Breaking The Walls Down: LeftLion meets Chris Jericho

Growing up, Chris Jericho had two dreams: to one day be a pro wrestler AND a rock star. Most people would settle for the OR and choose one of these careers to pursue – but Chris Jericho isn’t most people.

“They’re both very energetic forms of entertainment that both really depend on the audience” he says, detailing the similarities between the two professions. “You know, you can have a great show where everything goes perfectly… but if the crowd isn’t into it as much, then it’s not as good a show as one where you have some mistakes, but the people there are having a great time and going crazy.”

Having first made a name for himself wrestling all over the world in places like Mexico and Japan, he eventually made his WWE (then WWF) debut back in 1999. He would then go on to have a legendary wrestling career, winning multiple world titles and beating household names like The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin along the way. However, around the time of his WWE debut, Jericho would also meet guitarist Rich “The Duke” Ward, with the pair immediately hitting it off. One day after a wrestling show, Rich would invite Jericho to play with his covers band – which is where Fozzy was born.

“We learned very early on each other’s boundaries - there’s a lot of mutual respect between us, which is earned” he says on his creative partnership with Rich. “We’re a great team in that he does certain things amazing and I just stay out of it; and then I do certain things amazing, he stays out of it. We give each other that space. Tour posters and press for example – that’s more my responsibility. Whereas songwriting, that’s more his responsibility. So, you respect each other and delineate, which creates a kind of understanding between the two of us. We’ve had a few disagreements over the years, but not many that I can remember really. So that’s a sign of a great partnership for sure.”

However, long before their eight studio albums of their own material, Fozzy begun life as "Fozzy Osbourne" – an Ozzy Osbourne tribute band. With the Prince of Darkness sadly passing away last year, the band decided to honour their Ozzy roots by releasing a cover of his song, Crazy Train - which went Top 10 in the US on the Billboard Rock Charts. “Ozzy was the very first heavy metal album I ever bought – Blizzard of Ozz. I’ve always had a connection with Ozzy, both as a fan then working with him on quite a few occasions” says Jericho, reflecting on what the Metal Icon has meant to him and his career. 

“I mean Ozzy was just like a guy that you could meet at the pub right? He was always just Ozzy, man – and as crazy as he was, he was just a very sweet guy and a very hard worker. It was a real shame to lose him; not just to lose him physically from the world, but to lose him for 10 years prior when he couldn’t tour or perform. So, it was great to see him sing at the Back To The Beginning show – none of us thought he’d be gone two weeks later. But a true legend in every way, shape or form, that has influenced so many.”

The spirit of originally being a covers band is something that has stuck with Fozzy, even now 25 years later. While they have plenty of their own original crowd pleasers like Judas, Enemy, Sandpaper and recent single Fall In Line, they have also gained fans throughout the years with covers of ABBA’s SOS and Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s Relax – two songs you wouldn’t typically associate with a metal band.

“Well that’s the thing, they’re both such great songs that lend themselves to a heavy arrangement, even though they’re total pop songs” he explains on their surprising success. “You want to try and find those types of tunes. Every year on the Jericho Cruise, we play a covers set – we’ve done everything from The Weeknd to The Rolling Stones, and everything in between. One that we did that worked well with some heavy guitars was Sunglasses At Night by Corey Hart. So yeah, you stumble upon these songs every once in a while.” 

One city that has particularly taken to Fozzy throughout the years, is right here in Nottingham. A brief look through the band’s history and it shows that their gig next week will be the band’s 7th time playing Rock City and their 10th time playing a show in Nottingham – with their first here all the way back in 2005.

“That 2005 show was the first time we had ever played in the UK” he explains, recalling that first performance here in Nottingham. “We were playing Rock City - one of the smaller rooms - and when I walk onstage... I thought I had walked onto the wrong band’s stage. There were so many people there! I couldn’t believe it - I thought there is no way all these people are here for us. And they were! And its been that way ever since.”

This upcoming tour is a celebration of Fozzy’s incredible 25 years together, with the band’s career now seeing the same longevity as Jericho’s continuing wrestling legacy. So, having excelled in not one but two dream jobs – what is the secret to his success?

“I think just keeping things fresh and exciting. Connecting with the audience is very important. Just making sure people have a great time whenever they see my name on the bill. I think with Fozzy, we’ve done such a great job of touring the UK frequently and playing everywhere, to where we’ve built up such a fanbase. It’s just great to see how the band has built ourselves up in the UK, and how our fanbase has stuck with us and grown so much over the last 25 years.”

And what advice would Jericho give to anyone else looking to chase their dreams into showbiz?

“Just go for it! Don’t listen to anybody that tells you that you can’t do something – if you want to do it, go do it. Because the only thing that holds people back from succeeding I find is themselves. Don’t listen to negativity, and don’t look for reasons why it won’t happen - look for reasons why it will happen. And if you have the belief in yourself, you can make it happen – I did!”

Don’t miss Chris Jericho and Fozzy playing Rock City on Friday 13th February – you can order your tickets here.