The Fall Of WWE Music - What Happened?

In pro wrestling music and entrance music plays a pivotal role in the atmosphere of the show. A wrestlers theme can send chills up your spine as you wait in anticipation, it can build up hype for a megamatch or provide instant recognizability during a grand return. WWE had massive success for their inhouse theme music the likes of JJ Maguire, Jimmy Hart, Jim Johnston & even CFOS created a great collection of WWE theme music. Add to that multiple platinum selling albums and a craze in music that is yet to be matched. But as the years wore on the company failed to find that same production magic in their music & fan opinion as-well as the overall quality started to greatly decline. In this video well take a look at what happened, WWE's peak success in music and some of the biggest hits & composition kings in history.
#WWEMusic
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This video is created with the purpose to educate and review works within professional wrestling. Images have been used to assist with the purposes outlined. Images are used with section 107 of the copyright act of 1987 in mind. This section states allowance is made for fair use for purposes such as criticism, comment, reporting, teaching, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statutes that might otherwise be infringing.
0:00 Intro
2:23 Rock N Wrestling/History
7:04 Attitude Era
8:50 Albums & Discography
12:30 Platinum Rapper
14:00 Jim Johnston
18:20 CFOS
20:04 Def Rebel
21:34 Today's Mainstream
21:50 The Fall

[@SuperkickStudios]

whats your favourite WWE theme song of all time?

[@TivaWap1738]

Broken Dreams, Burn in My Light, The Game

[@darkundead]

Batista’s theme (I walk alone)

[@nitroxplayz2666]

Either Broken Dreams or Cult Of Personality

[@danoV1c]

This fire burns, no more words, burn in my light or metalingus, I can't pick

[@madhavsinghff4279]

Nice

[@j.r.765]

Jim Johnston should be inducted in the WWE Hall of Fame. His contributions alone made so many iconic careers just interstellar.

[@SuperkickStudios]

how he isn't in there is wild.

[@TopSuperKicker]

Deadass he should be a first ballot Hall of Famer

[@CeemPlay]

Vince was always up his a$$. Vince didn't appreciate his greatness.

[@dozer11]

I thought I read that because Jim wasn’t on good terms with Vince as well as Jim saying that the current themes are forgettable, Vince wouldn’t ever put him in the Hall of Fame?

[@LuisHernandez-cd4in]

Bro if Pete rose is in it Jim definitely has to go in.

[@shawnmichaels568]

Jim Johnston was a genius, He made so many classics.

[@SuperkickStudios]

making this i realized he's even better than we say he is.

[@majinpvegeta]

@@SuperkickStudios The guy is on a completely different level when it comes to composing. Like take The Undertaker's entrance theme he made himself. He plays part of it on piano kzbin.info/www/bejne/jHm2paGIf7aUpZI

[@luissantiago3928]

Don’t know why they got rid of him in the first place

[@cliffordjackson3]

FACTS.

[@glockaveli6211]

He made a lot of trash too

[@sonicskillz]

As a musician heavily inspired by Jim Johnston, it's heartbreaking to see/hear the state of wrestling themes today.

[@eddybrash1793]

@@xDECAFx Most are underwhelming and have no distinction to the character

[@APH1991]

@@eddybrash1793. Could argue that this is modernity in a nutshell.

[@eddybrash1793]

@@APH1991 Yup, very similar

[@nineteeneightynine432]

That's embarrassing

[@M._mkid]

Blame Def Rebel. They suck

[@dxtrememwe2215]

It's sad, because it's not just the music... WWE seemingly has given up on Titantron videos. I understand the little 3D effect during certain intros, but it's like WWE completely forgot the value behind the Titantron. If the theme was the way to connect the fans to the wrestler's character, then the Tron Video was the way to connect fans to what they can do in the ring. Titantrons used to be Highlight Reels. You'd get a few poses, but more importantly you saw their finisher. It gave a tad of importance.

[@kadharefinley224]

I miss Jim Johnston he made so many classic themes like: Stone Cold, The Rock, HHH. I’ve been saying it for years he should be in the Hall of Fame

[@IncognitoInvisible]

hhh was Motörhead

[@MONKEMAN2000]

@@IncognitoInvisible Jim Johnston wrote the song

[@ch66ry88]

@@jeshuavega4846 ye

[@MN_2003]

@@IncognitoInvisible He had other themes

[@theevn7]

Leyend

[@KiseRyota4Life]

Jim Johnston deserves to be in the hall of fame. That dude deserves all the praise for creating creative themes

[@SuperkickStudios]

facts!

[@jasonlorphotofilms]

Jim Johnston understood how important music plays a role in storytelling and to a character in those stories. He wasn't just creating music, he was creating art.

[@mrtommypickelz3441]

Jim Johnston was part of the reason why we loved WWE. Not only just the characters professional wrestlers and their ability to wrestle themselves. Themes were such great memorable pieces of substance WWE had to offer. Now the music sounds like an assembly line for the majority of the roster despite a few themes: Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar's themes seem to be the only few that actually sound great and make the audience thrilled with expectation for the wrestlers to come out on to the guerilla. It is disappointing to see WWE in the state it is now. And hopefully one day they improve and return to their former glory. Hopefully WWE hires someone like Ludwig Göransson to make themes. He has plenty of potential to do a great job making themes for all of the WWE superstars if he were to ever do so. Fingers crossed!!

[@tertmade9769]

Miz is also one of a few to have great theme song, I Came to Play he use since 2010

[@rjcolombe]

And for the record, Brock's theme was recorded by Jim, so it doesn't even count with the modern era stuff.

[@KoolKeithProductions]

@@rjcolombe CFOs have been pretty terrible for WWE, but Roman and Rollins' themes are great

[@mrtommypickelz3441]

@@rjcolombe True, I thought it'd seem obvious for real fans.

[@mrtommypickelz3441]

@@KoolKeithProductions Roman's sure, but Rollin is ight.

[@andraiy644]

You need a theme song that go well with the wrestlers characters and that identifies them easily. Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Hulk Hogan, John Cena etc. are perfect examples.

[@andraiy644]

@It's Atharva And many others.

[@gauravshahi6334]

Roman's current theme also perfectly fits his character.

[@andraiy644]

@@gauravshahi6334 Definitely

[@razor_ramon_]

@@gauravshahi6334 the difference between then and now, is that only a few songs fit the character now, while then 9 out of 10 would.

[@startrakambassador3632]

Between you, WrestlinGifs, and Clout Cancun. Y'all dropping classic back to back videos 😭😭😭🔥🔥🔥

[@alec2000]

Jim Johnston was an absolute GOD with music and music choice. Every superstar when he was still with the company, even the midcarders and jobbers, had iconic themes and not just the big names. Also when it came to PPVs and weekly shows, and even random shows not many care for. the music choice he had was easily some of the greatest he’s ever had. Honestly, I miss the guy so much as the music today, isn’t the same with a few exceptions. He should be placed in the Hall of Fame already as he more than well deserves it.🙏 Nice documentary, bro, and I’m glad to see you back.❤️

[@jayewilliams5921]

Chris Jericho’s 2002 version of Break the Walls is something I have on repeat.

[@CharlesHitmanStone]

Music is so damn important in Wrestling. Every time I heard someone like Batistas theme I knew someone was getting their head taken off. Most themes now are getting an overhaul now I feel! Bobby, Roman and Seth have final boss like themes. Judgement day have a badass theme.

[@rosenyne345]

Not a fan of Bobby’s theme

[@shawnmichaels568]

As much as i love Cody's current theme, Smoke and Mirrors was untouchable.

[@slapbass8723]

Exactly and imagine aj styles having a song from Jim Johnston it'd be so much of a better song

[@Temperance_XVII]

@@slapbass8723 Aj styles song isn’t bad

[@alphawilliams7923]

@@slapbass8723 yeah like Aj styles theme. It fits him & plus he choose the theme himself based on his music preference.

[@slapbass8723]

@@Temperance_XVII I know but imagine a Jim Johnston song it'd be amazing and 100 times better then what it is ajs songs not bad quite the opposite but something from Jim Johnston would make the song better then what it is already

[@slapbass8723]

@@alphawilliams7923 yh but imagine someone like Jim Johnston having his twist on the song it'd song 100 times better I'm not saying it's a bad song quite the opposite I just think ajs would be better with a Jim Johnston twist on it

[@trishna013]

christian's just close your eyes was the most underrated theme song i've heard for a wrestler

[@RaheemD]

I loved Trish Stratus' iconic Lil Kim laugh at the beginning of her theme and Lita's entrance was always amazing. WWE need to bring back themes that are actually songs with lyrics that make sense instead of annoying guitar sample loops. Such a shame Jim Johnston was released.

[@I.G.S.A.N.A.G.M]

That was Lil Kim? That just made That laugh much better.

[@DTownNash]

Force able entry was goated. It also marked a time where a lot of wrestlers were getting bands to cover their otherwise generic instrumental themes all while keeping the old song's main riff to keep it recognizable. Chris Benoit's "Rabid" becoming "Whatever" Or Kane's "Burned" becoming "Slow Chemical"

[@CarbonGod666]

No

[@Eirik_Bloodaxe]

@@CarbonGod666 yes

[@mohammedali-ol9lg]

And Batista's as well, I remember watching one a match of his, think it was him vs HHH wm21 and the theme was just the walk alone instrumental

[@amirgurung]

When watching the 2024 Royal Rumble, when the entrance music played I could not guess the wrestlers till they showed them on screen or their names on boards and screens.

[@chiefbuuly1240]

Let’s be honest now Yoshi Tatsu had the best theme song

[@Temperance_XVII]

Don’t forget hornswoggle yeaaa

[@matthewbollinger876]

His song is so underrated

[@richarddaniel6286]

It's ur opinion imao

[@styleformen7535]

Duece and domino

[@TheAmanRawatExperience]

😂😂😂 just gave it a listen again after a decade and man that shit is funky af

[@jaydeepsen4769]

Thanks to Jim Johnston, I still remember who Alex Riley was....his music is that unforgettable

[@CeemPlay]

Say it to his face

[@startrakambassador3632]

You should do a video on WWE Stages like the Smackdown Fist stage or the Attitude Era RAW stage.

[@mikecantor8503]

Cool story, my friends’ band Mutiny Within worked with Jim Johnston to create and record Evan Bourne’s theme Bourne to Win. He gave them the bare bones of the song and let them turn it into something special. JJ is the man, glad you mentioned the Brood’s theme! Great video

[@kathrynzee9210]

Fantastic theme too.

[@22Hammy]

jim johnston deserves to be in the rock n roll hall of fame. this man could make music for literally any genre. that is not an easy feat

[@SteelSpurs]

Jim Johnston played a tremendous part in helping wrestlers skyrocket and no one talks about it.

[@JustJulyo]

JJ is the a prefect example of someone that works so hard and doesn't get enough respect This man literally made the wrestlers intro superstars Like if you play the Ultimate Warriors theme you know exactly how it'll make you feel when you hear it

[@kimbob5]

Jim Johnston was the soundtrack of many childhoods.

[@NottyGurlStyle]

As a female fan of WWF/WWE I grew up watching wresting for a long time so having a good theme just takes me back to how excited I use to feel knowing my favorite wrestler was coming out. Of course we all have the same favorite themes, from Stone Cold, Rock, Undertaker etc.. but I use to love hearing The Million Dollar Man’s theme when he would walk to the ring throwing money at the crowd, it’s classic, Hulk Hogan’s theme, will never forget it. The Brood’s theme is still to this day one of my favorites..I had it as a ringtone for a while. Every time I hear the first guitar riffs to Alter Bridge Metalingus..I know my boy Edge is coming out and I still get over the moon excited..I was so sad when it changed but I get he had to do it for his heel character. CM Punk’s theme although I knew the song already…Now when I hear Cult of Personality, I can’t help but to tap my watch and say it’s Clobberin time! Good theme music just puts you in a good mood before the match starts and it’s a shame WWE moved away from putting in the effort into finding the right talent to make a great entrance track. Jim was the best and it was sad when they had let him go…he definitely left great music for us to enjoy for years.

[@IIOctaneII]

david otunga’s theme still goes hard asf

[@SuperkickStudios]

oh radioooo oh radiooo

[@starmouseking9310]

Not even mentioning Downstait is kinda wild tbh. Radio (the remix) Here to Show the World, Kingdom, and I Came to Play are all amazing. Even non-WWE songs, like Lights go Down are incredible.

[@vineetyadav8181]

The fact that in all recent Royal Rumbles, you have to wait to see the faces of each wrestler to know who's coming in shows that promo individuality has lost somewhere along the line

[@Black-Circle]

You’re not wrong

[@BighornRamzeez]

I'm so glad that they showed Smackdown Vs. RAW 2007, that's LITERALLY what got me into Rock and Metal music genres 22:45

[@RextheRebel]

Roman Reigns "Head of the Table" theme is absolutely a banger though. The best song WWE has currently. Bobby Lashley's theme is good too, Seth's is of course one of the most catchy, hence his weekly serenades. Rhea Ripley has a new theme song with Motionless in White and it's fantastic. I miss Sami's old song though as well as Barons. "End of Days" was a fabulous ballad.

[@bennymac6618]

I gotta disagree, Roman’s theme is cheesy and isnt unique at all

[@IXSymbioticxTrevXI2019]

Jim Johnson had the best WWE theme songs, no questions asked

[@MikeJr9284]

Jim Johnston is the GOAT of music making. I miss the days wrestlers had either licensed music or songs composed by Jim Johnston himself as their theme. Modern wrestlers' themes are way too generic nowadays.

[@jk6971]

It really shocks me that Jim Johnston was able to write such diverse music from a huge range of styles and genres. Makes me wonder where he would have been if he didn't work for WWF

[@nickintellect6431]

U mean where tf would've WWF/E been if it wasn't for him

[@ThomasTheCure]

I appreciate Cody’s theme so much being a light in the musical darkness rn lol Big ups to him for getting that them made and moved to the WWE. It absolutely has helped with his popularity

[@microt999]

No one gonna believe me but I actually met two guys who know Def Rebel (it's just one guy not a band) and do music for WWE themselves just last night. They were saying that wwe actually want the themes now to be more simple and basic so it doesn't distract from the more important wrestler. That's also why the volume is so low. It's dumb but there is an answer.

[@SuperkickStudios]

thats pretty crazy man. wouldnt doubt it i was reading somewhere that WWE doesnt want themes to be "too good" it might give the idea that a wrestler is better than they are.

[@microt999]

@@SuperkickStudios yeah. Def Rebel is Anthony Mirabella @belllamusic on Instagram if you're interested.

[@CeemPlay]

I nearly puked reading that

[@viletoxxie]

sounds like some stupidity Vince would say

[@SuperkickStudios]

@@viletoxxie 100%

[@wwewrestlingandgaming4136]

John Cena’s album was literally on the Top Billboard charts

[@russo1501]

Jim Johnston is a gem, his music came to me as a child and remains etched in my memory forever. I like the CFO$ work, but Jim is in a whole different league

[@theevn7]

Good detailed channel 1st time in yours channel Great memories of WWE

[@Doom_Guy__]

You hit the nail on the head. The theme songs used to have soul man. Now it feels like generic unrecognizable garbage. That's why Cody's theme feels like a breath of fresh air. I'm hoping they get rid of Def Rebel and bring in someone good because their music makes me wish I was deaf.

[@MRSB787]

Romans theme is great as well

[@bwareist]

Yeah you can count the number of decent/good Def Rebel tracks on one hand Seth Rollins, The Way, Killer Kross, that's it.

[@reneecntrl]

yeah nobody really stands out anymore except naomi cody sasha and becky those are who come to mind since various themes have been changed like carmella’s fabulous

[@SpeedDemonPowerage98]

Asuka’s the future used to send chills down my spine when it hit while she was still undefeated. It’s since then declined quite a bit still good but it’s starting to get old doesn’t help her Empress of Tomorrow gimmick is beyond dead in the water no thanks to Vince of course prior to Trips taking over. Io’s Tokyo Shock is by far my favorite theme from Def Rebel even tho I’m probably in the major minority in this vids comment section.

[@zesevic5322]

Jim Johnston literally made banger after banger after banger after banger music

[@benpriest1418]

I remember messaging Mercy Drive on MySpace as a teen saying how much I liked their album and they replied to say that 'Burn in my light' kinda ruined them. I'd highly recommend their album if you like rock music, it's on Spotify too.

[@mikem.9197]

I can't understand why it would have ruined them. That track is great. Brings back a lot of memories. Thanks for reminding me of that.

[@benpriest1418]

@@mikem.9197 They mentioned that the WWE deal took such a big cut that included cuts from future projects as well

[@CeemPlay]

Randy hated the song. And Maven hated his song they made for him too

[@TotalbadassX]

Melina’s Paparazzi is super underrated and still slaps! Thanks Jim Johnston for this iconic song

[@bdo333]

Video is well done, learned a lot that I didn't before

[@BradleyParrisFM]

This is a great insight, I really enjoyed this. You really hit the nail on the head with your analysis and we can only hope WWE can address this soon.

[@InfectiousGroovePodcast]

Great topic. So many of us associate a ton of great memories with WWF / WWE themes. Jim Johnston provided us with as many iconic / goosebump moments as the actual athletes did.

[@kevonbailey4214]

I love how he showed mark henry when said he’s sure most of us thought they sang their own songs because on god you couldn’t tell me when i was child that wasn’t mark henry singing his song

[@wrldonwill]

You're the MVP for crafting this vid. You helped me tie up so many loose ends. I always wondered if the "Jimmy Hart" that was credited on some of the WWE themes, was actually thee Jimmy Hart.

[@ethanxzane]

Johnston and his team put so much effort and thought into each theme song. Whether it was WWE or CFO$/def rebel, the shift into rather generic electronic/rock theme music of the modern era is such a setback for both the fans and the wrestlers. Having a good recognizable song related to their gimmick helps add star power to a wrestler, plus having actual LYRICS or even just chants can boost fan engagement if it’s catchy enough to sing along (ex: Fandango).

[@SpeedDemonPowerage98]

Is it bad that I like Tokyo Shock for Iyo when she was still called Io Shirai? also CFO$ did a good job in the Future for Asuka well for me at least. Still surprised it’s still in use along with some other CFO$ songs.

[@ethanxzane]

@@SpeedDemonPowerage98 I will admit CFO$ had some bangers… Both of Sasha’s, Shinsuke, Roode, plus Iyo and Asuka like you mentioned were fireee. Now that I think about it… Dana Brooke’s theme was pretty good too. Might have to revisit the CFO$ catalogue lmao

[@pigs18]

One thing that gets skipped over is that Jim Johsnston's deal cost the WWE more money and it was cheaper to go to a work for hire model. And WWE attempted to buy CFO$ out of their contracts but the publisher declined and CFO$ broke up rather than deal with them any further themselves. I would expect CFO$ to return whenever their contract runs out.

[@watchmy666]

Great video as always

[@rayray44325]

not just the theme songs, the titatrons don't exist anymore.... it's just a wrestler's name with backround

[@Cosmopolit257]

Thank God I ain't the only one thinking that way. Tremendously great video, honestly! I've been noticing this trend and talking 'bout it for quite some time now. This video explains a lot, to say the least highly interesting to see the whole history of WWE and their music production and how they have been handling it. Me, personally I'm a huge fan of the old stuff and old themes up into the NXT era with a few exceptions and like you said this music really shaped my early taste in music I was developing as a teen and kid + it made me much more open-minded towards different types, genres of music especially during a time where tribalism was huge such as camp Metal vs. Hip-Hop. Jim Johnston's creative themes really bridged those two very well together and knew how to do so. Excellent work and fantastic video once again! Thank You!

[@gerardparker4220]

Well done video commentary

[@MaviNK]

This video was always needed

[@NickPR87]

Jim Johnston being fired objectively put an end to the potential of having great themes for almost anyone and everyone on the roster. There's been a couple memorable ones recently like Bàlor, Nakamura, Rollins, etc. But Jim had so many great ones that were never even used on television. The Anthology compilation album WWE released in '02 has some tremendous hidden gems.

[@jonbourgoin182]

Angle's theme was originally given to the Patriot just a fun fact in case you didn't know. It worked too perfectly for Angle though and no one thinks of the Patriot when they hear that theme.

[@CeemPlay]

Well I think we should, RIP Patriot. If nothing else thank you for having this legendary theme

[@JordenTaylor1911]

This is superb analysis.

[@UltimateBallaPOM]

Excellent video. Commenting for the algorithm

[@jayrubin01]

Thanks for another banger of a video! New video suggestion: do an analysis of the four horsewoman. You can do a career retrospective (so far) and then talk about the future (Mercedes mone njpw, charlotte as a face under triple h?, Becky back as a face, bayley with damage ctrl). Just think a four horsewoman vid would be awesome. Keep up the great work!

[@reese_zero3437]

I actually found Forceable Entry on CD at a Goodwill near my college campus. It was so cool to experience!

[@soslime6082]

crazy i was just thinking about how legendary theme songs were vs now earlier today and then u drop this😂

[@100Stratusfiedx]

lol I used to be embarrassed when the WWE themes would come up on shuffle, but a lot of the themes knock. I agree that WWE should build closer relationships with popular artists. I personally enjoyed the addition of Bad Bunny since he does massive streaming numbers.

[@gonzalez878]

Not every theme needs to sound pleasant to the ears it needs to match vibe of the character. One of my favourites is actually the old IPA theme just because it perfectly captures the essence of the characters. Two huge muscleheads who will beat the shit out of you.

[@jeffbeyer43]

First time viewer. Great video here, glad for the KZbin algorithm for once. I'll subscribe and be back to watch more videos, for sure!

[@bwareist]

We all know about the greatness of Jim Johnston, but it's really good to hear about music from the 80's and early 90's as well. Even though he's not associated with WWE another person that I think should be mentioned is Dale Oliver. The good work he's done over in TNA should get recognition for creating some Legendary themes as well, even though he's not as popular. The only decent to good tracks Def Rebel have to their name are Visonary (Seth Rollins), Coming Back for You (The Way/Johnny Gargano), and Dead Silent (Killer Kross)...that's it.

[@JustEpic_Yt]

Johnny gargano the way theme is amazing no one can change my mind (I also like Candice theme too)

[@sirnetflix7162]

I really loved RVD’s “One of a Kind”.

[@uzumakivybez6703]

I was just telling my Girlfriend this it just feels like today’s wrestlers don’t have theme music and characters that makes them stand apart. The composer from the attitude era deserves millions. And if only Vince and the WWE would take chances like they did in the attitude era

[@kyle2095]

Stop, the attitude era isn't coming back that wouldn't work anyway with the social climate these days

[@xThisGameRx]

WWE also made some awesome promo music themes over the years. One that comes to my mind is ' "The Build Up" WWE production theme from Shawn Michaels vs John Cena WM23 promo.

[@dquanissavage6287]

Awesome Video Today SuperKickStudios!!🔥🐐🐐

[@SuperkickStudios]

appreciate that man!

[@denneraraujo_]

Wow great video, as someone who has always been interested in the music of wrestling and how it is such an integral part of it, I appreciate the video with the whole story. It's noticeable how the quality has dropped in recent years, the majority of songs have less soul than SVR 2011 generic themes.

[@AskAdam28]

"You suck!" is now a term of endearment for Kurt! He loves it!

[@hishamhilal8332]

Jim Johnston was the greatest wrestling composer of all time. He would sit down with the wrestler, analyze the character, ask them what they want, write the song, then get an epic band to perform it. It was genuinely good music that you could listen to and enjoy outside of a wrestling context. Now wwe music is just generic samples with less originality than theme songs you could select for your custom character in the games.

[@Jarod_Schultz]

The WWE themes of the early 90's were the best. Hogan, Warrior, Savage, DiBiase, Roberts, Demolition, and Mr. Perfect all had great entrance songs.

[@lrios310]

22:45 i 100% agree with this for sure especially because of WWE music I got into genres like metal. WWE music did influence my taste in the the early years of my life and it still shows currently.

[@Black-Circle]

Hulk hogans theme on that 1985 cd is also very catchy

[@mrs6968]

You nailed it

[@Hardyisliving]

I'm hoping HHH will sort it out. He seems to be really into the musical aspect of Creative. His time in NXT, there were many great tracks for the superstars...

[@eriklarson7023]

As a theme music collector for over 20 years and a wrestling fan since 1988, it’s pretty clear the quality has gone down since JJ left WWE. He was a master at using different music genres and styles to enhance the wrestlers, from Kerwin White’s Frank Sinatra-inspired “Never Thought My Life Could Be This Good” to Deuce & Domino’s 50’s doo-wop “I’m All About Cool” to Maryse’s Europop “Pourquoi?” to Vladimir Kozlov’s Rammstein-esque “Pain”. I don’t know if it’s because of lack of budget or what, but much def rebel’s output uses the same artificial-sounding instrument samples in almost every track, especially the weak percussion which often lacks any punch. Now, to be fair, they seem to be improving, as some of their newer themes sound much better: Rhea Ripley’s “Demon in your Dreams”, the Brawling Brutes’ “Bring the Fire”, and Finn Balor’s “I AM DANGER”.

[@POOMPLEX2]

good video

[@noahemmanuelkekana2527]

The most underrated KZbinr

[@joelericpaul6834]

Not to forget back then... the PPVs also had amazing songs

[@no_one_cares_bozo]

WWE music today feels like something you'll hear in KZbin library.

[@hockeygang]

Deuce n domino theme song " I'm all about cool " one of the best. Very catchy.

[@cubzrulz]

They had absolute bangers back in the day even midcarders and managers I know some of these guys became main eventers later on but no one saw it coming. Jimmy Wang Yang, Shelton Benjamin, 2Cool, Eddie Guerrero, Rey Mysterio, Chris Benoit, Orlando Jordan, Teddy Long, Eric Bischoff, The Coach (twice), Matt Hardy, MVP, Mr Kennedy, RVD, CM Punk, etc. There's more but as I mentioned too the main eventers had great ones as well, but it shows how deep Jim Johnston dove in.

[@peerboom]

I know it’s hard to find information on it, but those early WWF albums are under “Stephanie Music”. Bruce Prichard mentioned this on his podcast a few years back. Something that Vince did for his kids, along with “Shane TV”. I don’t think Kane was using Slow Chemical when Forceable Entry was released, as it wasn’t on the initial first release of that album. I do see that there are versions of that album that feature that song as the last track, and WWF/E did advertise it being on the album later on when Kane would come to the ring. Slow Chemical did make it onto the 2004 soundtrack to The Punisher though. It was a pain in the ass collecting MP3 files of tracks in the late 90’s/early 00’s of WWF and WCW themes. Every once in a while, I’d find unreleased tracks, audio only, or stuff that was used for promo spots. Great video. Not enough can be said about how great the WWF era and early WWE music truly is.

[@arbajzz]

Upload more often bro

[@moversrus4048]

Undisputed Era’s theme is fantastic

[@drayquinn3929]

I know this has nothing to do with the WWE theme music production, but I feel like it's not just the music today that lacks originality. One of the things I look forward to, with PPVs is the different setups/stage themselves. And to see them use the same setups even for PPVs for the past couple of years especially, except for Mania, kinda saddens me tbh. I understand the reasoning behind this with the expensive costs (ironic with the record breaking profits that they made the past couple of years compared to the past eras, when they didn't have profits but still used customized sets), no change or revenue, and others. It's definitely something that I miss, not necessarily going over the top with EVERY PPV out of the year, but just something to make every PPV to feel more unique and different than the rest of them (The weekly shows are fine, since they are just weekly shows). A lot of PPVs, if not most PPVs, have felt pretty bland and the lack of creativity and uniqueness with the setups don't really help with that.

[@papiiluvz]

WWE needs to start making theme songs that kids today will actually be able to SING (or rap) in 10 years. Romans theme still slaps though haha

[@DayIX]

There are probably only like 5 standouts from def rebel that I can honestly say I enjoyed. - Roman Reigns (Head of the Table) - Seth Rollins (Visionary) - Austin Theory (A-Town Down) - Tyler Rust (Survive) - Rhea Ripley (Demon In Your Dreams)

[@user-vq8fq1ty7c]

Jim Johnston had the talent and vision to pursue creative avenues, and the the professionalism to produce work at a high level. He was essential to the success of characters. The raw grit and "realness" of Johnston's work with real instruments shone brightly next to anything that's come after, be it CFO$ or whatever came after them. Everything after Johnston is safe and forgettable. Having a produced sound with no live instruments comes across as corporate, polished, and "produced." It might be cheaper, it might be faster, but it is nowhere close to memorable.

[@JasonLegacy1]

This video popped up on my feed and I'm happy it did, nobody seems to care about this anymore and I'm sure it will never be what it used to be. Major reason I'm no longer into wrestling as much as I used to be. The music was absolutely was a major aspect that drawed me into watching every week!

[@madhavsinghff4279]

Nice

[@TMK561]

I didn’t know there was a music video for that alternate DX song. Now I gotta go watch it

[@SuperkickStudios]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y4jInYKVqtyUmtk ending of the music video is the best imo👌🏻

[@TMK561]

@@SuperkickStudios ima definitely check it out

[@TMK561]

@@SuperkickStudios oh yeah that bih fie!

[@limitedbom2206]

I think you summed it up perfectly. I think the music use to be an extension of the characters. Aggressive hard hitting music for the beefed up monster characters, up beat fast temp for the more quick or high flying characters, eerie music for the creepy characters like the undertaker. Now it just feels like the person gets asked hey whats your favorite song and they threw it on their entrance.

[@shadic1988]

This can go for video game music in WWE Games. With things like WWF SmackDown! - WWE SmackDown! vs Raw 2009, all of the songs hit hard and you kept going back to it because of the composition. When it came to 2010-onward, the feeling is gone and now it's just WWE Themes. SVRs 05-09 is heralded as the best soundtracks for WWE Games and they showed. Shut Your Mouth was peak mainly because it was possibly composed by Johnston himself.

[@SuperkickStudios]

100% agree its a ripple down effect

[@bwareist]

No they did reintroduce licensed music since WWE 2K15, though non of the soundtracks compare to the Smackdown vs Raw games. If I had to rank the SVR games in terms of Soundtrack it would be #1 Smackdown vs Raw 2007 #2 Smackdown vs Raw 2009 #3 The Original Smackdown vs Raw #4 Smackdown vs Raw 2008 #5 Smackdown vs Raw 2006 #6 Smackdown vs Raw 2010 (The only actual bad soundtrack of the series)

[@noellegendary3120]

Christian’s 2005 just close your eyes is still the best 👌.