Can/Should WWE Start Playing More Mainstream Music for Their Superstars

[Midnite Express 2009]

Not since the late 1980s has wrestling played mainstream music for superstar's entrances. The reason being, among other reasons, is that you'd have to pay the musician a royalty, which understandably so, is required from anyone outside of that musician if it's going to be used for any other purpose (i.e. a wrestler's ring entrance). But now C.M. Punk is breaking that tradition by entering the ring to Cult of Personality. I personally like it, due to the fact that it set Punk aside and makes him more unique, even though a new ring entrance is hardly the main reason why C.M. Punk is unique.

I also like this because let's face it, most fans probably could care less about a person's ring entrance, especially the generic ones WWE conjures up often. Fans love music, and I can't speak for everyone else, but I just don't like the music the superstars tend to come out with. Sure, they do happen to fit that particular person's character, but couldn't another musician that is readily identifiable as well like say 50 Cent for R. Truth? I know 50 Cent would ask for an arm & a leg in royalties, but just think of the cross over appeal generated by someone saying, "hey, I know that song!" It also makes the superstars seem that much more legit in some fans eyes if their favorite superstar is being led to the ring by their favorite musician.

I know some people will be like, it's just a ring entrance, which is true, but if it's JUST a ring entrance, then why have tailor made music already? Hulk Hogan used to come to the ring with Eye of the Tiger playing in the background. Fans knew this song because it was in Rocky III, a movie that Hogan was in. It made Hogan seem like a larger than life person, even before he had the title. I still remember Hogan coming to the ring on Jan. 24 1984 in Madison Square Garden to Eye of the Tiger defeated The Iron Sheik. Of course, unless someone has that master copy of the match, you'd never see that again. But the point is, should WWE start looking into putting mainstream musicians and music with their stars? Does it matter or make a big deal? Which song should go with which wrestler if this were to happen? Let me know.

 

[DJZ888]

I don`t think they should do this. The main thing is, is that today`s mainstream music doesn`t fit a wrestling entrance. You take a look at Triple H, he comes out with his awesome ring entrance to The Game by Motorhead, a great legendary, heavy metal band in the 70s and 80s. You look at The Undertaker, his epic ring entrance is to a song that isn`t anywhere close to mainstream and it`s still amazing. Even Cult Of Personality is from the 90s, while I and alot of others knew that song, people who are in to mainstream pop, rap, and rock probably don`t.

Nowadays, Lil Wayne, Katy Perry and Nickleback are topping the charts in their respective genres. I don`t know about other people but I don`t want to see my wrestlers coming out to songs by those artists. New mainstream music is just not suitable for wrestling.

 

[legendkillerbsal]

A wrestler cant come out to a pop song like Katy Perry or Chris Brown. It would just make em seem weak. Only mainstream rock songs might work just cuz rock always fits with wrestling. Some hip hop could work but still not much

 

[Nate DaMac]

I don`t think they should do this. The main thing is, is that today`s mainstream music doesn`t fit a wrestling entrance. You take a look at Triple H, he comes out with his awesome ring entrance to The Game by Motorhead, a great legendary, heavy metal band in the 70s and 80s. You look at The Undertaker, his epic ring entrance is to a song that isn`t anywhere close to mainstream and it`s still amazing. Even Cult Of Personality is from the 90s, while I and alot of others knew that song, people who are in to mainstream pop, rap, and rock probably don`t.

Nowadays, Lil Wayne, Katy Perry and Nickleback are topping the charts in their respective genres. I don`t know about other people but I don`t want to see my wrestlers coming out to songs by those artists. New mainstream music is just not suitable for wrestling.

You're missing the point, bro. It doesn't matter if it's old, it's still mainstream music. Cult of Personality still gets play on Rock radio, therefore it's still mainstream music. By saying mainstream, you're usually referring to music that is backed by a major record label and played heavily on the radio. Nothing about it means it has to be new.

Motorhead is also a mainstream band, though the song Triple H uses doesn't really garner radio play. But if he were to use Ace of Spades, it would still rule and would still be mainstream. Then you have Downstait you might be considered a mainstream band, I don't know. But I've only heard of them through their WWE songs, of which they have 3 right now.

To answer the question, I don't think it's really feasible. It would cost a lot of money, a lot more then they spend now and for what? It's not like it's going to skyrocket PPV buys just to hear someone's theme song. They already have a solid musician that puts together their music and he's done a great job for a long time now.

 

[Dalek Rising]

I say they should come out to "almost mainstream" or underground music. There is some great music out there that wrestlers could use. It's like creating an entrance on the smackdown vs. raw games I have. I use songs I like for wrestlers. Music from Danzig, Katatonia, Therion, Clutch, etc. Plus, with them being hardly known, they would probably let the WWE use it for free just to get their names out there.

 

[PagingMr.ass]

Instead of bring in more mainstream music, I would want them to go back to having Jim Jonston writing personalized entrance music that fits the character like they did in the 80's and 90's. I dont know if he's still with the company, if he is he;s used considerably less.

Not since the late 1980s has wrestling played mainstream music for superstar's entrances.

That statement isn't correct. Hogan came out to Hendrix's Voodoo Chile which the rights to are still owned by a major label. He used this song in both WCW and when he returned to the WWE.

DDP came out to a remix of smells like teen spirit by Nirvana.

The Last few HHH entrances are from Motorhead albums who are signed to epic records.

Chris Benoit came out to a song off an Our Lady Peace album that had two chart topping hits on it. Christians music is by Story of The Year, who have a major label deal. Randy Ortons music is by REv Theory, they are on EMI. plus countless other superstars who's entrance music is preformed by rock bands with major label deals. And ECW had many wrestlers come out to songs by bands like Aerosmith, ACDC etc. Sorry for if that sounds like a rant, just pointing it out.

 

[whoopin' ass]

if it fits the character, then why not? in the end, it is a song - who cares if it is mainstream or not? it has to fit the character - would you rather have HBK come out to his theme song or "I'm Too Sexy"? I thought Taker coming out to Johnny Cash before mania just didn't fit especially after coming out to Kid Rock and Limp Biscuit.

as for ECW, i think they just used the songs. i heard Heyman wasn't too worried about it.

 

[navyveteran]

You also forget, Edge's entrance music was actually on one of Altar Bridge's albums... I can't remember which one right off hand (my apologies) but I do recall hearing it when my younger brother was listening to the album. It's been done, but scarcely. They are more likely to hire a mainstream band to create a song.
Mark Henry has Three6Mafia for his entrance music. Rey Mysterio has P.O.D... they'll probably stick to that method of using mainstream artists rather than using songs with actual radio play. I didn't mention HHH because it's been covered.

 

[Remix]

Sure they can, but why would they? For one thing it's more expensive and complicated to negotiate with a record label so that the song can be used as a theme for a wrestler. And for another WWE have Jim Johnston, who can compose and commission themes especially for that wrestler. What advantage does using mainstream music have over commissioning their own music that WWE own the rights to? Nine times out of ten the answer is none whatsoever.

 

[SomeAreSet]

Well,Hogan did come out to Eye Of The Tiger,but which song is Hogan best associated with,Eye Of The Tiger,Real American or Voodoo Child?I know I'd associate Hogan with Real American even though he was using Voodoo Child when I first started watching wrestling.

The thing about mainstream music is that the WWE would have to pay through the nose for royalties,and since the entrance music isn't why most people watch the WWE,why spend more money if you're not going to get any benefits from it?

I think it doesn't matter whether the music the wrestlers came out to are original or mainstream and by the looks of things,if the wrestlers came out to mainstream music,every entrance theme would be either heavy metal or hardcore rap.In other words,the wrestlers would still come out to music that the majority of the audience would find hard to differentiate.

I'd much prefer original music that helps differentiates each wrestler because the original music is tailored to suit each wrestler's gimmick.Besides,I'd shudder to think how many wrestlers are going to fight over who's going to use For Whom The Bell Tolls and Back In Black.In the words of Alberto Del Rio "No Mas!No Mas!"

CM Punk's an exception,that's what makes him coming out to Cult Of Personality look so good,because nobody else is doing it.Plus,they wouldn't have let him use Cult Of Personality if the lyrics didn't fit Punk's current gimmick to a T.

I can't think of any songs that'll work with Del Rio's gimmick for example.I Get Money by 50 Cent?I'd stop watching WWE altogether.What about Kofi?Celebration by Kool and The Gang?A Sean Kingston song?R-Truth could come out to 2Pac,but he's not nearly good enough to deserve a 2Pac entrance.Oh,I got it.Kane could come out to Firestarter by Prodigy.That would be awesome,no joke.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

As others have said, it could be something that's extremely expensive and ultimately unnecessary. The WWE obviously has no trouble finding and hiring talented musicians for the entrance themes of their wrestlers so why should they use music that they don't own the rights to to do the exact same thing but potentially paying out millions of dollars each year in royalties?

The WWE would be throwing away money for no reason at all.

 

[The_Grimace]

Idk I like the miz's entrance music, and to be honest look at taker its just not right remember when he came out to limp bizcuit and kidd rock people were begging for him to go back to his dreary death marches. And I don't think stone cold would be right at all walking out to anything other than his music, and that's what it is its his music, make no mistake 15 years from now who outside the wrestling world will know that cm punk used living color as his entrance music? I would have had public enemy and antrax with bring the noise but that's just me and my two cents.

 

[Da Solo]

Good Point. I'm kinda getting sick of Jim Johnston's superstar songs. It's just always some generic rock song, as DBD said. They don't need mainstream music as in whats fresh off MTV (Cena coming out to someone like Justin Bieber just reinforces the Fruity Pebble theory), but it wouldn't hurt to get real music by actual artists, and not some WWE studio produced noise. For example, Kane's theme music now is garbage compared to how sick he looked walking out to Slow Chemical. Drew McIntyre went from the worst theme in WWE because of Johnston to having one of the best themes thanks to Shaman's Harvest "Broken Dreams". Mark Henry's 36 Mafia tune is hard as hell and one of my favorites. MVP's 2 theme's fit him perfectly (can you imagine him walking out to some of Jim's guitar rifts? Painful to even imagine).

 

[H33LTurn]

The problem lies within paying the royalties for these songs. Do you know how convenient it is for the WWE to come up with a song and produce it themselves as opposed to taking a song thats already been made and editing it for the superstars entrance, paying for its use on shows, live events, distribution on DVDs, etc. It would be a horrible waste of money.

 

[RIPRKO1005]

If it really fits the wrestler and if there a bug enough draw to be worth the pretty penny it'll cost WWE then why not????

But, i also really think that they really should just make music that is more personalized or stands out more for just one certain wrestler which they have dine in the past some examples are stuff like HBK's sexy boy or the Rocks theme. If they created themes that were more personalized to fit one wrestler then the issue if having more mainstream music wouldn't be an issue.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

Entrances should fit the character. WWE Records does as good of a job at producing catchy music as any pop shit out there. So I really don't see the need for it. It costs more money to essentially get the same thing.

It's really unnecessary. The Punk thing actually adds to his character, which, I don't think would happen with most guys, it'd just be an unnecessary (I really need to learn how to spell that) cost. I like most guys' songs for the most part. Of course I also like the Rev Theory, Motorhead, etc too. Is Miz's theme WWE made? I think it's a good one.

I think it would be cool to say what song you think fits a certain superstar. Hypothetically of course because it doesn't make sense in real life.

 

[theawesomerohit]

if a song suits a super why shouldn't he use it...
cult of personality sounds damn awesome as Punk's Theme... I am not saying because he used it before.. hell I dont know a thing about ROH.. all I can say is that his song is caller tone of my phone.. it works both ways... for the artist and wwe...
as some on their stuff is crap or we quite boring now... look at Cena's theme he sung it himself.. and I am done with.. sure it sounded pretty cool to me a few years ago... but its time to change..
now if I boo cena on my T.V its not because of him entirely but also his music

 

[poppycock]

The Undertaker coming out to Limp Bizkit was awful (mainly because I love Undertaker and hate Limp Bizkit). As far as wrestlers coming out to well Known rock songs it happens all the time.. Hogan - Hendrix, Undertaker - Limp Bizkit and Kid Rock, CM Punk, Edge etc.. and in the recent past Divas have used pop songs from radio friendly pop groups. I like whatever fits but much prefer original songs for each superstar.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

if a song suits a super why shouldn't he use it...
cult of personality sounds damn awesome as Punk's Theme... I am not saying because he used it before.. hell I dont know a thing about ROH.. all I can say is that his song is caller tone of my phone.. it works both ways... for the artist and wwe...
as some on their stuff is crap or we quite boring now... look at Cena's theme he sung it himself.. and I am done with.. sure it sounded pretty cool to me a few years ago... but its time to change..
now if I boo cena on my T.V its not because of him entirely but also his music

I like Cena's entrance because it fits him. It starts out kinda slow and builds then it hits the BRRRRAPADO and he comes out at the same time the music picks up and the crowd pops. It's really quite artistic. It's not a song that makes you think deeply about the lyrics but entrance music isn't supposed to do that. It's supposed to get the crowd hyped up for the wrestler and let you know who's coming out. Cena's fits that perfectly. It's the perfect type of babyface music.

Miz's, on the other hand, is the perfect heel music. It starts with "AWWESOME" which is his catchphrase, so people immediately hear it and start booing. It's bang bang with the intro and then the booing.

You can't look at entrance music like normal music, you have to critique it under the guidlines of an entrance theme.

 

[Trill Co$by]

It's funny how people forget that CM Punk went from a mainstream metal band to a mainstream legendary band... Killswitch Engaged's "This Fire Burns" is probably one of their best known songs, it's even appeared in two consecutive Madden games and numerous of other video games. So in a sense, WWE's already been using royalties on CM Punk... so obviously, Vince broke the "no royalties" bit a while ago.

Not to mention, Raw's current theme song is by Nickelback which someone earlier said wouldn't fit in WWE... just goes to show how WRONG they were. Green Day's "Do you know your enemy" is the current Smackdown theme song.

AND Batista just recently used "I Walk Alone" by Saliva for years... then again Saliva and WWE have one of the healthiest business relationships that I've seen in a while.

As for using it with superstars, I don't see the point in it really. As long as the music sounds nice and fits the character, it shouldn't matter who makes the song. Like for example, Downstait has made now three great theme songs for WWE... Miz, Riley, and Ziggler all have terrific yet different sounding theme songs that fit them perfectly.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

It's funny how people forget that CM Punk went from a mainstream metal band to a mainstream legendary band... Killswitch Engaged's "This Fire Burns" is probably one of their best known songs, it's even appeared in two consecutive Madden games and numerous of other video games. So in a sense, WWE's already been using royalties on CM Punk... so obviously, Vince broke the "no royalties" bit a while ago.

Not to mention, Raw's current theme song is by Nickelback which someone earlier said wouldn't fit in WWE... just goes to show how WRONG they were. Green Day's "Do you know your enemy" is the current Smackdown theme song.

AND Batista just recently used "I Walk Alone" by Saliva for years... then again Saliva and WWE have one of the healthiest business relationships that I've seen in a while.

As for using it with superstars, I don't see the point in it really. As long as the music sounds nice and fits the character, it shouldn't matter who makes the song. Like for example, Downstait has made now three great theme songs for WWE... Miz, Riley, and Ziggler all have terrific yet different sounding theme songs that fit them perfectly.

One thing you have to consider too are the bands. If you're Nickelback do you say "no, we don't want our song featured in the signature of a top show that has similar demographics to the people we sell our records to unless you pay us a lot"? No way in hell. Shit some bands would probably PAY VINCE to have their song as the intro. I bet Vince got the Nickelback song for a great price.

Same thing with wrestlers. If you're Saliva, Killswitch, Motorhead, or wheover, you're demographic is similar to that of the wrestling demo. However, who do you want to represent? The guy who gets his ass kicked in the undercard or the main event ass kicker?

You have to look at these things from all sides. Both sides of the business equation for sure.

 

[I_Am_Electro_Boy]

I don't think it matters what artist makes the song, I think it matters that the song fits the wrestler. Triple H's theme was made by Motorhead but it fitted his character well by saying "Time to play the game". All songs made for wrestlers by WWE employees (or whatever they're called) fit wrestlers because they are made exclusively for the wrestler. So it doesn't matter if the song is famous or not it matters if the song fits the wrestler.

 

[RickD82]

I dont think they need to spend money on copyrighted mainstream music. I do like CM Punk having "Cult of Personality" but i think thats enough. I think what they should do is get someone in there like Jimmy Hart that can create Original Music for each superstar that fits him. The problem now a days is that everyone has the same type of music, the stale, bland rock music that sounds the same as everyone elses. I have trouble now knowing who is coming out half the time with the exception of a few people.

 

[vthokie8]

It's funny how people forget that CM Punk went from a mainstream metal band to a mainstream legendary band... Killswitch Engaged's "This Fire Burns" is probably one of their best known songs, it's even appeared in two consecutive Madden games and numerous of other video games. So in a sense, WWE's already been using royalties on CM Punk... so obviously, Vince broke the "no royalties" bit a while ago.QUOTE]

The Fire Burns although a good song by Killswitch is far from their most famous song, nor was it ever used on Madden The End of Heartache however has appeared on the last two Madden games as well as the Resident Evil, The Gamer and numerous other soundtracks. The Fire Burns was a track they wrote specifically for a WWE album back in 06.

That being said, if big name bands and singers make songs specifically for wrestlers so be it. I mean if you look at it right now POD does Mysterio's, Motorhead does Triple H's and Three Six Mafia does Mark Henry's all songs specifically written for them. Same was done in the early 2000's when the Forceable Entry album came out. Saliva, Disturbed, Our Lady Peace, Cyprus Hill and Sevendust all did songs written for superstars. I think if a guy is going to come out to an already popular song they have to be A) a main eventer and B) it has to go with their character. For example, American Bad Ass fit Taker's character at the time he used it and I'm sure it got Kid Rock more sales in the process. Cult of Personality was Punk's theme in ROH and fits with what he is currently doing reverting back to his ROH like personna. I also like how Mania implemented popular songs Triple H using For Whom the Bell Tolls and Miz using Hate Me Now were brilliant. As far as every guy on the roster using a popular song, not so much. It would make it look too much like an independent promotion. Jim Johnston does a good job matching music to the guys MOST of the time. ECW was able to pull it off with popular music because they were for the most part an independent that just blew up.