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Originated well over 100 years ago, few forms of entertainment have experienced long-term popularity like professional wrestling. Wrestling was notably one of the first popular forms of programming on American television, and it continues to air globally in a variety of forms, thanks to many different popular promotions in North America, Europe, Asia and elsewhere - the most prominent being WWE.
2019 is arguably another "golden age" for professional wrestling. While in the early 2000s, the only major North American-based company related to wrestling was undoubtedly WWE, these days there are plenty of prominent alternatives seen on national television, including All Elite Wrestling, Impact Wrestling, Ring Of Honor, Major League Wrestling, and Mexico's AAA; New Japan Pro-Wrestling has also major U.S. presence these days. Beyond that, there are wrestling-themed conventions taking place regularly all over the world, countless wrestling-centric podcasts, numerous wrestling-related apparel companies, wrestling-based documentaries showing on television -- thanks to the Viceland channel -- and full-time wrestling beat writers employed by the likes of Rolling Stone and Sports Illustrated.
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Despite wrestling's widespread international popularity, it is still taboo in some circles to out yourself as a wrestling fan. Wrestling often carries a stigma within the mainstream media due to the actions of the field's less appealing aspects. This is absolutely comparable to the musical world, where a few "confused" fans may lead other people with similar interests to be the victims of unfair generalizations. In turn, Ozzy Osbourne, AC/DC and Judas Priest are among the high-profile rock artists who have been victimized by sensationalist journalists, all while maintaining huge long-term fanbases that truly "get it."
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Elsewhere within the music and entertainment spaces, Phish has often been described as a "jam band," yet the Vermont-based act represents a lifestyle to millions of people. Formed over 35 years ago, the quartet of Trey Anastasio, Jon Fishman, Mike Gordon and Page McConnell are playing to capacity crowds at arenas and festivals all these years later. The group technically only has one gold-selling studio album (as certified by the United States' RIAA institution), yet few bands have sold as close to as many concert tickets -- or have had a wide cultural impact comparable to -- as Phish.
While professional wrestling and the band Phish may not seem to have much in common on a surface level, given further analysis, you can actually see similarities experienced among fans of the two. Here are ten of those similarities that have occurred to this writer... who, admittedly, has only attended one Phish concert in total.
#1 Improvisation
I hope I'm not ruining it for anyone for whom wrestling "is still real to," but professional wrestling has pre-determined outcomes. However, the talent involved with a match still need to do their fair share improvising from bell to bell. In other words, they may know how a match is going to start and end, but the way in which the talent takes the story from point A to point B is going to be different every time, even if the same people had wrestled previously with the same pre-decided outcome.
As a "jam band," Phish is no stranger to improvisation. The song "You Enjoy Myself" may be a little under 10 minutes on the Junta studio album, yet in concert, it often goes over 20 minutes in length. In fact, the October 31, 1995 recording of the song featured on the Live Phish Volume 14 album goes for more than 40 minutes. While the song has a determined introduction, chorus and overall structure, its improvised sections may include a vocal jam and references to earlier parts of the evening's performance.
Ultimately what this tells you is that both Phish and in-ring talent are both not only paying attention to audience reaction when performing, but are also aiming to keep things fresh. They do not repeat the same performance on a nightly basis, even if that would be easier and cost-effective. After all, artists are known to take their live performances seriously as a true art-form.
#2 A Fanatical fanbase that is willing to travel
Within the world of professional wrestling, the wrestlers and other on-air talent are not the only people traveling regularly. Take the week of WrestleMania, for example, where over 100,000 wrestling fans are expected to descend upon the event's host city each year. In turn, WWE is not the only major wrestling-related company hosting events in that city on that particular weekend.
WrestleMania aside, there have already been two successful Starrcast events where fans, podcasters and wrestling talent from all over the world have participated. New Japan's recent G1 event in Dallas attracted plenty of visiting fans from all over. Chris Jericho's Rock N' Wrestler Rager At Sea cruise -- a mix of wrestling, music, comedy, podcasts and DDP YOGA-related events -- also attracted fans from all over the world, with a second cruise announced (and almost sold-out) for January 2020.
Phish not only tours traditional concert venues, but the group has regularly hosted its own large-scale festivals; last year's Curveball was intended to be its 11th, as it's slated to be held at Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, NY. Already announced for February 2020 is a multi-night stand in Riviera Maya, Mexico where fans will be treated to four nights of Phish in a beachfront setting. In other words, both the fans and the band are traveling to a destination which neither can call home-base, where all attendees are there for the same reason.
#3 A 24/7 Reddit news cycle
Within the professional wrestling landscape, wrestling fans have what those within the industry have long called "the dirt-sheets." A pejorative way of describing websites and newsletters which publish rumors -- which often turn out to be true, might I add -- and reports related to recent events, these publications are in sync with a 24/7 news cycle, like you would see on CNN or Fox News. And naturally, a healthy amount of the wrestling fanbase just goes to Reddit to hear the latest and greatest wrestling-related news.
Phish is one of the few bands big enough to not only have its own Reddit community, but to also generate enough content so that there are interesting threads posted all day, every day. Today, for example, within Phish's Reddit community recent posts located include discussion about finding tickets for upcoming shows, recaps of recent live events, seeking old band-related merchandise, and finding people to meet up with.
Comparing concert setlists, is that any different than going over who won and lost matches at a live event? Is talking about which songs you hope to hear at a concert much different from "fantasy booking" a wrestling card or a long-term Raw storyline? And is looking for an old Phish tour poster that far in scope from chasing down a vintage WWF t-shirt? Personally, I'm thinking no, no and no.
#4 Slang within the community
As wrestling fans, there are plenty of genre-related phrases, slang, and jargon we are regularly used to hearing. These include "booker," "territory," "over," "heel," "babyface," and "jobber," and that's just the tip of the iceberg. If someone you are talking about wrestling with is not familiar with one or more of those words within casual conversation, odds are that you are immediately going to stop taking their viewpoints seriously.
Apparently, those sorts of fan hierarchies exist within the Phish community as well, as you probably don't want to be viewed as a "wook" or a "noob." From what I can tell, as an outsider, a "custy" is also looked down upon although on the surface they look like they have their affairs in order.
Then again, "smart" wrestling fans can actually be as grating to speak with for a long period of time as a "1.0" within the Phish community. Those, for the uninitiated, are fans before you were and, as such, they know more than you do. The "2.0" fans -- who joined the Phish community "at some point after Phish came back from their hiatus in 2002, and before they officially broke up in 2004" -- are arguably comparable to wrestling fans who came onboard after ECW and WCW had collapsed.
Looking into the future, the "3.0" fans of Phish may not be too far off from today's younger AEW fans. They may not have been around for the "prime" that the business had to offer, yet by use of the Phish equivalent of the WWE Network -- presumed to be a mix of tape-trading, Reddit and other means of archiving Phish -- they are able to grasp the past, present and future of their hobby.
#5 Crossover Memes
Professional wrestling has had its fair share of crossover stars over the years. Gorgeous George and Bruno Sammartino are early examples of this. Hulk Hogan, "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Ric Flair, The Undertaker and The Ultimate Warrior are 1980s and 1990s examples of wrestlers who even non-wrestling fans knew about. More recent examples include John Cena, The Rock, The Miz, Batista, and Triple H.
While none of the members of Phish have even come out publicly -- as far as I know, at least -- as big wrestling fans, the Phish live staple known as "Tweezer" is known to provoke fans to yell "woo!" during musical pauses. This has led some wrestling-aware Phish fans to merge some vintage Ric Flair clips into some live Phish footage, like the embedded video above.
Also, per the earlier-mentioned Phish Reddit community, WWE Hall Of Famer The Iron Sheik has tweeted his love for Phish. In Sheiky Baby's words from August 16, 2018: "THE PHISH IS IN MY HEART FOREVER I LOVE THEM. IF YOU DONT RESPECT THEM I BREAK YOUR BACK MAKE YOU HUMBLE." There are rumors that The Sheik was scheduled to be part of a New Year's Eve 2014 Phish concert, for which the band included a masked wrestler on its official t-shirt.
#6 Tape-Trading
Before the Internet became what it has become in recent years, many professional wrestling fans were known as "tape-traders." They collected footage -- on VHS, of course -- and would trade it with other fans, swapping things that could not be easily found or purchased. Supposedly, tape-traders were who helped create all the hype that led to locating the now-found late 1980s match between Bret Hart and Tom Magee - which can now be seen on the WWE Network.
As with other "jam bands," Phish permits attendees to record their live concerts. While the band themselves also sell inexpensive, high-quality recordings and/or streams of its concerts, this fan-friendly approach keeps Phish fans hooked, since no two Phish shows are known to carry an identical setlist. In fact, these live recordings have helped to make recurring traditions like Phish's Halloween shows into legendary and highly-sought-after events.
Aside from professional wrestling and Phish, I cannot think of many forms of entertainment which attract tape-traders and the like. I do not believe I have ever encountered an NBA or NFL-related collector of that sort, especially since few people re-watch old or "classic" games the way that fans may revisit a notable concert or wrestling event.
#7 Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden is often referred to as "The World's Most Famous Arena." The New York city venue is regularly home to all sorts of events, including professional sporting events (e.g. New York Knicks, New York Rangers, WWE), concerts (e.g. Billy Joel's on-going residency) and specialty competitions (e.g. the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show).
Within the scope of wrestling, MSG has been the site of monthly live events for not only WWE, but also its preceding WWF and WWWF incarnations. It was the site of "The Curtain Call," several WrestleMania pay-per-views -- including the first one -- and plenty of major title changes. Until recently, the Garden was viewed as WWE's most important venue anywhere in the world.
If I have done my research correctly, Phish has played Madison Square Garden more times than any other venue. Last year's December 2018 run brought them up to 60 appearances at the Garden. Only Elton John and the aforementioned Billy Joel have more MSG appearances than Phish. In turn, it is not surprising that several of Phish's officially-released live recordings have taken place at the New York City landmark.
#8 Charitable Tie-Ins
These days, professional wrestling is very tied in with charitable causes. Beyond having its talent participate in Make-A-Wish appearances, WWE regularly works with a number of charities, including Susan G. Komen, the Wounded Warrior Project and its own Connor's Cure foundation. All Elite Wrestling's next big live event, Fight For The Fallen, will be donating a portion of its proceeds to victims of gun violence.
While the music of Phish is not outwardly political, the group has worked with The Waterwheel Foundation, the Mimi Fishman Foundation and the Mockingbird Foundation. Following last year's cancelled Curveball festival in New York, $100,000 was donated to the aforementioned WaterWheel Foundation, as spread out among local non-profits including The Arbor Housing & Development Foundation, the American Red Cross Of The Finger Lakes, and the Dundee Fire & Rescue Team. Meanwhile, a 2011 release from its LivePhish series benefitted Tipitina's Foundation and the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation after the events of Hurricane Katrina.
As a result, fans of both professional wrestling and Phish can rest assured that their support of these entertainers often leads to much needed support of worthy causes. Even if donation amounts and charitable giving is not always touted publicly.
#9 Pun-Based secondhand merch
Between its tape libraries and its acquired trademarks, WWE seems to own more of professional wrestling's notable history over the last 50 years than not. This includes many of the catch-phrases and nicknames related to Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, The Rock and other wrestling industry legends. But for one reason or another -- creative differences and simply "not getting it" being two possibilities -- we don't see a lot of WWE-authorized merchandise related to The Shockmaster, Shawn Michaels kicking Marty Jannetty through a barbershop window, or Sid Vicious skipping WWF events in favor of softball games.
Thanks to the rise of secondary merchandise companies and sites this has changed. For example, the aptly-named BarbershopWindow.com has a shirt of "Mean" Gene Okerlund in facepaint worn by KISS' Gene Simmons, a Brock Lesnar-referencing "21 & What?" shirt, and a deep-cut Cesaro-related "5 Different Languages" design. There's plenty more where that came from via Pro Wrestling Tees and Extreme Wrestling Shirts.
As with mainstream pro-wrestling going back decades, Phish -- with 13 studio albums and plenty of rarities and solo recordings to its credit -- undoubtedly has songs that even "1.0" followers may not have heard. But that doesn't mean that Phishheads, like wrestling fans, don't make their own pun-oriented merch which only a small percentage of the overall fanbase will get. Embedded above is a "Character Zero" design, which references The Legend Of Zelda, even though the song is not one of the more played songs from the Phish discography.
#10 Gateway to fandom
As a passionate wrestling fan, you eventually have to come to grips in realizing that the average person does not actively watch wrestling. They don't get your references. They are most likely not excited to hear anecdotes from you related to wrestling. Otherwise, how can you explain an average of two to three million people watching Raw each week in a country with many more than 300 million people?
As a Phish fan, most likely your non-Phish-phan-phriends don't want to hear about Phish. Sure, as a friend they're glad you went to a concert that you enjoy, but they don't "get it" and are not interested.
All of this breeds a similar feeling where you know that just about anyone would like -- or maybe even love -- the thing that you are passionate about if they just gave it a chance. That, in turn, leads to a question of "What is the right point of entry for a new fan?" Or better yet, "What is the most instantly entertaining thing I can show someone that will demonstrate why I love this thing so much?"
But for the wrestling fans who are also fans of Phish, bless you. You are a patient and friendly bunch, to say the least. Woo!
