Paranormal Podcasts: Talk Is Jericho

I am a relative newcomer to the world of podcasting. I had heard of podcasts, but because my old phone had very little storage space on it, I never really looked into podcasts. Or things like music or videos. But I got a new iPhone back in January, and started exploring my options. More storage space opened up a whole new world of possibilities for me (I could now have more than 3 apps and 4 songs on my phone!), so the first thing I checked out was the podcasts feature, and I was immediately hooked. I started downloading episodes and subscribing to different podcasts that appealed to me, and even eventually started my own podcast with my son, Sightings Sunday. I naturally gravitated to some of the more paranormally-themed shows, and decided to start reviewing them here, as apparently I have lots of thoughts and feelings about stuff.

My First Podcast

The first podcast I checked out was Talk Is Jericho, hosted by professional wrestler Chris Jericho (real name Chris Irvine). For those who don’t know, Jericho (aka: Y2J, the Ayatollah of Rock ‘n’ Rolla, the best in the world at what he does, etc.) rose to fame through ECW and WCW, and then famously jumped ship to WWE (then WWF), verbally sparring with the Rock in his debut in one of the most memorable promos ever.

I won’t go into his whole history here, as his Wikipedia page says it all, but he’s a 31-time champion, beat Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock in the same night to unify 2 belts, competed on season 12 of Dancing With the Stars, is a recurring guest on Talking Dead, and is the lead singer of Fozzy, a heavy metal band that is actually quite good. And I am pretty picky about my heavy metal, so that’s something coming from me. And to top it all off, he’s now a very successful podcaster to boot.

So what does a wrestler’s podcast have to do with the paranormal? A lot more than you might suspect, actually.

Wrestling With the Paranormal

First and foremost, let me just say that Jericho is a natural interviewer, witty, charismatic, incisive, and knowledgeable. Anyone familiar with his wrestling work won’t be surprised by this, and he’s made a pretty smooth transition to podcasting. He’s very open about being interested in the paranormal, and even though he has a wide variety of guests, from fellow pro wrestlers to famous musicians, actors, and comedians, he has gotten a lot of them to go off the typical interview path and discuss paranormal topics, such as getting William Shatner to talk about his beliefs regarding extraterrestrials and UFOs. He’s not afraid to ask questions that other interviewers might avoid, and that really makes his podcast work.

Again, Talk Is Jericho is not really a paranormal podcast, and most of his guests aren’t from the paranormal community. But he does have plenty of paranormal-centric guests. My favorite? In a fantastic crossover of wrestling and the unexplained, he had former Minnesota Governor Jesse “The Body” Ventura on the show twice already. A former wrestler in his own right and now an author on conspiracy theories, Ventura is fascinating to listen to. He has a wealth of knowledge (he was a former Navy Seal as well), and really knows how to make the conspiracy theories sound a lot less wacky than they usually do. His political experience alone gives his stories a bit more gravitas. But I’ll save my praise for the Governor for another review I have in mind. Another great episode on conspiracy theories is the show he did with Greg Carlwood of The Higherside Chats podcast. More good stuff.

Bigfoot and Ghosts and…

Not really into conspiracy theories? Perhaps Bigfoot is more your thing? Fear not, as Jericho has conducted interviews with Loren Coleman, Eric Altman, Wes Germer (of The Sasquatch Chronicles podcast, which I’ll be reviewing next), and fellow wrestler Dean Ambrose. Actually, Jericho and Ambrose did an entire episode where they didn’t discuss wrestling at all. Just two friends talking about Bigfoot, ghosts, lake monsters, and other paranormal interests.

Jericho’s son Ash has been on the show a number of times, and they have discussed the Loch Ness monster and other lake monsters. And if you’re into ghosts, he’s spoken with Ami Bruni from Ghost Hunters, as well as Zak Bagans from Ghost Adventures, and Josh Gates from Destination Truth and Expedition Unknown. I’m not the biggest fan of any of these shows, but Ami and Josh came across as very down to earth in their interviews, and I enjoyed them a lot more than I thought I would.

There’s still plenty of paranormal episodes I haven’t listened to yet, with UFO experts and more ghost stories and the like. I just find myself getting wrapped up in some of the other Talk Is Jericho episodes when I need a break from ghosts and goblins.

Ready to Rumble?

Overall, Talk Is Jericho is a great podcast to check out, whether you are interested in the paranormal or not. There’s sure to be something for everyone here. But as someone into the paranormal, this podcast is definitely always in my playlist.

Verdict: SUBSCRIBE