INTERVIEW WITH
RICH 'THE DUKE' WARD
As Fozzy mark 25 years as a band, they’re heading back out across the UK for a run of dates that reflects both their longevity and their connection with audiences beyond the obvious major cities. With the tour about to get underway, we sat down with guitarist and founding member Rich 'The Duke' Ward to talk about how the band has kept their creative spark over two and a half decades, and much more.
Interviewer: David Weddle
MNM:It's good to see you. And this is the head of your UK leg of your 25th anniversary tour with Fozzy. Amazing quarter of a century. Who would have thought it?
Rich: I know, it's crazy, right?
MNM:Exactly. How do you manage to keep yourselves sort of between the two of you and Chris have been together doing this project since, well, 2000 isn't it? How do you keep it interesting between the two of you creatively? So who comes up with the ideas in terms of songwriting, Is it yourself or is it Chris or is it both of you together?
Rich:
We've changed it up a lot over the years, which is how we've managed to kind of keep things, fresh and also kind of forward-looking. Obviously, Chris and I are both in our 50s. we have a tendency to love the same records that we grew up on. Chris is more open to discovering new music than I am. He's always looking for new bands and is, and I think part of that is he has a radio show. So part of that process exposes him to a lot of newer bands. And he also, he gets really excited when Iron Maiden or Megadeth or Metallica put out a new album. Whereas, I have a tendency to listen to the same 10 albums over and over again. Which is why, I mean, my thumbprint as a guitar player is pretty narrow. I play a specific way, which if you look back on my early history with Stuck Mojo and those records, it's not too far off from how I play guitar and Fozzy. I haven't really evolved a tremendous amount as a guitar player.
Actually, my evolution's probably happened more because I'm in an 80s tribute band and learning how to play Toto and Prince, that has actually expanded my vocabulary much more so than anything else, which has actually helped me in Fozzy because all of a sudden it's like reading a new book here and there. So to get back on track, 10 years ago, we were signed to Century Media, Sony. And Sony suggested that we work with an outside producer, songwriter, just to try new things. Like, because Chris and I always were the primary songwriters and I was producing the records and Chris was co-producing them. So we had a way of doing things and then bringing in a new voice who had like bringing in a Sir Alex Ferguson to stand on the sidelines and basically try to get the best out of you saying, I can see what you're doing works and I love what you do. Let me give you some thoughts on some ways that you can do this better and create, get better versions of yourselves. And that was the best thing that I think really happened for us. His name's Johnny Andrews, and we've done everything with him since. And it also has made Chris and I better working partners, because instead of being two people fighting against each other, I like this idea. I like this.
We actually have a third person now that comes in and can basically, well, they're in charge. They're the producer. And it's really helped us out. And I think Chris was really inspired by a year and a half in the life of Metallica, watching Bob Rock working, you know, with Lars and James and how that really helped their process. Now, whether you like the albums, it's a different story, but it was certainly having somebody with new ideas and somebody who can kind of act as an intermediary, because Chris and I are both very confident in our ideas. And sometimes you just need some from the outside that's not your partner to go, your idea stinks. No, we're not doing it.
Rich: I know, it's crazy, right?
MNM:Exactly. How do you manage to keep yourselves sort of between the two of you and Chris have been together doing this project since, well, 2000 isn't it? How do you keep it interesting between the two of you creatively? So who comes up with the ideas in terms of songwriting, Is it yourself or is it Chris or is it both of you together?
Rich:
We've changed it up a lot over the years, which is how we've managed to kind of keep things, fresh and also kind of forward-looking. Obviously, Chris and I are both in our 50s. we have a tendency to love the same records that we grew up on. Chris is more open to discovering new music than I am. He's always looking for new bands and is, and I think part of that is he has a radio show. So part of that process exposes him to a lot of newer bands. And he also, he gets really excited when Iron Maiden or Megadeth or Metallica put out a new album. Whereas, I have a tendency to listen to the same 10 albums over and over again. Which is why, I mean, my thumbprint as a guitar player is pretty narrow. I play a specific way, which if you look back on my early history with Stuck Mojo and those records, it's not too far off from how I play guitar and Fozzy. I haven't really evolved a tremendous amount as a guitar player.
Actually, my evolution's probably happened more because I'm in an 80s tribute band and learning how to play Toto and Prince, that has actually expanded my vocabulary much more so than anything else, which has actually helped me in Fozzy because all of a sudden it's like reading a new book here and there. So to get back on track, 10 years ago, we were signed to Century Media, Sony. And Sony suggested that we work with an outside producer, songwriter, just to try new things. Like, because Chris and I always were the primary songwriters and I was producing the records and Chris was co-producing them. So we had a way of doing things and then bringing in a new voice who had like bringing in a Sir Alex Ferguson to stand on the sidelines and basically try to get the best out of you saying, I can see what you're doing works and I love what you do. Let me give you some thoughts on some ways that you can do this better and create, get better versions of yourselves. And that was the best thing that I think really happened for us. His name's Johnny Andrews, and we've done everything with him since. And it also has made Chris and I better working partners, because instead of being two people fighting against each other, I like this idea. I like this.
We actually have a third person now that comes in and can basically, well, they're in charge. They're the producer. And it's really helped us out. And I think Chris was really inspired by a year and a half in the life of Metallica, watching Bob Rock working, you know, with Lars and James and how that really helped their process. Now, whether you like the albums, it's a different story, but it was certainly having somebody with new ideas and somebody who can kind of act as an intermediary, because Chris and I are both very confident in our ideas. And sometimes you just need some from the outside that's not your partner to go, your idea stinks. No, we're not doing it.
MNM:Yeah, exactly. And you were saying about Chris, he's open to more modern stuff. And you can really hear that in Fall in Line. It's a huge, it's like an anthem, basically.
Rich: Thank you.
MNM:I really enjoyed it. One of my favourite tracks of yours, because I'm quite into my heavy music, like the heavier side of things, is Let the Madness Begin. And what's your, favourite song to play live?
Rich:
You know, probably of all the... material that we play every night because there are certain songs that kind of get cycled in and out. We'd grab some new songs, some old songs, but I think Sane is probably my favourite song because it is a big heavy riff, much more married to the earlier Fozzy sound, even though it does have a big chorus and It still has that big sing-along hook. There's something very, I don't know, Zach Wilde's 1988, No Rest for the Wicked kind of vibe to it. And that was so influential to me and to Chris, because Chris, he and I are both, I mean, I mean, massive Aussie fans, always have been. And I think, I think anytime that I get a little closer to my comfort zone, the reason it becomes more fun for me to play, the less technical the song live. the easier it is for me to be in the moment.
Technical songs that have like, Let the Madness Begin is a technical riff. I have to really concentrate on it and you can't move a lot because it requires the balance of the guitar, hand position properly in order to swing that groove. Because it's not that it's technical to play the notes. It's technical to play the notes and make it swing and groove. That's that thing. There's so few guitar players that When I listen to them, they play fantastic. And it's like mind blowing the technical abilities, a lot of young guitar players. But there's something about if you're learning from the guitar players of 10 years ago and not learning from Uli John Roth and Michael Shanker and Tony Iommi, those guitar players, they had great technical abilities, but they also there was something that that was in their DNA that was borrowed from the blues players of the 60s. So they were they were influenced by Little Richard and these Muddy Waters guitar stuff and Albert King, Albert Lee, Alvin Lee. And I think there's something to be said for when the first marriage of heavy blues rock in Deep Purple and Sabbath for me were the perfect examples of those.
Like it was heavy metal, but it was still married to the 60s blues rock. And that's the stuff, because I grew up on the next generation, Dave Murray, Adrian Smith, K.K. Downing, Glenn Tipton, you know, Randy Rhodes. And even though Randy Rhodes played neoclassical stuff, he also was playing blues rock stuff as well. Van Halen, all of those guys were influenced by Richie Blackmore and, you know, the great players of that era. And yeah, so I think that's been our secret weapon, Chris and I, has been that we can live in both worlds. I mean, I can still listen to animals as leaders and go, that blows my mind, the technical ability, the tightness. And I think of all the modern, more modern bands, even though they've been around quite a bit, a long time is Meshuggah, because their technical prowess is almost unmatched. And yet you can tell their influences came from an era where groove and tone and all of those things were still important. So I love the marriage of those two worlds where Richie Blackmore's on one shoulder, and some modern shredder who can wow you with his pyrotechnics on the other. That's.
MNM:What the creativity is, isn't it? When 2 worlds collide, if you like, I guess.
Rich: That's right.
Rich: Thank you.
MNM:I really enjoyed it. One of my favourite tracks of yours, because I'm quite into my heavy music, like the heavier side of things, is Let the Madness Begin. And what's your, favourite song to play live?
Rich:
You know, probably of all the... material that we play every night because there are certain songs that kind of get cycled in and out. We'd grab some new songs, some old songs, but I think Sane is probably my favourite song because it is a big heavy riff, much more married to the earlier Fozzy sound, even though it does have a big chorus and It still has that big sing-along hook. There's something very, I don't know, Zach Wilde's 1988, No Rest for the Wicked kind of vibe to it. And that was so influential to me and to Chris, because Chris, he and I are both, I mean, I mean, massive Aussie fans, always have been. And I think, I think anytime that I get a little closer to my comfort zone, the reason it becomes more fun for me to play, the less technical the song live. the easier it is for me to be in the moment.
Technical songs that have like, Let the Madness Begin is a technical riff. I have to really concentrate on it and you can't move a lot because it requires the balance of the guitar, hand position properly in order to swing that groove. Because it's not that it's technical to play the notes. It's technical to play the notes and make it swing and groove. That's that thing. There's so few guitar players that When I listen to them, they play fantastic. And it's like mind blowing the technical abilities, a lot of young guitar players. But there's something about if you're learning from the guitar players of 10 years ago and not learning from Uli John Roth and Michael Shanker and Tony Iommi, those guitar players, they had great technical abilities, but they also there was something that that was in their DNA that was borrowed from the blues players of the 60s. So they were they were influenced by Little Richard and these Muddy Waters guitar stuff and Albert King, Albert Lee, Alvin Lee. And I think there's something to be said for when the first marriage of heavy blues rock in Deep Purple and Sabbath for me were the perfect examples of those.
Like it was heavy metal, but it was still married to the 60s blues rock. And that's the stuff, because I grew up on the next generation, Dave Murray, Adrian Smith, K.K. Downing, Glenn Tipton, you know, Randy Rhodes. And even though Randy Rhodes played neoclassical stuff, he also was playing blues rock stuff as well. Van Halen, all of those guys were influenced by Richie Blackmore and, you know, the great players of that era. And yeah, so I think that's been our secret weapon, Chris and I, has been that we can live in both worlds. I mean, I can still listen to animals as leaders and go, that blows my mind, the technical ability, the tightness. And I think of all the modern, more modern bands, even though they've been around quite a bit, a long time is Meshuggah, because their technical prowess is almost unmatched. And yet you can tell their influences came from an era where groove and tone and all of those things were still important. So I love the marriage of those two worlds where Richie Blackmore's on one shoulder, and some modern shredder who can wow you with his pyrotechnics on the other. That's.
MNM:What the creativity is, isn't it? When 2 worlds collide, if you like, I guess.
Rich: That's right.
Photo credit Scott Legato
MNM: I'm glad to see you've got your Ozzy Osbourne T-shirt on today because I've just finished reading his book, Last Rites.
Rich: How was it?
MNM: It was fantastic. Well, I was at Back to the Beginning. So me and my wife both went. And so obviously since then it's been kind of, re-obsessing completely about everything Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath. And when reading that book one of the things that he said was, there was a lot of things he said in that book, but one thing that stuck out to me was he was, when he got Eric Clapton to record on one of his songs. He wasn't in the country at the time and he was obsessed with getting this one sound from Eric Clapton and it involved a wah-wah pedal. and he had to have him playing it. He couriered a wah-wah pedal to the studio in London when he was in the States. So that's how obsessive he was about how his sound had to be. And I was just wondering, is there something that you're as obsessive about in terms of your sound and what you, is there any particular equipment or you have to have?
Rich: Yeah, I think you would find that that's the thing that is probably the most annoying to be in a band with me is that I am obsessed with sound. And not just is the performance right, but how does the performance feel? Do I believe the performance? Which is why I always loved Ozzy Osbourne is because I believed him.
There was never a performance where I felt like, like it's a little sharper, it's a little flatter. Like none of that ever mattered because I believed the words that were coming out of his mouth. I believed the performance was so real and it was an extension of who he was. That was my attraction. And I, you know, so I've worked with a lot of big producers over the years, Rick Beato, Andy Sneap. And I think that was the one thing that I've kind of learned along the way is sometimes You have to learn to let go of it and not beat it to death until it's right, because sometimes you can squeeze the life out of it, and all of a sudden it's very correct and very precise, but it's lost its character. It's lost you. It's now become very performative.
And then the other side of things is learning when someone says, it sounds good to me, and then me being able to sit back and and, protest a bit and say, I think we could do it better because I'm not I'm not feeling it like I'm not excited. And I, I routinely get teary eyed when I'm recording. If I'm feel like I'm in the middle of doing something special, not that anyone else will ever feel that. I, I think most people who are in bands like people to say, I like your new album. And it's nice to hear somebody when they say, oh, I like Fall in Line. That's really good. Yeah. But ultimately, I think most people are doing their best to. leave the best part of themselves on this recording and put their best foot forward and, throw the little penny in the pond to those who came before us. the little, I hope that I can be just a little speck. I mean, this is my favourite Ozzy record, Speak of the Devil, which is a weird one to say, but I, this was the first Ozzy record I ever bought. It came out at this like perfect time in my life where in 82. It was just, I don't know, it was just something really cool about discovering those albums when I was 12 and 13 years old that stuck with me. Screaming for Vengeance, Number of the Beasts. I mean, they were so important to me.
MNM: Absolute classics. And in terms of the sound of the 80s metal, you've got on tour with you in the UK, Tail Gunner, as the support band opening up for you. I've seen them live when they opened up for KK Downing and they were absolutely outstanding. Is there a particular thing that you look for in a support act?
Rich: Most of the time it's suggested to us and a lot of times it's the booking agent or management who says, you need to check these guys out or girls out. Like the opening band is Marissa and the Moths. We're super excited about them. But on our last tour of the UK, I became aware of Tail Gunner. Our tour manager said, you have to check these guys out. You'll love them because very forward-looking, but lots of retro influences. And it's, yeah, and that's, I think they knew that would speak to us.
And I don't have to like an opening band. I don't, there's a lot of, because I realize in my world, there are movies that I see that someone recommends and I watch it and think, there was really wasn't for me. But it doesn't mean it's not brilliant. So I'm really open to taking advice on these things of, How are they as people means more to me. Like how are they? Are they respectful of the venue? Are they going to cause problems? We've done tours of bands that I loved and they would crash the dressing room and, you know, I just like and it seems all like cool when you're young, but at the end of the day, somebody in the venue has got to clean it up. Yeah. You know, and these are the places This is the houses of worship that all of us come to spend our nights, performing, people coming to watch bands. How dare we desecrate these places that are our home to this incredible music that we, you know, that has defined our lives. And so I think part of that is just, and also, how do you speak to the local staff? The monitor guy who got here at 10 A.m., he beat everybody there because he had to set up everything. Are you respectful? at this point in my life, that stuff matters.
It may not have mattered to me in my 20s, but it really matters now because it says a lot about who you are as a person. Can I trust you? If I leave my bag in the dressing room, am I going to come back and find money missing? And the people who are disrespectful to the monitor engineer or who are a jerk to the general manager of the venue are more likely to go through your stuff while you're on stage. It's just a general feeling that I find. So If you can find a band like Tailgunner, who are great people and also incredible performers and songwriters, win-win. We're honoured to have them. Yeah.
Rich: How was it?
MNM: It was fantastic. Well, I was at Back to the Beginning. So me and my wife both went. And so obviously since then it's been kind of, re-obsessing completely about everything Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath. And when reading that book one of the things that he said was, there was a lot of things he said in that book, but one thing that stuck out to me was he was, when he got Eric Clapton to record on one of his songs. He wasn't in the country at the time and he was obsessed with getting this one sound from Eric Clapton and it involved a wah-wah pedal. and he had to have him playing it. He couriered a wah-wah pedal to the studio in London when he was in the States. So that's how obsessive he was about how his sound had to be. And I was just wondering, is there something that you're as obsessive about in terms of your sound and what you, is there any particular equipment or you have to have?
Rich: Yeah, I think you would find that that's the thing that is probably the most annoying to be in a band with me is that I am obsessed with sound. And not just is the performance right, but how does the performance feel? Do I believe the performance? Which is why I always loved Ozzy Osbourne is because I believed him.
There was never a performance where I felt like, like it's a little sharper, it's a little flatter. Like none of that ever mattered because I believed the words that were coming out of his mouth. I believed the performance was so real and it was an extension of who he was. That was my attraction. And I, you know, so I've worked with a lot of big producers over the years, Rick Beato, Andy Sneap. And I think that was the one thing that I've kind of learned along the way is sometimes You have to learn to let go of it and not beat it to death until it's right, because sometimes you can squeeze the life out of it, and all of a sudden it's very correct and very precise, but it's lost its character. It's lost you. It's now become very performative.
And then the other side of things is learning when someone says, it sounds good to me, and then me being able to sit back and and, protest a bit and say, I think we could do it better because I'm not I'm not feeling it like I'm not excited. And I, I routinely get teary eyed when I'm recording. If I'm feel like I'm in the middle of doing something special, not that anyone else will ever feel that. I, I think most people who are in bands like people to say, I like your new album. And it's nice to hear somebody when they say, oh, I like Fall in Line. That's really good. Yeah. But ultimately, I think most people are doing their best to. leave the best part of themselves on this recording and put their best foot forward and, throw the little penny in the pond to those who came before us. the little, I hope that I can be just a little speck. I mean, this is my favourite Ozzy record, Speak of the Devil, which is a weird one to say, but I, this was the first Ozzy record I ever bought. It came out at this like perfect time in my life where in 82. It was just, I don't know, it was just something really cool about discovering those albums when I was 12 and 13 years old that stuck with me. Screaming for Vengeance, Number of the Beasts. I mean, they were so important to me.
MNM: Absolute classics. And in terms of the sound of the 80s metal, you've got on tour with you in the UK, Tail Gunner, as the support band opening up for you. I've seen them live when they opened up for KK Downing and they were absolutely outstanding. Is there a particular thing that you look for in a support act?
Rich: Most of the time it's suggested to us and a lot of times it's the booking agent or management who says, you need to check these guys out or girls out. Like the opening band is Marissa and the Moths. We're super excited about them. But on our last tour of the UK, I became aware of Tail Gunner. Our tour manager said, you have to check these guys out. You'll love them because very forward-looking, but lots of retro influences. And it's, yeah, and that's, I think they knew that would speak to us.
And I don't have to like an opening band. I don't, there's a lot of, because I realize in my world, there are movies that I see that someone recommends and I watch it and think, there was really wasn't for me. But it doesn't mean it's not brilliant. So I'm really open to taking advice on these things of, How are they as people means more to me. Like how are they? Are they respectful of the venue? Are they going to cause problems? We've done tours of bands that I loved and they would crash the dressing room and, you know, I just like and it seems all like cool when you're young, but at the end of the day, somebody in the venue has got to clean it up. Yeah. You know, and these are the places This is the houses of worship that all of us come to spend our nights, performing, people coming to watch bands. How dare we desecrate these places that are our home to this incredible music that we, you know, that has defined our lives. And so I think part of that is just, and also, how do you speak to the local staff? The monitor guy who got here at 10 A.m., he beat everybody there because he had to set up everything. Are you respectful? at this point in my life, that stuff matters.
It may not have mattered to me in my 20s, but it really matters now because it says a lot about who you are as a person. Can I trust you? If I leave my bag in the dressing room, am I going to come back and find money missing? And the people who are disrespectful to the monitor engineer or who are a jerk to the general manager of the venue are more likely to go through your stuff while you're on stage. It's just a general feeling that I find. So If you can find a band like Tailgunner, who are great people and also incredible performers and songwriters, win-win. We're honoured to have them. Yeah.
MNM: Fantastic. So I haven't got a lot of time left. However, I just wanted to talk about on this next tour in the UK in particular, you're going to places like Torquay and Margate, not the usual places you would hear of a big rock band going to. Is there a particular reason why you chose to go to a smaller venue or smaller towns rather than the big, all just big cities?
Rich: No, we've done it in the past. And the honest truth is, that most bands who will come to the UK also will put the bus on the ferry and go play France and Germany and Holland, and they'll do a tour, especially if you're an American band. If you're going to fly over, usually you'll make it a tour. And in the old days, when I first started coming over, we just called them European tours. We didn't designate it anything else because as Americans, I mean, our knowledge of geography is not expansive. So we're going to Europe. And because of many factors, A lot of them came down to when Chris was a full-time Jericho, the singer in Fozzy, for those who don't know, was a full-time professional wrestler. We had to work in between some of the television. He's a TV star. He has got to be on TV on Wednesday nights. So he could take off two or three weeks from TV. And then, but at the end, he'd have to fly back in order to have his second job.
So we found that it just made it easier for us to stay in the UK because there's, and especially now, there's much more compliance cost to, tax and there's so much stuff. And we really built, I mean, the UK rivals the US as being our primary success market. And part of it has been our record company in the UK was very supportive of us at the very beginning. And that's so important. If they believe in you, then they speak to the press and all of a sudden you're in all the magazines and then people become more excited. And my band Stuck Mojo was big in the UK. We were always in Kerrang. We were always in Classic Rock and Metal Hammer. Jericho, the WWF and the WWE were huge in the UK. So wrestling was big. So it made sense that the UK was already this, we had awareness there. So that when we came, it was easy for us to say, hey, we're here, ta-da. And I think to focus in on your question, we would just, it made more sense to just tour for three weeks in the UK. then do six or seven shows, just play the big cities and then get on a ferry and go to Europe. And I think you'll see that for most bands, that's how they do it.
So they'll say, oh, wow, well, you're playing the big cities. We played the big cities as well. We just are there for three weeks. So we'll go to Bradford. Now, I used to always play Bradford, even in the 90s with Stuck Mojo, because every band played Bradford Rio. It was always that, you know, it was like there were some classic gigs that weren't necessarily in the big cities. But you played there because they were like, and I know Nottingham is among the bigger cities, but I think, if bands are coming over, they're playing London, they're playing Manchester, they're playing Birmingham, they maybe go to Glasgow. There's the big cities that you're going to hit. They may go hit Swansea, or Cardiff. But for us, it's like we're here. Let's go ahead and focus in. Yeah, so we get to play Norwich. We get to play Newcastle. And that's the Newcastle and Norwich are small little towns, but it allows us to do everything.
We can play the small, the medium, the large. And it also is better for the fans because you don't necessarily have to travel 3 hours to see us. You know, it allows you to wow, maybe I only have to do a 30-minute train ride or I can drive in or it just makes it easier. So it's a win-win for us and a win-win for the fans.
Rich: No, we've done it in the past. And the honest truth is, that most bands who will come to the UK also will put the bus on the ferry and go play France and Germany and Holland, and they'll do a tour, especially if you're an American band. If you're going to fly over, usually you'll make it a tour. And in the old days, when I first started coming over, we just called them European tours. We didn't designate it anything else because as Americans, I mean, our knowledge of geography is not expansive. So we're going to Europe. And because of many factors, A lot of them came down to when Chris was a full-time Jericho, the singer in Fozzy, for those who don't know, was a full-time professional wrestler. We had to work in between some of the television. He's a TV star. He has got to be on TV on Wednesday nights. So he could take off two or three weeks from TV. And then, but at the end, he'd have to fly back in order to have his second job.
So we found that it just made it easier for us to stay in the UK because there's, and especially now, there's much more compliance cost to, tax and there's so much stuff. And we really built, I mean, the UK rivals the US as being our primary success market. And part of it has been our record company in the UK was very supportive of us at the very beginning. And that's so important. If they believe in you, then they speak to the press and all of a sudden you're in all the magazines and then people become more excited. And my band Stuck Mojo was big in the UK. We were always in Kerrang. We were always in Classic Rock and Metal Hammer. Jericho, the WWF and the WWE were huge in the UK. So wrestling was big. So it made sense that the UK was already this, we had awareness there. So that when we came, it was easy for us to say, hey, we're here, ta-da. And I think to focus in on your question, we would just, it made more sense to just tour for three weeks in the UK. then do six or seven shows, just play the big cities and then get on a ferry and go to Europe. And I think you'll see that for most bands, that's how they do it.
So they'll say, oh, wow, well, you're playing the big cities. We played the big cities as well. We just are there for three weeks. So we'll go to Bradford. Now, I used to always play Bradford, even in the 90s with Stuck Mojo, because every band played Bradford Rio. It was always that, you know, it was like there were some classic gigs that weren't necessarily in the big cities. But you played there because they were like, and I know Nottingham is among the bigger cities, but I think, if bands are coming over, they're playing London, they're playing Manchester, they're playing Birmingham, they maybe go to Glasgow. There's the big cities that you're going to hit. They may go hit Swansea, or Cardiff. But for us, it's like we're here. Let's go ahead and focus in. Yeah, so we get to play Norwich. We get to play Newcastle. And that's the Newcastle and Norwich are small little towns, but it allows us to do everything.
We can play the small, the medium, the large. And it also is better for the fans because you don't necessarily have to travel 3 hours to see us. You know, it allows you to wow, maybe I only have to do a 30-minute train ride or I can drive in or it just makes it easier. So it's a win-win for us and a win-win for the fans.
MNM: I know you've done a lot on your career. Is there one thing in particular you haven't done yet that you really want to do? that you hope to get them, like a bucket list item musically?
Rich: I mean, I've been so fortunate. I've played Wembley Stadium twice. I've opened for Iron Maiden, you know, at a, not a festival, an actual proper show, stadium show. Like I've met most of my heroes. I've heard my name come out of their mouth. Like, you know, the things that you just think, He knows me. Like things that like you, the Rich Ward who bought this record when it came out would never have been able to believe. But as far as the things I'd love to do, I mean, I'd love to play South America. I'd love to play Japan.
These are the things that have just never happened. And part of it was because the bands that I were in, which was Stuck Mojo and Fozzy, We never built a big fan base in those areas. And, there's always this thing of like, well, if you have this amount of days available in the year to tour, that's why a lot of American bands, America is such a massive territory that if you're going to play North America, if you're playing USA and Canada, you could do it for eight months. It's just, it's incredibly large area. And so I think because we spent so much time in the UK And we used to occasionally go, we'd play Paris or we'd play a couple of shows in Germany, and we would do some of the big festivals. But because of that, we never focused any of our time. which it bums me out because, I mean, when you have, I never had a list, a bucket list. There was never, I want to do this. I want to do this. I felt myself, my life was much more like Forrest Gump, that I just was there and it was happening at the time. You know, I just became ping pong champion. Like, I don't know how, but I just showed up and it, yeah, I did it. And the only thing that I ever did that was ever intentional, was try to be the best version of me that I could. I mean I always try to stay out of the pitfalls that broke bands up, I never caused problems, I always played guitar everyday. I always focused in on never chasing trends too desperately. I always tried to figure out “who are you as a musician”, you know.
Make sure when you’re painting on your canvas, make sure its your voice, make sure its not somebody else’s because you think that’s what the industry needs from you. And ‘cause I see a lot of my friends doing that. I always looked up to Motorhead and AC/DC and ZZ Top, they just knew who they were, it was incredible. You know, my first real guitar hero was Zakk Wylde, he just was OK with being Zakk Wylde Its so magnetic to look at somebody and say, that person knows who they are, they never felt any exterior pressure to bend one way or the other. They were just happy living in those shoes. And to me that’s the sign of a great artist.
David Bowie, he made those choice because he wanted to make those changes, he wanted to explore. So that wasn’t bending the knee to the culture, that was him being dangerous and inventive and I love that. We all know the difference between a Freddie Mercury trying new things, musically and exploring the bounds of who he was as an artist, and then the artist who, their next album sounds really different than the one before, but it sounds like what you’re hearing in popular music and I’m OK with anyone wanting to do it, just my preference is to follow the artists that really inspired me to be dangerous and daring.
Rich: I mean, I've been so fortunate. I've played Wembley Stadium twice. I've opened for Iron Maiden, you know, at a, not a festival, an actual proper show, stadium show. Like I've met most of my heroes. I've heard my name come out of their mouth. Like, you know, the things that you just think, He knows me. Like things that like you, the Rich Ward who bought this record when it came out would never have been able to believe. But as far as the things I'd love to do, I mean, I'd love to play South America. I'd love to play Japan.
These are the things that have just never happened. And part of it was because the bands that I were in, which was Stuck Mojo and Fozzy, We never built a big fan base in those areas. And, there's always this thing of like, well, if you have this amount of days available in the year to tour, that's why a lot of American bands, America is such a massive territory that if you're going to play North America, if you're playing USA and Canada, you could do it for eight months. It's just, it's incredibly large area. And so I think because we spent so much time in the UK And we used to occasionally go, we'd play Paris or we'd play a couple of shows in Germany, and we would do some of the big festivals. But because of that, we never focused any of our time. which it bums me out because, I mean, when you have, I never had a list, a bucket list. There was never, I want to do this. I want to do this. I felt myself, my life was much more like Forrest Gump, that I just was there and it was happening at the time. You know, I just became ping pong champion. Like, I don't know how, but I just showed up and it, yeah, I did it. And the only thing that I ever did that was ever intentional, was try to be the best version of me that I could. I mean I always try to stay out of the pitfalls that broke bands up, I never caused problems, I always played guitar everyday. I always focused in on never chasing trends too desperately. I always tried to figure out “who are you as a musician”, you know.
Make sure when you’re painting on your canvas, make sure its your voice, make sure its not somebody else’s because you think that’s what the industry needs from you. And ‘cause I see a lot of my friends doing that. I always looked up to Motorhead and AC/DC and ZZ Top, they just knew who they were, it was incredible. You know, my first real guitar hero was Zakk Wylde, he just was OK with being Zakk Wylde Its so magnetic to look at somebody and say, that person knows who they are, they never felt any exterior pressure to bend one way or the other. They were just happy living in those shoes. And to me that’s the sign of a great artist.
David Bowie, he made those choice because he wanted to make those changes, he wanted to explore. So that wasn’t bending the knee to the culture, that was him being dangerous and inventive and I love that. We all know the difference between a Freddie Mercury trying new things, musically and exploring the bounds of who he was as an artist, and then the artist who, their next album sounds really different than the one before, but it sounds like what you’re hearing in popular music and I’m OK with anyone wanting to do it, just my preference is to follow the artists that really inspired me to be dangerous and daring.
The UK tour kicks off on 6th of February in Brighton. This is more than a concert tour, it’s a celebration of 25 years of defiant, hook-laden, unapologetic rock ‘n’ roll from one of the genre’s most exciting and unique acts.
“When you come to a FOZZY show,” Jericho says, “you better wear a helmet and buckle your seatbelt — because it’s going to be one hell of a ride.”
So buckle up Britain, FOZZY is back. And they’re bringing the noise!
Catch Fozzy Live in 2026
6-Feb-26 Brighton Chalk
7-Feb-26 Margate Dreamland Ballroom
8-Feb-26 Manchester The O2 Ritz
10-Feb-26 Norwich Epic Studios
11-Feb-26 Bradford Nightrain
13-Feb-26 Nottingham Rock City
14-Feb-26 Glasgow TV Studio
15-Feb-26 Newcastle Boiler Shop
17-Feb-26 Cardiff Tramshed
18-Feb-26 Torquay The Foundry
19-Feb-26 Southampton The 1865
20-Feb-26 London Electric Ballroom
21-Feb-26 Wolverhampton KK's Steelmill
TICKET & VIP INFO @ FOZZYROCK.COM
“When you come to a FOZZY show,” Jericho says, “you better wear a helmet and buckle your seatbelt — because it’s going to be one hell of a ride.”
So buckle up Britain, FOZZY is back. And they’re bringing the noise!
Catch Fozzy Live in 2026
6-Feb-26 Brighton Chalk
7-Feb-26 Margate Dreamland Ballroom
8-Feb-26 Manchester The O2 Ritz
10-Feb-26 Norwich Epic Studios
11-Feb-26 Bradford Nightrain
13-Feb-26 Nottingham Rock City
14-Feb-26 Glasgow TV Studio
15-Feb-26 Newcastle Boiler Shop
17-Feb-26 Cardiff Tramshed
18-Feb-26 Torquay The Foundry
19-Feb-26 Southampton The 1865
20-Feb-26 London Electric Ballroom
21-Feb-26 Wolverhampton KK's Steelmill
TICKET & VIP INFO @ FOZZYROCK.COM
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