Lio Rush Says His Heart Is Still In Pro Wrestling; Opens Up About Mental Health Struggles

Lio Rush opens up.

Fans haven’t seen Lio Rush on WWE television since WrestleMania 35, and there is no timetable for his return. While he’s been away from the squared circle, Lio has been in the studio, working on his music project. He recently released his new single “Scenic Lullaby,” which paints a lyrical picture of the struggles throughout his life.

Speaking to Sports Illustrated, Lio opened up about his mental health struggles and turning those struggles into creative fuel.

“Seven years ago, I was in a suicidal state,” said the 24-year-old Rush. “There was a point in time where I was hospitalized for a few days because I was in such a bad state. It was really hard to continue, but I made the decision that I wouldn’t give up. I decided to keep pushing forward. There was a point when I wanted to give up on my dreams, just give up on everything, I wanted to give up on life. Writing the lyrics to ‘Scenic Lullaby’ was therapeutic to me. I put my words to music so others could feel my struggle, understand why I am who I am, and feel what I feel on a daily basis. I wanted to give people something they could feel.”

Despite his aspirations as a musical artist, Rush admitted that his heart is still in pro wrestling.

“Being around music my whole life, I’ve been exposed to so many different styles of music, and that helped me create ‘Scenic Lullaby,’” said Rush. “And my performance in the WWE has definitely helped me, especially at conveying emotion through a certain lens. Right now, I’m spending time with my family and working on other projects. But being a pro wrestler has been my dream since I was five years old, and my heart is still in it. I’m only 24 years old. I’m still going to pursue a career in professional wrestling. I have a lot of time in front of me. I’m still going to wrestle. This is not the end for me. I’m working on my music, I miss wrestling to death, but maybe this [break from WWE] happened to give me time to accomplish some of my goals in music.”

There were reports that Lio Rush would end up back in NXT following his removal from WWE television, but as of now he has yet to appear on the brand. You can read about Rush’s backstage heat in WWE by clicking here.