Pro wrestling’s prominence resonates with ICP’s Violent J

Professional wrestling fans who truly love the sport know the emotional impact it can have during the biggest moments.

CM Punk’s return to WWE, Jon Moxley’s All Elite Wrestling debut and the number of five-star classics booked by promotions around the world are just some of the moments that have resonated with fans in recent months. Others may cite the Attitude Era and the Monday Night Wars as some of the most influential moments that transcend wrestling itself.

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Take Violent J of the Insane Clown Squad. In a recent interview with Fox News Digital, he gave a passionate reason why he loves professional wrestling. He said it was Randy Savage and Ricky Steamboat at WrestleMania 3 that helped solidify his passion for professional wrestling.

“But wrestling, there’s nothing like professional wrestling in America,” he said. “There’s no such thing, bro. A lot of people seem to say male soap opera, male soap opera. It’s like there’s two guys in the middle of the ring pretending to fight, right? And at that moment, 70, 80,000 people show up. It’s like you have a chance to create a character for yourself and sell that character and play that character, but not only do you have to act like that character and have the acting skills, but Adlib skills. You have to be able to talk and speak into a microphone to get the A-es in the seats.”

“You’ve got to make people come and see you kick that guy, or make them want to come and get revenge. You’ve also got to have the physical attributes. You’ve got to be able to physically get in the ring and tell that story. There’s a lot of psychological warfare in wrestling. There’s a lot of psychological stuff that goes into it. You can’t always throw a punch. You’ve got to know when to throw the punch back. You’ve got to know when to come back. You’ve got to feel the crowd and know how to get them over the top.”

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Insane Clown Posse’s Violent J attends the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards at the UBS Arena in Elmont, NY (Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for MTV)

Violent J said there is nothing he can compare to professional wrestling. But “male soap opera” might be the best description.

He said being able to watch professional wrestling is something that gives him peace of mind.

“There’s so much to this, I don’t know what else to compare it to,” he said. “There’s nothing like wrestling. It’s like there’s literally nothing else like it. It’s so different from anything else in the stratosphere, it’s like I’ve loved it my whole life. And now as a 53-year-old, I enjoy watching it. Especially the old s—, watching the s— that I grew up watching.”

It calms my anxiety. It’s like it’s been there my whole life. It’s like looking at those old images, it’s like therapy for me. It’s been there my whole life. And so, even in my studio there are posters of old wrestlers everywhere, like it calms my anxieties. It’s like something that takes me back to my childhood, you know? So wrestling is fair, it is in my heart. It’s in my blood. It’s in my DNA. You know what I mean? As much as music, but music is the real therapy for me. Like, I have to make music or I’ll explode.”

Violent J of Insane Clown Posse performs at the 2025 Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash at SeatGeek Stadium on June 22, 2025 in Bridgeview, Illinois. (Barry Brecheisen/Getty Images)

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Violent J will be holding Bloodymania 19 at the Gathering of the Juggalos in Missouri next month. His promotion, Juggalo Championship Wrestling, releases “Lunacy” on YouTube every Thursday night.