. We had a long talk on a balcony in Dubai where I explained I didn’t feel comfortable taking half the profits, and that I would give him my half of the company plus all the inventory, rather than asking him to buy me out. That brought our friendship to another level, because not many people would do that. I had been very fortunate with Redcon1, and I just felt it was the right thing to do, as I hadn’t been pulling my weight.
Kai ran the company after that, but it’s very difficult to do that and anything else. He’s got a much bigger role in season three of “Stranger Things,” he has other acting projects in the works, and he’s gotten back to painting. He had a big art show and everyone wanted to buy his work, but he wouldn’t sell even one. He wouldn’t even sell me one! Now he plans on finally doing that. The comic book has really taken off, and there’s an option to turn it into a show. Kai finally realized he couldn’t focus on Dynamik Muscle any longer as he had too many other things going on.
Q: Is that what led to him becoming a Redcon1 athlete?
A: I told him I would love to have him on the team. I thought he’d be a great ambassador and face for the company, and we work together well. Kai is very particular about who he works with, and you also need to know how he works. He has some incredible strengths, and some things he’s just not going to do. It was the right time and the right place. At 45 years old, his timeline for competing is running out. If he wants to come back and have a proper end to an amazing career, there isn’t much time left.
Q: I’ve seen a few contracts between athletes and supplement companies, and often they stipulate that the athlete either needs to compete X amounts of times per year, or else compete in specific big shows. Did you have something like that in his contract?
A: Our contract is confidential so I can’t disclose specific details. Obviously, I would love him to compete again. I know in his heart of hearts if you had an honest conversation with him, he doesn’t want to be remembered as a champion bodybuilder who walked away without anybody really knowing he was gone. I was traveling with him in 2016 when he won three Arnold Classic shows in a row. I know when those were over, he didn’t think those would be his last contests. No way. Kai thinks about bodybuilding differently now, as more of his craft and an exhibition. He would look at a contest as an opportunity to give his best performance, instead of simply going into it to win. His mindset is past just wanting to be Mr. Olympia. He doesn’t feel he can mentally get his head around competing in a show only for the purpose of winning. I am hoping he competes sooner rather than later. If it were up to me, I’d love for him to do a smaller show and qualify for the Olympia rather than going on a special invitation. Redcon1 now has seven people on our video team. We could literally follow and document every step of his journey back to the stage.
Q: All of us who follow Kai are amazed at how he always looks just as big as ever, and how lean he stays. I doubt he would need more than eight weeks to reach 100 percent peak condition.
A: True, and if he can do that, how much more would it really take for him to get into contest condition? I know that his main concern from a health standpoint is the drying-out process in the final days where diuretics are used. But there are ways to get rid of the water without harsh pharmaceutical diuretics.
Q: Redcon1 doesn’t just sign athletes because they have great physiques or big contest wins. You like to have athletes with larger-than-life personalities like Kai Greene and Blessing Awodibu.
A: Correct, I like to have athletes with something special, like being funny and being able to communicate well. Kai is a perfect fit for the company.
Q: Well Aaron, I sincerely hope Kai does come back, because the sport isn’t quite the same without him on stage.
A: We shall see!
Kai Greene’s Redcon1 Stack
Total War® RTD - pre-workout
BIG NOISE® - pre-workout
ISOTOPE® - post-workout
Yohimbine HCL - pre-workout
MED+KIT® - upon waking
BREACH® - intra-workout
For more information, visit redcon1.com
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