Before joining the WWF, he was in several tag teams, most notably with Bobby Eaton in Memphis and with Norvell Austin (The PYT Express) in several promotions.

Early in his career, "Koko Ware" (as he was then known) did not find great success, learning the ropes and paying his dues in Jerry Jarrett's Continental Wrestling Association and Nick Gulas' territory.

[4][5] Ware floundered until September 1981, when he was chosen to referee a Southern Heavyweight Championship title match between Jerry Lawler and the "Dream Machine".

Koko quickly aligned himself with manager Jimmy Hart and his First Family and changed his ring name to "Sweet Brown Sugar".

[4] During an interview where Eaton and Hart bragged about the victory, Sugar complained that he was unable to win the Southern Title from Terry Taylor.

During a tag-team tournament in 1983, the masked Stagger Lee teamed up with fellow face Norvell Austin to take on "Fargo's Fabulous Ones" (Tommy Rich and "Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert).

During the course of the match Stagger Lee's mask was removed to reveal the man beneath it, prompting a heel turn for Ware.

[8] The two men soon began wearing red leather jackets, and each had a single white glove on, in an obvious imitation of Michael Jackson to further enhance their "pretty boy" image.

On February 26, 1985, Austin and Ware defeated Jay and Mark Youngblood to win the NWA Florida United States Tag Team Championship.

Ware's persona was that of a face who entered the ring to the theme of Morris Day's "The Bird", doing an arm-flapping dance.

He made his entrances dancing to the ring to the tune of Morris Day and The Time's "The Bird", flapping his arms and carrying Frankie, who sat on a perch at ringside while Ware wrestled.

Bright outfits, colorful sunglasses, a constant smile and his vibrato singing voice made Ware popular, especially with the younger crowd that the WWF mainly catered to during the 1980s.

The song's video featured top wrestlers of the day like Hulk Hogan and The Honky Tonk Man, as well as WWF owner Vince McMahon wearing a red "Hulkamania" shirt and hard hat.

Ware garnered his first big win of his initial WWF run when he upset Harley Race at a house show in East Rutherford, NJ, on October 13.

On television, his first major showcase was at the November 29, 1986 Saturday Night's Main Event VIII where he defeated Nikolai Volkoff.

[12] He was then granted an Intercontinental Title match against champion Randy Savage on the November 16 edition of Wrestling Challenge, a bout which went to a double countout.

Ware often lost to bigger stars, such as Butch Reed, Hercules, Greg Valentine, and The Big Boss Man.

During a 1989 European tour, Ware was fired for his part in a physical altercation with WWF executive Jim Troy.

Troy had used racial slurs during an argument after which the dispute turned physical, breaking through a glass window in the hotel lobby.

[20] With Owen Hart out of action Koko would return to singles competition and immediately entered a house show series with Skinner.

Koko returned to WWF in 1994 when he appeared on the March 21 episode of Monday Night Raw and faced Jeff Jarrett.

He ended his WWF run with three straight victories as he teamed with Bushwhacker Luke Williams in house show matches in Philippines, Hong Kong, and Singapore against Reno Riggins and Barry Horowitz.

By 1992 the WWF and the United States Wrestling Association started a talent exchange agreement which saw Koko B. Ware return to Memphis.

On the January 25, 1999, edition of WWF Raw is War, Ware made a short-lived return to the World Wrestling Federation where he put on the "Blue Blazer" mask during the Owen Hart angle and Jeff Jarrett in their victory for the tag team championship.

The piece took place in a wrestling ring, with Tosh dressed as The Ultimate Warrior and the pair being fought by a number of WWE Legends such as Ware, "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase and Sgt.

Ware was a defendant in a 2015 lawsuit filed by WWE after they received a letter from him indicating that he intended to sue them for concussion-based injuries sustained during his tenure with them.