World-renowned wrestler and rocker Chris Jericho chatted about Fozzy’s new forthcoming studio album “Boombox,” and their tour dates.
An international rock powerhouse, Fozzy is led by multi-hyphenate superstar Chris Jericho. The heavy metal band’s new album “Boombox,” which will be released on May 6th via The Century Family.
Aside from Chris Jericho on lead vocals, Fozzy is comprised of Rich Ward on guitar, and vocals, Billy Grey on the guitar, PJ Farley on the bass, and drummer Grant Brooks.
American track and field legend Jesse Owens once said: “We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort.” Chris Jericho is an athlete, musician, and individual that fits this wise quote by the late four-time Olympic gold medalist.
New album ‘Boombox’
“Boombox” features the band’s upbeat and anthemic new single “I Still Burn.” The song is quickly moving up the Active Rock radio charts, already in the Top 30 and rising.
On the song selection process for “Boombox,” Jericho said, “There really wasn’t much to select. We don’t do extra songs or B-sides. If we don’t feel that a certain song is not good enough, we just stop working on it. We just worked really hard on those songs to get the right 12 songs on the record.”
“We feel that each one of them could be a single, and that’s the same way we felt about ‘Judas’. That’s the vibe that we took into the writing and recording of this album,” he added.
The 12-track collection is produced by Johnny Andrews and it also features their Top 10 singles “Nowhere To Run” and “Sane” as well as an unexpected cover of Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s “Relax.”
On his personal favorite songs on the new record, Jerich remarked, “We have done six of the songs live so far even though the record hasn’t come out yet. My favorite are probably ‘Sane,’ which opens the set, ‘I Still Burn’ and ‘Purifier.’ Those are the three big ones right now. I think people are going to really dig ‘Ugly On The Inside’ as well.”
Jericho acknowledged that his music and songwriting are inspired by “everyday life.” “That’s the most important thing,” he admitted. “We write songs that people can relate to either in a positive way or a negative way.”
“We knew this album was something special,” he said. “We didn’t want this record to get lost in the shuffle. As a result, we wanted to wait until the time was right, and now is the time. All of the reviews are letting us know that we have made the right decision. This isn’t ‘Judas Part II’ but it’s an extension of that album. If the fans like ‘Judas’ album, I think they will like ‘Boombox.’ I think this will attract a whole new group of listeners just because the songs are so strong.”
‘Judas’ single
In addition to their upcoming studio album, Fozzy is celebrating another milestone. Their breakout hit and Top 5 rock single “Judas,” off their 2017 massive album of the same name, was recently certified Gold by the RIAA for sales of over 500,000 units. “That feels great,” he exclaimed. “To go gold at any point in time is great but especially now, in this day and age, is even better. We didn’t take that lightly. We are very happy, proud, and excited about it.”
Their music video for “Judas” has been viewed more than 55 million times. The track is also heard by millions of fans worldwide weekly on TBS Network’s hugely popular “AEW Dynamite” program, where Jericho wrestles every Wednesday.
After touring the world and building a loyal fan base for the better part of 20 years, Fozzy is the epitome of what a killer rock n roll band should be: catchy, groovy, hooky, sweaty, and most importantly: a great rocking time.
In addition to their own successful headline tours, Fozzy has also shared the stage in recent years with such musical acts as Metallica, KISS, Iron Maiden, Avenged Sevenfold, Shinedown, Slash, and Three Days Grace, among others.
Fozzy lights up every stage they play on with their electricity and charisma, making them one of the hottest rock acts in the world today. With five consecutive Top 20 singles, Fozzy is steadily becoming one of the most successful bands on modern rock radio.
‘Save The World’ tour dates
Fozzy is currently in the midst of their “Save The World” headlining tour, which wraps up on May 16. “We did this tour in two separate legs, the first leg was amazing,” he said. “In this run, people are waiting until the last minute to buy tickets, which was never the case before.”
“Now everyone is ready to rock and roll, and have a good time,” he added. “It has been a really good tour and tonight is the start of the next leg. We are in New Orleans tonight and we are ready to roll it out again.”
The digital age
On being an artist in the digital age (now with streaming and technology being so prevalent), Jericho said, “It’s the way things are now. Streaming is so convenient, and people have short attention spans, so sometimes we wonder if we should put out a full-length record, or if we should put out a song every three months.”
“I still believe in a record,” he said. “There are still millions of fans that like taking a musical journey with the band because that’s what an album is. All of the greatest bands of all time have their classic albums that you listen to all the way through, and they make you feel a certain way. That’s what we want to do with Fozzy and that’s what we want to do with ‘Boombox’. I think there is a whole musical landscape and a story that we tell with every song.”
Career-defining moments
On his career-defining moments, Jericho shared, “For me, just the fact that I had these goals as a kid such as being in a rock band and being a wrestler, and here I am 30 years later doing both at the highest levels, with Fozzy continuing to grow, has been a 30-year moment.”
“It is very gratifying and very exciting,” he said. “It shows that if you have hard work and belief in yourself and passion for what you do, then you can succeed when you do it. I am living proof of that.”
“Rock and roll and wrestling are my career choices,” he added.
Longevity in music
Regarding the key to longevity with Fozzy, he said, “Continuing to put out great music. Also, collaborating with Johnny Andrews was one of the smartest moves we’ve ever done. It is also very important to get support from rock radio. I never realized how important it was until we started getting played on rock radio. Once ‘Judas’ became the hit that it did, suddenly people started looking at us with different eyes.”
On the title of the current chapter of his life, Jericho revealed, “Cool Shit is Going On.” “That’s how I feel. There are so many cool things happening right now, and I am just enjoying them. Every day I work hard to make these moments happen, and they continue to happen so it’s a cool feeling all around. There are cool things happening all across the board,” he said.
‘Dancing with The Stars’ experience
He opened up about his experience on “Dancing With the Stars.” “It was awesome, it was hard. It wasn’t easy to do but nothing worth doing is ever easy. It was great to learn the skill of dancing.”
“I didn’t know anything about it, I didn’t know how to dance in that style and I learned. I think I did a pretty good job with it and I think I could have lasted a few weeks longer. Overall, it was a great experience, I really enjoyed it and I am glad that I did it,” he explained.
Silver lining during the pandemic
His silver lining during the lockdown involved “staying creative and finding new ways to do that.” “I’m not a doctor, electrician, or a mechanic, so I can’t fix or do anything other than entertain people so I just figured new ways to do that,” he said.
“I was also able to be home with my family,” he said. “It was actually a pretty good time. We live in a really big wooded area. It was the best possible remedy for what was going on.”
“I just honed the skills that I had, which was entertaining people and doing new versions of that,” he added.
If he were to have any superpower, he noted that it would be “flying.” “It would be fun to fly, and you would get fresh air,” he said.
Staying Fit
On staying in top-notch physical shape, Jericho said, “I eat right and look at the jobs that I do, they are both very physical and very cardiovascular-based. It’s showbusiness, you need to look good. I take a lot of pride in that and I take it very seriously so it’s a part of my job to stay in good shape.”
Success
Jericho defined the word success as “loving what you do.” “Enjoying and loving what you do,” he said.
For his fans, Jericho remarked about the album, “Boombox,” “Just check it out. I think if they liked Fozzy’s work in the past, they will love this record. If you’ve never heard of our band, I think you will love this record.”
Professor wrestler Jessie Godderz, affectionately known as Mr. Pec-Tacular, praised Chris Jericho for being an influence in his life. “Chris is one of (if not the best) of all time,” Godderz said about his wrestling prowess. “I would love to work with him sometime. I have the utmost respect for him and he was one of the main reasons I got into wrestling in the first place. I’ve always looked up to him and have been a huge fan ever since I was a kid.”
To learn more about Fozzy, their new music and their tour dates, check out their official website, and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
