Chris Jericho built his life around professional wrestling and rock music, but his children have shown no interest in following him into either business.
Speaking to Beef Vegan on Rock 102.1 KFMA, Jericho was asked whether any of his three children had caught the wrestling or rock-and-roll bug. Jericho said none of them are currently interested in becoming performers, although his daughter Sierra has started moving toward a career connected to the entertainment industry.
“No. I mean, that’s the thing. I have three, and none of them are really into show business at all at this point. My daughter Sierra is the closest. She’s kind of getting into advertising and marketing and that sort of thing, so she knows how to promote people in show business.”
Jericho made it clear that he has no intention of pushing his children toward wrestling, music or any other career just because those industries worked out for him. He said his main concern is that they find something they genuinely care about.
“When you have kids, you want them to just do whatever they want to do and whatever they have a passion for. I think that’s one thing I was always pretty lucky with when it came to my parents. As fantastical as it seemed, especially in 1990, to want to become a wrestler and get into a rock-and-roll band, it wasn’t easy to do. It’s not easy to do even nowadays.”
Jericho knows what it is like to have expectations placed on him because of his family name. His father, Ted Irvine, played professional hockey, and Jericho admitted there was pressure on him to follow that same path.
The former AEW World Champion said he simply was not good enough at hockey and eventually found his own lane in wrestling and music. He is giving his children that same freedom instead of expecting them to become third-generation athletes or entertainers.
“My dad was a professional hockey player. I wasn’t very good at hockey, so there was a lot of pressure on me to follow in his footsteps, and I just wasn’t cut out for that. I think it’s the same with my kids, who are now third-generation athletes and entertainers. You don’t have to go down that route if you don’t feel it, and whatever they decide to do is cool by me.”
Jericho also admitted he is not disappointed that his children have stayed away from wrestling and music. He knows firsthand how difficult both industries can be, and he is not losing sleep over them choosing another direction.
“Wrestling and rock and roll are both very hard businesses to get into. Not that you can’t do it, but it’s not like it’s breaking my heart that they haven’t shown any interest.”
Jericho noted that his children are still young enough to change their minds. His three children are currently 20 and 22 years old, so the door is still open if one of them suddenly decides to step inside a wrestling ring or pick up an instrument.
“They’re still 20 and 22. They might wake up tomorrow and want to give it a try, but for right now, they’ve got other interests, and that’s a thousand percent cool by me.”
Jericho may be one of the most successful wrestlers to cross over into music, but he does not expect his children to copy his career. He was allowed to chase a path that made sense for him, and now he is giving them the same opportunity to build lives of their own.
Do you think any of Chris Jericho’s children will eventually enter professional wrestling or the music business? Let us know what you think in the comments.
