Before Christopher Cerulli became the face of metal band Motionless In White and known as Chris Motionless, he was just a kid from Scranton going to shows and watching wrestling. He and the band kicked off the year on ShipRocked 2026 music cruise as a headlining act.
We caught up with Cerulli on board where he talked about his deep Pennsylvania roots. He also reflected on performing Rhea Ripley’s entrance music live at WrestleMania 40 in Philadelphia.
In this exclusive interview, we dive into his first memories of the Philly music scene, the local venues that shaped his sound, and the age-old debate that every local has an opinion on: who truly serves the best cheesesteak in Philadelphia.
On growing up in Scranton and how Pennsylvania shaped him as a person and musician.
This year is 20 years of being a touring band but before we were touring, we were playing all shows within the Scranton and Philadelphia area, even New Jersey and Binghamton shows. We got our roots established in this area as well as having gone to shows for years before we were even a band.
That area is a very blue-collar part of the country. My family is a blue-collar family so I think it’s always just instilled that work hard mentality. If you want something you have to go out there and get it. We all knew that in the band and went out there and chased it.
I feel fortunate that I grew up there instead of a place like Hollywood, or where people expect everything to be given to them.
On one of the first concerts he ever went to in Philly.
There’s actually so many. I remember the first time I would say had an impact was the first show that I ever went to in Scranton, which was to see No Doubt. I remember the songs being so different live than they were on the record.
I was just learning what live music was, and I think that just really catapulted this interest into, not wanting to actually not just create music, taking it to a stage and try that for ourselves. It seems so fun and the energy around the crowd was great, which is my favorite part of it.
On the first show he trekked into Philly for.
That would be Warped Tour Philly, well, I guess not exactly in Philly, right across the bridge. It was my first time driving any long distance. I think it was like 17 and I’ve never driven that far before, so I was terrified, just griping the steering wheel. But I was like, “I am not missing this.”
It was my first Warped Tour and that was my first time seeing so much of Philadelphia, like as an adult. It was a mixed experience of seeing the city, seeing the area but then also getting to go to Warped Tour for the first time. It was a huge moment in my life.
On what separates playing a home show compared to the energy of another city.
Sometimes we’ve had home shows where they’re not the best show of the tour and sometimes we’ve had them where they’re the biggest moment ever. We just started doing our own “festival” in our area. It’s the type of thing where it feels like you’re building an event around the idea that people from all over the world are coming to your hometown to see you.
That location for that specific event – that’s when it really makes it feel like a lot has happened in 20 years. We could have people from the whole world come to us versus us wanting to go see the whole world. That is a flip that is just so rewarding and so awesome.
On how he is spending a free day in PA and spots to go to.
I think the band’s collective favorite pizza place is in between Scranton and Wilkes-Barre, so it’s called Sabatini’s so we’re definitely going there. At this point, now I just have to get a cheeseless pizza. But man, the sauce and the dough are good enough. Sabatini’s, if you’re listening, please get vegan cheese, please! [Laughs]
I love going to local shows so that would be cool to do. Most of the time when we go home with a free day, we don’t do anything because we’ve been doing so much. Everyone likes getting their favorite food and favorite coffee and all that stuff, so probably just the basics like that.
On best cheesesteak spot (even though he is now vegan).
I don’t know, favorite between Pat’s and Geno’s? I don’t know if I had a favorite even when I ate cheesesteaks? I like them both.
When I think of Philly, I think Lorenzo, that’s the best pizza place ever, I haven’t had it in years. The pizza slices were as big as your whole body. Every time I’d go to Philly, it was a point to circulate everything around, not just the show, but Prince (Steve’s Prince of Steaks).
Tony Luke’s is another good one in Philly. That’s another cheesesteak spot that my friends introduced me to right before I went vegan.
On performing at WrestleMania in Philly for wrestler Rhea Ripley’s entrance.
WrestleMania was one of the top 10 coolest moments in my life. I’m so grateful to everybody who helped make that happen. The relationship with Rhea [Ripley] – we found out that she liked the band and was very vocally supportive of, not just us, but a ton of bands in the scene.
WWE is no stranger to like this, it’s kind of the same realm. They have been cool and supportive of that before her, but then she really came in and just voiced even more for the next, heavier level of it. Having this advocate for metal and metalcore and bands like that in a space, this is massive as a WWE fan and is so appreciated.
They wanted us to play the [entrance] song that we did ir. We were like, “there’s no way this is real” It was just so crazy – the crossover of growing up in the 90s, with all the 90s wrestlers. If I can go back and see myself as a kid being like, “Someday we’ll perform Wrestlemania?”
On what the rest of the year has in store for Motionless in White.
We’re actually putting a record out this year, which is really exciting. We’re pretty much just going full blast like we’ve been. We’ve been doing tours for the last 2 years, but it’s been mostly European. It’s been spread out this year.
This is the first year of us back like we are full-time starting with our first show of the year on ShipRocked, and it’s just fully going from there, so tons of touring. We’re gonna be sprinkling in new songs and getting ready for the album.
