It’s common knowledge that an entrance theme is quite crucial to a professional wrestler. It can make or break a WWE Superstar depending on how fitting it is of their character.
Some songs, such as “Meat on the Table” and “Realeza”, are produced by WWE’s own musical genius, Jim Johnston. Other entrance themes, such as “Cult of Personality” and “My Time is Now”, were already songs before the likes of CM Punk and John Cena starting coming out to them.
Regardless of whether they were composed by WWE or not, all of the aforementioned themes are perfectly fitting of the Superstar they are associated with. However, what if other songs were used as entrance themes for certain Superstars instead?
Keep in mind, I’m well aware of the fact that some Superstars (John Cena and Randy Orton, for example) will more than likely never change their entrance music again. The following list is merely based off my opinion and what I would want to see (or hear, rather) Superstars use as their entrance music.
Randy Orton: “Sick” by Adelitas Way
For years, Randy Orton has been known to fans as a man with a twisted mind that will resort to anything to take what he wants. Regardless of whether he is a face or a heel, it doesn’t matter; The Viper is already ready to strike at any opportune moment.
Orton debuted “Voices” by Rev Theory as his entrance music in May 2008. As perfect as that song is for his character, I thought he was due for change now that he has since reverted back to his villainous ways.
One song that has always stuck out to me as a potential theme for Orton is “Sick” by Adelitas Way. The song talks about reaching one’s breaking point and going crazy, two things Orton manages to accomplish on weekly basis.
The Legend Killer may not exactly “hate his boss” as the song suggests, but he will certainly make anyone’s life miserable who dare to step in his path of destruction.
Drew McIntyre: “Pain” by Three Days Grace
Early on in his career, Drew McIntyre was known as “The Chosen One”, as dubbed by Vince McMahon. He was said to have a bright future in the business and that he was bound to be a world champion before long.
Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, McIntyre fell out of the good graces of management and slowly began to fall down the totem pole in WWE. He is now a member of the WWE’s resident job squad 3MB also featuring the likes of Heath Slater and Jinder Mahal.
I still strongly believe that McIntyre has a lot of untapped potential just waiting to be reached. If he can disassociate himself from Slater and Mahal, McIntyre might have a chance of resurrecting his career.
As awesome as “Broken Dreams” by Shaman’s Harvest is, I think “Pain” by Three Days Grace is a song that would just as (if not more) fitting of his troubled persona. The theme can relay the message just how far he has fallen in recent years, not to mention the fact that the slow, maniacal beat is somewhat similar to that of “Broken Dreams”.
Ryback: “Bully” by Shinedown
One night removed from WrestleMania 29, Ryback turned his back on the WWE Universe by shockingly ambushing then-WWE Champion John Cena. From that point forward, Ryback ceased to say “Feed Me More” during his matches and even had the once-popular phrase removed from the opening of his entrance theme.
Ryback transitioned from being a force to be reckoned with to a cowardly monster to a crybaby before finally settling on being a bully. He has most notably bullied multiple no-names backstage, but recently shifted his focus to Dolph Ziggler.
While his current entrance music is pretty intimidating, it doesn’t make much sense now that he’s longer as “hungry” for competition as he once was. Instead, I think “Bully” by Shinedown would be the perfect fit for him.
Sure, the song goes into detail about standing up for yourself against bullies, which is the complete opposite of Ryback’s current gimmick, but I still believe it would work well for him. He can make a mockery of it by claiming that he is fending off bullies when in actuality he is the one doing all the bullying.
Christian: “Whispers in the Dark” by Skillet
Before leaving WWE for TNA in late 2005, Christian’s entrance music at the time was “Just Close Your Eyes” by Waterproof Blonde. It was a spectacular song that was perfect for Christian’s heel persona.
Upon returning to the company in February 2009, Christian debuted an updated version of the song by Story of the Year as his new entrance music. Personally, I enjoy the theme more than most, but I think it would be cool to see Christian change his entrance music one last time before he eventually retires.
The first time I heard “Whispers in the Dark” by Skillet a few years back, it instantly reminded me of Christian.
Not only do “Just Close Your Eyes” and “Whispers in the Dark” sound a lot alike, but the latter song is very reflective of Christian’s long road to the top and his overcoming of adversity over the course of his career. Skillet has done work with WWE in the past, so the possibility of WWE using one of their songs as someone’s entrance theme (preferably Christian’s) might be a possibility.
Daniel Bryan: “The Final Countdown” by Europe
For nearly over five years, CM Punk used “This Fire Burns” by Killswitch Engage as his entrance music. However, upon his shocking return to WWE on the July 25 edition of Raw in 2011, Punk entered the ring to “Cult of Personality” by Living Colour, the same song he used as his entrance music during his time with Ring of Honor.
So, since that point in time, this question has always been on my mind: If Punk is allowed to enter his old entrance music from the indies, why can’t Bryan do the same?
Punk was a major star at the time and was undergoing a change in character, so it was logical that he changed his entrance music as well. With John Cena currently out with an injury, that leaves Bryan as the defacto No. 1 babyface on the roster, in addition to the fact that he’s also transitioning from being a comedy character to being a serious in-ring competitor.
Of course, it would be strange for Bryan to start using “The Final Countdown” by Europe as his new entrance music right now, especially since that would mean his archenemy Triple H would have bought the rights to the song. Besides, the remixed version of “The Ride of the Valkyries” he’s using at the moment is rather catchy, so it is not a top priority at the moment.
Nonetheless, you have to admit it that it would be pretty darn cool if the former WWE Champion made his way down the WrestleMania ramp next year to this classic tune.
Zack Ryder: “Oh Radio” by Downstait
After breaking away from his longtime tag team partner Curt Hawkins in the spring of 2009, Zack Ryder completely overhauled his character by cutting his hair and dubbing himself “The Long Island Iced Z”. Along with that was a change in entrance music, which was called “Oh Radio” by Watt White.
I fell in love with the song the first time I heard it and still enjoy listening to it today, but as Owen Hart once said, enough is enough and it is time for a change.
Downstait made a cover of “Oh Radio” and released it last summer, which caused fans to urge Ryder to use it as his new entrance theme. WWE has yet to allow him to use it, but I still hold out hope, regardless.
Sure, it is essentially the same song, but there is a big difference in the way it sounds. The self-proclaimed Internet Champion has done a lot to reinvent himself in recent months, and I think the only thing left to do is to finally change his entrance music.
I highly doubt a push would come out of it, but it would still be cool to see Ryder using a Downstait song as his entrance theme similar to The Miz, Alex Riley and Dolph Ziggler.
The Shield: “Justice” by Rev Theory
At 2012’s Survivor Series event, The Shield made their explosive debut in the main event by ambushing Ryback and costing him the WWE Championship. The group consisted of Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns, and they only had one goal in mind: To bring back justice to the WWE.
Their quest to right the wrongs in the company have not gone unnoticed, as many Superstars attempted to put them down the count for close to six months. It wasn’t until June that their undefeated streak in six-person tag team match was finally broken at the hands of Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton and Kane.
That hasn’t stopped them from obtaining gold, though, as they currently hold the United States and WWE Tag Team Championships. Their reign of terror won’t come to an end until they serve justice, but I believe a change of entrance music might help their cause.
At WWE TLC last December, The Shield competed in their first match and debuted new theme music as they made their entrance through the audience. The into was pretty awesome, but I remember being underwhelmed by the rest of the song. It sounded like generic rock music to me, personally, so I think it’s only a matter of time before The Shield enters to a new tune.
“Justice” by Rev Theory fits the bill, and it also served as the theme song for 2011’s Extreme Rules pay-per-view. Now that they are aligned with Randy Orton, it would be unique if everyone involved in the stable had matching Rev Theory entrance music (disregarding Triple H, of course).
John Cena: “Remember the Name” by Fort Minor
Shortly before capturing his first WWE Championship at WrestleMania 21, John Cena changed his entrance music from “Basic Thuganomics” to “The Time is Now”. Over time, he gradually dropped his rapping gimmick and has been known to the masses as “Super Cena” ever since.
The song was recorded by Cena himself and was released on his album entitled “You Can’t See Me” in May 2005. It’s hard to hear the song’s blaring trumpets over the loud cheers and jeers from those in attendance, but it’s still a very well known song, nonetheless.
While Cena may still be putting the signature slogan on the back of his t-shirts, it’s hard to argue that his time is still “now”, especially since he is currently sitting on the sidelines with an elbow injury. Once he returns to action early next year, it would be the perfect opportunity for him to debut new entrance music.
“Remember the Name” by Fort Minor has been a very popular candidate for years now, especially for a heel Cena. The chances of the 13-time world champion turning heel, let alone changing his entrance music are microscopic, but it is still fun to think about.
Cena has made a career off making people remember him. Whether you love him or loathe him, you’ll never forget the leader of the Cenation and all that he has accomplished over the last decade.
As previously stated, all the aforementioned entrance themes are based off only my opinion and what I would want to see, no necessarily who I think should change their entrance song. Nonetheless, feel free to drop a comment below with any songs you think would make for a suitable entrance theme for a certain Superstar.
GSM out.
Graham Mirmina, a.k.a. Graham “GSM” Matthews, is currently a Journalism major at Endicott college. Visit his website at Next Era Wrestling and “like” his official Facebook page to continue the conversation on all things wrestling.
Ringsidehustle.com 