Jamie Lynn Szantyr (born June 2, 1981) is an American color commentator and retired professional wrestler best known for her time with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) and the NWA under the ring name Velvet Sky. She is a former two-time TNA Women's Knockout Champion and is a former TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champion as part of The Beautiful People (with Madison Rayne and Lacey Von Erich, with the group defending the title under the Freebird rule). While a part of NWA she served as a color commentator.
Professional wrestling career Early Career (2003–2007)
Szantyr was trained by Jason Knight at the House of Pain Pro Wrestling Dojo in New Britain, Connecticut. After completing her training, she began working as a valet and wrestler on the independent circuit using the ring names Miss Talia, Talia Doll, and Talia Madison. On the independent circuit, she formed a tag team known as T&A with April Hunter.
Talia made her debut for World Xtreme Wrestling (WXW) on March 3, 2004, where she defeated Alere Little Feather. She won her first championship in professional wrestling, the WXW Women's Championship, after winning a battle royal on May 29, 2004. Talia went on to successfully defend her title against April Hunter, Cindy Rogers, Psycho and Ariel. On August 28, Talia teamed up with Alicia in a winning effort defeating Cindy Rogers and Mercedes Martinez in a tag team match, and defeated Becky Bayless in a bra and panties match on September 9. Talia continued her undefeated streak, successfully defending her title against Alere Little Feather, Luscious Lily, Cindy Rogers, Officer Mercy, and against Feather and Alicia in a triple threat match. On November 27, Talia teamed up with April Hunter in a winning effort, defeating The Moonshiners (Lulu and Trinity H. Campbell). On December 11, Talia successfully defended her title against Krissy Vaine. The following week, Talia teamed up with The Moonshiners (Lulu and Trinity H. Campbell) defeating Alicia, Cindy Rogers, and Mercedes Martinez in a six-woman tag team match. Talia's winning streak ended after she was defeated by Martinez on April 25, 2005. On July 8 at the WXW Spotsfest event, Talia lost the championship to Martinez. On September 12 at the WXW Tour, Talia unsuccessfully challenged Martinez for the title in a rematch. At the WXW 4th Annual Women's Elite 8 event, Talia unsuccessfully challenged Martinez again, this time in a triple threat match also involving Krissy Vaine.
Szantyr made a few appearances in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in 2005 and 2006. On the February 24, 2005, episode of WWE SmackDown!She appeared as an extra during the JBL "Celebration of Excellence" party. She was then defeated by Victoria on July 11 in a match taped for WWE Heat. On January 2, 2006, she and Trinity were planted in the front row of the audience to be selected to dance with The Heart Throbs after their match in another Heat segment. She also auditioned for the 2007 Diva Search, but did not make the final eight. As Talia Madison, she held Defiant Pro Wrestling Women's title, which she won on April 8, 2006, after defeating Alere Little Feather and Nikki Roxx in a triple threat match.
Later that year, she debuted in MXW Pro Wrestling and defeated Alere Little Feather at Brass City Battle. She also wrestled in Women's Extreme Wrestling (WEW), where she mainly worked in tag team matches. She found championship success here as half of The Simple Girls/The Madison Sisters with her (kayfabe) sister Nikki Madison, and as the "T" half of the T&A tag team with April Hunter, defeating Team Blondage's Amber O'Neal and Lollipop to win the titles on WEW's April 6, 2006 pay-per-view. She also held the WEW World Women's title, defeating Angel Orsini on May 5, 2007.
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2007-2012)
The Beautiful People (2007–2011)
When Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) announced the creation of their women's division in 2007, Szantyr, using her Talia Madison ring name, was announced as one of the ten wrestlers in a 10-woman gauntlet match to crown the first TNA Knockouts Champion at the Bound for Glory pay-per-view. Before the show, she made non-wrestling appearances on the October 5 episode of TNA Today and the October 11 episode of Impact!, standing at ringside for the debut match of Amazing Kong along with the other gauntlet match participants. In the weeks following the gauntlet match, her ring name was changed to Velvet Sky.
At the December Turning Point pay-per-view, Sky and Angelina Love formed an alliance and were dubbed Velvet Love Entertainment, later renamed The Beautiful People. After defeating ODB and Roxxi Laveaux early in the show, Love and Sky assisted Gail Kim in her match against Awesome Kong. They assisted Kim again after another match against Kong on the December 6 episode of Impact!, and at the Final Resolution pay-per-view, helping to stop a post-match brawl.
On the March 13 episode of Impact!, Sky and Love attacked Roxxi Laveaux and later that night Gail Kim, thus becoming villainous characters for the first time. At Lockdown, Sky and Love participated in the first ever Queen of the Cage match, which was won by Laveaux, when she pinned Love inside the cage. Sky and Love participated in the Make Over Battle Royal-Ladder Match at Sacrifice, which was won by Gail Kim. Around this time, Sky and Love added another factor to their gimmicks, placing brown paper bags over their opponents heads after defeating them. Soon after, Moose joined The Beautiful People, but she was quickly removed from the stable and the TNA roster after suffering an injury on the independent circuit. On the July 17 episode of Impact!, Sky won a Knockouts battle royal to become the number one contender to the TNA Knockouts Championship, but lost the title match the next week, as well as two more title matches immediately following, to then-champion Taylor Wilde.
The Beautiful People began associating themselves with Cute Kip, who become known as their "fashionist". At Bound for Glory IV, The Beautiful People and Cute Kip were defeated by ODB, Rhaka Khan, and Rhino. In March 2009, the team gained a new member in Madison Rayne, while Kip was "fired" from the stable twice in the following month before finally becoming a road agent for the company. Sky was in Love's corner when she defeated Kong and Wilde to win the TNA Knockouts Championship at Lockdown. Sky was also in Love's corner at Slammiversary, where she helped her defeat Tara by spraying hairspray in her eyes. At Hard Justice, Sky, along with Love, competed in a tag match against ODB and Cody Deaner in a losing effort when Deaner pinned Sky, resulting in Love losing the Knockouts Championship to ODB. After the loss, Madison Rayne was kicked out of The Beautiful People, with the pair vowing revenge in the upcoming tournament for the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship. The last of the four quarter final matches pitted The Beautiful People against Rayne and a mystery partner, who was later revealed to be the returning Roxxi. Regardless, The Beautiful People won the match and advanced to the semi-finals.
After the match was taped, Love was released from her TNA contract due to work visa issues. On the last episode of Impact! taped before her release, Love and Sky advanced to the finals of the tag team tournament by defeating Tara and Christy Hemme after interference from Madison Rayne. Afterwards, Rayne apologized to both Sky and Love, and was then welcomed back into the Beautiful People. At No Surrender, Sky and Rayne were defeated in the finals of the tournament by Sarita and Taylor Wilde. On October 1, Love's replacement Lacey Von Erich made her debut and joined the Beautiful People. Love would return to the company on the January 14, 2010, episode of Impact!, but instead of re-joining the Beautiful People, she attacked them, thus turning Love face.
On the March 8 episode of Impact!, Sky and Rayne defeated the teams of Love and Tara and Sarita and Taylor Wilde in a three-way match to win the vacant TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship, after interference from Daffney. The three members of the Beautiful People defended the titles under the Freebird rule. On the April 5 episode of Impact!, Sky was one of the four winners of the very first LockBox Showdown Elimination Tag Match. The box she opened contained a contract for Sky to challenge anyone of her choosing at any time, regardless of the stipulation. Sky then announced that she would be using her contract to face the new Knockouts Champion Angelina Love in a Leather and Lace match the following week. With Sky and Madison Rayne scheduled to receive a shot at the Knockouts Championship at Lockdown, the Beautiful People turned the Leather and Lace match into a three-on-one beat down, in order to soften Love up for the pay-per-view the following Sunday. At the pay-per-view, Rayne and Sky defeated Love and Tara, and Rayne became the new Knockouts Champion. Sky faced Love once again on the June 24 episode of Impact, and won by disqualification after receiving a DDT onto a steel chair, just like Von Erich the previous week.
In the summer of 2010, Sky began showing signs of a face turn, when Rayne began talking down to her and Von Erich, declaring that she did not need either of them, and then recruited a mystery woman hiding behind a motorcycle helmet to help her in her feud with Angelina Love. On the July 22 episode of Impact!, Sky refused to go along with Rayne, the mystery woman and Sarita, when they all finished assaulting Love and Taylor Wilde.
On the August 5 episode of Impact!, Sky and Von Erich lost the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship to Hamada and Taylor Wilde, when Rayne's and the mystery woman's interference backfired. The following week, Sky cemented her face turn by attacking the mystery woman during Rayne's title match with Angelina Love, and in doing so caused a distraction, which cost Rayne the Knockouts Championship. On the August 19 episode of Impact!, Sky reunited with Angelina Love, accompanying her to the ring and helping her successfully defend the Knockouts Championship against Rayne. After the match, Sky and Love were beaten down by Rayne and the mystery woman.
Rayne's mysterious ally was finally unmasked as Tara on the September 2 episode of Impact!, when the two of them defeated Sky and Love in their first match together in a year. At No Surrender, Sky defeated Rayne in a singles match. Lacey Von Erich would join Sky and Love, after being saved by them from Rayne and Tara on the September 16 episode of Impact!. Von Erich, however, would leave the promotion two months later on November 11.