Entrance Music Is Everything!

[Dave]

I was sitting on my couch watching Raw this past week and a thought hit me, Ted DiBiase sucks!

But outside of that, I also noticed that both he and R-Truth had new entrance music.

As much as I tried to think why they would change R-Truth’s music from something very over to something mildly unintelligible, an idea for a thread hit me.

How important is entrance music in setting the character of a superstar?

I mean, when you look at a lot of the people in the WWE, you can imagine their entrance music. If you thought about Edge, Triple H or Jericho, I am willing to wager that you could sing their themes from memory. The fact of the matter is that when people use the same entrance theme for years, they become a part of the persona that they are trying to get over to us.

Sometimes they work and other times they don’t. Take Daniel Bryan’s new theme for instance. Whilst it is a pretty fun little tune to enter the arena to, I cannot help but think of him being laughable when he appears to it. I personally think that the entrance theme of a wrestler says everything about who the WWE want us to see. Give them a serious rock tune and you know that this guy means business. Give him a up-beat and comedic song and that is what you are going to get.

So, am I looking at this too generally or do you think that I am onto something here?

If you think I am being too broad, why do you feel that way?

 

[Dzone]

I think entrance themes do show a lot and add to your persona if you do ever make it as a star. For example everyone gets up and starts screaming when the glass shatters... because you know it's Stone Cold; when theres a "dong" you know its Undertaker (or something at least related to him ¬.¬).

I do believe a lot of the WWE superstars have had a little revamp on their entrance theme and video thingy... ¬.¬.

 

[Mr. Artistic guy]

Very important, I would say that there is a correlation between superstars becoming successful and the memorability and quality of their entrance music with regards to defining them. Bibiase's theme is not specific to him whereas rhodes or mcintyre for example have a theme that suits them and adds to their character. Funny I was thinking the same thing recently......e.g. HBK's career didn't sky rocket until he sang his own theme song, the rock was mid-card til he had his own theme. Now what I'm not sure is if they give somebody a good theme because they are gaining inpopularity, or do they gain in popularity because of their theme, it definately works one way round, I'm just not sure which way

Don't fret, we all know wrestlers who've bin through tonnes of themes til they find one that represents them properly and I'm sure dibiase is no exception, personally I think mcintyre is lucky because he found his quickly, basically second theme, and it is a keeper.

 

[VinnieSunshine]

I was sitting on my couch watching Raw this past week and a thought hit me, Ted DiBiase sucks!

Yes I agree his music doesn't fit him.

But outside of that, I also noticed that both he and R-Truth had new entrance music.

As much as I tried to think why they would change R-Truth’s music from something very over to something mildly unintelligible, an idea for a thread hit me.

R-Truth has been tweeting a change in music for a few weeks leading up to it. It changed on the season premiere of RAW during RAW-roulette when DiBiase and Truth had a singing contest. The crowd was REALLY into it.

How important is entrance music in setting the character of a superstar?

I mean, when you look at a lot of the people in the WWE, you can imagine their entrance music. If you thought about Edge, Triple H or Jericho, I am willing to wager that you could sing their themes from memory. The fact of the matter is that when people use the same entrance theme for years, they become a part of the persona that they are trying to get over to us.

Entrance music is everything for a character. Take the old ECW days where they came out to songs that fit their character (i.e. Balls Mahooney came out to AC/DCs Big Balls). Yes I know the words to ALL of Triple H's various themes and listen to them along with Edge and Randy Orton, but only because I like them, but they are actual songs by REAL artists.

Sometimes they work and other times they don’t. Take Daniel Bryan’s new theme for instance. Whilst it is a pretty fun little tune to enter the arena to, I cannot help but think of him being laughable when he appears to it. I personally think that the entrance theme of a wrestler says everything about who the WWE want us to see. Give them a serious rock tune and you know that this guy means business. Give him a up-beat and comedic song and that is what you are going to get.

Bryan's theme is a case where it DOES make his character...no matter how silly it is. He came out a few weeks ago and cut a promo on Miz about himself and how yes his theme is generic, he has basic look and ring attire, and he hasn't made a name for himself yet. It wasn't until AFTER he won the US Title that he got the new music. If you have ever played the career mode with a created wrestler in Smackdown vs RAW, you come out with a generic theme and entrance. Its not until you start making a name for yourself that you get a real theme and entrance with fireworks. That is how Byran is being portrayed here.

 

[Ferbian]

The entrance music is something that we all associate with a lot of people. However, it's certainly not the thing that makes one a champion, or makes someone popular. If that is the deal, then there are certainly something wrong. A guy like John Cena should be able to go out to any theme music and still get the same kind of pop, same goes for Randy Orton etc.

There's some themes that fits a specific person much better. And there's some that just generally suck (Bryan Danielson, while funny, is really much much worse than his so called generic rock theme, which was awesome.) who still manage to get over, or get somewhere without the right theme.

So, overall the entrance music is not everything. It's simply a treat to add a small additional appeal to a wrestler, but certainly not any significant addition.

 

[a0161613]

Dave, come on. Do you actually believe that it plays anything more than a minor part in a character's make up.

Sure, Stone Cold had his breaking glass and The Rock had "If ya smelllllllllll" but it was a tiny aspect of their on screen character. It is much less important that their mic ability, their ability to sell and deliver offense and a handful of other traits.

Music is only part of a guys entrance. It is not meant to define a wrestler or leave any lasting impression.

 

[Existence_is_Futile]

Theme music can make or break a wrestler's gimmick.

My examples: Buff Bagwell in American Males. Seriously, that was insane. The music was horrible, and the team soon after flopped, because they weren't getting over with the fans.

William Regal when he was "The Real Mans Man". Of course the gimmick its self was completely asinine, the song made it THAT much worse.

 

[johnseamann]

It's not everything, but it's very significant. Brian's music builds to his character, sure, but he is the US Champion, so put together his entrance theme with Sheamus totally squashing him and you've lost all the prestige of the US belt. R-Truth's theme was very important for his character to get through with the crowds, but I would have to agree with Michael Cole that it was too long and beginning to get annoying. Maybe if he didn't sing it every single time or something. I can only guess the live crowd at Superstars/SD! tapings weren't into it the second time he showed up (assuming he is in both shows any given night). As for DiBiase's theme, I liked the previous one better, or even beter if he had returned to the "priceless" theme with which he debuted.

 

[Dave]

Dave, come on. Do you actually believe that it plays anything more than a minor part in a character's make up.

Sure, Stone Cold had his breaking glass and The Rock had "If ya smelllllllllll" but it was a tiny aspect of their on screen character. It is much less important that their mic ability, their ability to sell and deliver offense and a handful of other traits.

Music is only part of a guys entrance. It is not meant to define a wrestler or leave any lasting impression.

Yes! I really do!

You are right though, it doesn’t count for everything like this thread implies. However, I think you are underselling it quite significantly. I mean, let us look at two of the entrances in the WWE right now:


And then compare that to:


There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Randy Orton comes odd as being the more intense superstar and that shines through in his on-screen appearance. I mean, both of them accomplish the same thing but I do think that it sets up the character with minimal effort.

Even if you listen to the lyrics of both, it gives the audience a quick tell as to what the wrestler is about. Randy Orton’s would suggest that has a darker side to him and the sound is quite dangerous almost. Cody’s is gentler and the lyrics flow much more. To me, they do completely different things and I will be damned if the WWE doesn’t appreciate that fact.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Entrance Music is a very very very very small aspect of a wrestler in my opinion. There was a thread in the General Wrestling Discussion section talking about production values and entrance music is part of the cosmetic effect of wrestling along with the video promos, vinyettes, flashing lights, pyro and all that. It's great window dressin but, overall, it doesn't really hold any sway over me as to whether I think a wrestler has the stuff or not. On the surface, Daniel Bryan's entrance music seems kind of lame but it does go in with the whole "Anti-Superstar" thing that he has. That's not really so much of a gimmick as to who he really is. He really is, for the most part, just a regular guy and using a well known piece of classical music for his entrance theme is a way to stand out from all the hip hop, techno, rap & rock that typically comprises wrestling entrance themes.

For a few wrestlers, their entrances has become an unique aspect of who they are. For instance, can we now imagine The Undertaker without his entrance? Or how about Kane for that matter? But those two are exceptions rather than the rule.

 

[JJohns]

Really, music isn't as important as people think of for a character. I'm an old school fan that remembers back when there was a time when even major stars (Hacksaw Jim Duggan for instance) did not have entrance music. Even later on, I thought that Kozlov was a more intimidating character before he had that Hard Rock/Russian Fusion entrance music he has now.

Now, I did laugh my ass off when The American Dragon came out to Ride of the Valkyries, but remembering that he used to come out to the Final Countdown in Ring of Honor, I thought that it kind of fit. After all, WWE isn't trying to push him as a superstar like John Cena, but rather as a more off the wall character (which he can pull off if you watch his Hybrid Dolphins promos from PWG with Paul London).

Also, you have to remember that WWE does also recycle themes as well. CM Punk's "This Fire Burns" was used by Randy Orton once. Tiffany used Torrie Wilson's old music. Go a little further back, and Kurt Angle's entrance theme was originally used by the Patriot.

And for people that still think that music is everything towards whether a guy will get pushed in WWE, remember that the Gates of Kiev was used by Harley Race, Haku and Jim Duggan before Jerry Lawler got it.

 

[Rasha]

Entrance themes are almost their own entity; a partner to the wrestler. And like in all other walks of life, each partnership has its own dynamic. Here are some examples:

Type A: Great Star(s) made Average Music better
Hulk Hogan & "Real American"
Shawn Michaels & "Sexy Boy"
Undertaker & his funeral procession

Was there anything amazing about any of these theme songs? No, but they remain iconic thanks to the men who used them. Imagine if Marcus Bagwell had tried to use "Sexy Boy" instead of HBK. Doesn't quite work, right? What if The Great Khali came out to the Undertaker's music? Doesn't make him a legend.


Type B: Perfect Marriage of Great Star and Great Music
Stone Cold & "Broken Glass" theme
Raven & "Come As You Are" theme from WCW
Undertaker & Ministry of Darkness theme

In this type, you have awesome music that just added to the awesomeness of the wrestler. We'd still probably listen those themes if they belonged to lesser performers, but the memory of these specific guys connected to these themes makes them even better.


Type C: Solid Guy(s) made better by Awesome Music
The Brood (especially Gangrel)
Goldberg (early WCW days)
Randy Orton & "Evolution" theme

Seriously, does anyone give a crap about The Brood if not for their epic entrance? Didn't Goldberg's entrances last longer than most his matches? Wasn't watching young Randy Orton come out to the Evolution theme better than his matches or promos? I know Goldberg and Orton both transcended their themes eventually, but there was a time when the entrance was the best part of their night.

 

[Smartie]

I don't think it be everything , But EM is definitely on helluva factor in a superstar's set up.

First time watchers , who are usually kids , really pay attention to musics that are being played when someone enters.I remember myself quickly becoming a fan of SCSA while i didn't know anything about him and the character , only because the cool sound that was being played during his entrance.

Fans in Area also react to musics instead of superstars.Lots of times they don't realize someone has interfered or even entered without hearing the music.

Above statements proves the fact that a wrestler's EM plays a big role and while something has such an impact , then it's way important.

The other fact is that not every music can become popular.A good music can help viewers get excited to see a superstar and that's kinda the most important thing in this industry.

As you can notice , there has never been a wrestler who gets a low and quiet reaction while he's entering and gets a better and louder one during or after the match/segment , except special occasions like surprise victories.What does it mean? It means if you can get your viewers excited while someone entering , you can easily get him over , and Entrance Music plays a big role in that.

 

[Rckstrtmmy]

Alot of superstars get new theme songs right before they get a good push so I think thats why theres correlation between success and theme music. This was the case with Cena, The Rock, HHH, Austin, as well as many others. The music doesn't make them successful but I feel that if the entrance music is great the crowd's response will be that much better.

 

[Firebird4Life]

Entrance Music is ESSENTIAL to a good character. You simply CANNOT put over a character with mediocre & unfitting entrance music. And there are times when great entrances and music put over wrestlers who aren't as talented. As someone stated, take Gangrel: one of my favorite entrances & wrestlers, but not the greatest talent in the world. And honestly, the gimmick was kinda "eh, that's cool I guess" at best. But when his music hit and you knew he was gonna rise through that fire...I couldn't get my TV set loud enough!

What about TNA's Suicide gimmick? I admit, bringing the video game character into real wrestling was a good tie-in for the game sales, but the gimmick itself was a fairly lame idea. But I LOVED the talent that Kazarian (and even Daniels) brought to the character; his entrance MADE the character. And it fit. "Suicide...come to life..." It just worked. It put over an idea basically made to sell more games into a well-liked character.

Or take the nWo. No matter who you thought was going to come through the curtain, when that music hit, people hit their feet and cheered/boo'd because of the music.

More people/groups whose music only added to their greatness (who haven't been named yet): AJ Styles, Degeneration-X, the Four Horsemen, Wolfpack, Chris Jericho, Mr. Perfect...

Look at Generation Me in TNA...their music is a joke and they're AMAZING talent. I'm betting with better, more fitting music, they could be more over as heels with the crowd.

Or take the Ultimate Warrior; a guy we all know had ZERO wrestling talent, but so much charisma and such a high energy theme & entrance, we could help but want to stand up and cheer and get excited.

How about TNA's Amazing Red? Great talet, terrible music. Reduced to mid-carder and winning/losing titles off of TV.

Music isn't EVERYTHING, but it's a damn big part of it. I'd say 70% of how over someone is comes down to their music and entrance. Don't believe me? The next time Randy Orton comes on TV, hit 'mute' and play some generic rock music or maybe John Cena's theme. It just doesn't work.

 

[GameOver]

I think it's really important
IT sets the mood for the style of wrestler, and there individuality or in the case of a PPV/TV show theme it sets the tone for the show to come

The old days and those who don't have any music, when they came out, unless there was an announcer you'd never know who it is initially. Move forward, as soon as that initial guitar stab in Real American hit you instantly knew who it was and didn't need no introduction. That's the beauty of a good entrance theme, anyone on any level can have there own music and you could pick them out without introductions if you knew who they were ofcourse.

Daniel Bryan's music atm, wtf. I know what it is and who's coming out but it's a horrible choice for an entrance theme, if has to be scripted to be that way.

Lastly might add for someone that loves keeping an archive of the music in wrestling, entrance themes, PPV themes, TV themes are all very important.

 

[Karaoke Superstar]

I was sitting on my couch watching Raw this past week and a thought hit me, Ted DiBiase sucks!

But outside of that, I also noticed that both he and R-Truth had new entrance music.

As much as I tried to think why they would change R-Truth’s music from something very over to something mildly unintelligible, an idea for a thread hit me.

How important is entrance music in setting the character of a superstar?

I mean, when you look at a lot of the people in the WWE, you can imagine their entrance music. If you thought about Edge, Triple H or Jericho, I am willing to wager that you could sing their themes from memory. The fact of the matter is that when people use the same entrance theme for years, they become a part of the persona that they are trying to get over to us.

Sometimes they work and other times they don’t. Take Daniel Bryan’s new theme for instance. Whilst it is a pretty fun little tune to enter the arena to, I cannot help but think of him being laughable when he appears to it. I personally think that the entrance theme of a wrestler says everything about who the WWE want us to see. Give them a serious rock tune and you know that this guy means business. Give him a up-beat and comedic song and that is what you are going to get.

So, am I looking at this too generally or do you think that I am onto something here?

If you think I am being too broad, why do you feel that way?

Haven't thought of that before, but I think you are right. Entrance themes definitely do set the mood before a match or promo. And while what happens after the theme is more important, IMO without the theme it wouldn't have the same effect. A lot of wrestlers in the WWE owe a big part of their success to their themes, the company does as well.

 

[The Doctor]

Take Daniel Bryan’s new theme for instance. Whilst it is a pretty fun little tune to enter the arena to, I cannot help but think of him being laughable when he appears to it.

I want to address this first. Look, the whole song being way too ridiculous and "laughable" is the point. He's a nerd, an ascended fanboy. Nerds like classical music. The music is a way of catching his opponents off guard. They hear that music and think it's funny, and then Bryan explodes and ties them in knots. It fits him and his character perfectly, and it's FAR better than the generic and shit rock and rap songs everyone else uses. It's instantly recognizable and unique - just like the man himself.

Anyway, entrance music, while not "everything", is VERY important to a character. Good entrance music needs to have a recognizable "hook" at the beginning, one that instantly makes the crowd pop or boo because they know who the superstar it belongs to is. Good entrance music should fit a character. It should be unique, or at least easily distinguishable from anyone else's music.

For an example of music making the character, look no farther than The Dudebusters. Remember when they first debuted they used a Bittersweet Symphony-type piece? Everyone was wondering how it fit their characters, wondering if they were more than just good friends because of this music. It made people associate a character with the team, based on the music.

Good music is essential for any superstar looking to succeed.

 

[The Crock]

It's not "everything", but it is definitely important. The entrance music for a wrestler is supposed to portray him as a wrestler while he is entering the ring, it sets the mood. That being said, it is obviously important, but it doesn't make or break the wrestler. Look at how many jobbers have decent entrance music that people enjoy to listen to... Does that make them any better? Nope. Entrance music is a nice treat, but at the end of the day it doesn't matter that much. Would you still watch wrestling if there were no more entrances? No more entrance music? I'm guessing most people would say yes. The wrestler makes people watch the WWE, not his entrance music. It is just a nice element to make the show funner for the fans, just like entrance videos and pyro. Insignificant stuff that adds to the aesthetic part of the show and we all enjoy, but it doesn't really do anything for a wrestler.

 

[The Crock]

entrance music can help a wrestler get over take orton he didn't start getting cheers until he changed his theme to voices

You can't be serious right? Orton got cheers when he turned tweener and started appealing to the fans. I personally liked his old theme more than Voices. Orton has been over for a long time. Remember his first World Heavyweight Championship run? When he left Evolution? He was getting HUGE cheers at the time. Entrance music didn't do shit for Randy.

 

[Morpheus101]

The entrance music is a major factor in terms of molding a superstar's character. In fact, it can make all the difference. Bad/unsuitable entrance music can basically kill an up and coming superstar. I think that was a major problem during Randy Orton's first major push as a face, i.e. his entrance music at the time was awful. The same goes for the Undertaker's "biker" gimmick....not many people I know actually liked that awful Limp Bizkit "Rollin" song and it was actually causing many fans to be fed up with the Undertaker himself.

 

[Honkey_Kong]

The entrance music is a major factor in terms of molding a superstar's character. In fact, it can make all the difference. Bad/unsuitable entrance music can basically kill an up and coming superstar. I think that was a major problem during Randy Orton's first major push as a face, i.e. his entrance music at the time was awful. The same goes for the Undertaker's "biker" gimmick....not many people I know actually liked that awful Limp Bizkit "Rollin" song and it was actually causing many fans to be fed up with the Undertaker himself.

Was it Limp Wristed's song or was it the fact that the Undertaker went from being the immortal dead man to a jackass biker?

No, unlike some of you guys, I actually have taste in music and I can't stand most of the WWE themes. I do like Mcintyre's, Orton's new theme and all the themes that Motorhead did for HHH and Evolution. Aside from that they're lame. But I for one don't use that for my opinion on whether or not I get behind a wrestler. It's just production value, kind of like shinny wrapping paper on a gift. If the wrestler sucks, no music is going to make him any better.

And yes to that other guy, the WWE recycles themes periodically. Look at Hulk Hogan's "Real American" theme. I remember Windham and Rotundo used that theme initially.

 

[spazz]

In my opinion, it is essential for a theme song to have a distinctive intro; an intro that will instantly create a pop when played. This all adds into the character of the wrestler, and yes it does play a major role. For example, the crowd goes nuts as soon as they hear "I hear voices thats in my head..." cause they know Randy Orton is coming out. Another example would include the glass shatter in the beginning of Steve Austin's theme. Guaranteed to get the audience off their seats.

 

[TheSDQQKidJoe]

I was sitting on my couch watching Raw this past week and a thought hit me, Ted DiBiase sucks!

But outside of that, I also noticed that both he and R-Truth had new entrance music.

As much as I tried to think why they would change R-Truth’s music from something very over to something mildly unintelligible, an idea for a thread hit me.

How important is entrance music in setting the character of a superstar?

I mean, when you look at a lot of the people in the WWE, you can imagine their entrance music. If you thought about Edge, Triple H or Jericho, I am willing to wager that you could sing their themes from memory. The fact of the matter is that when people use the same entrance theme for years, they become a part of the persona that they are trying to get over to us.

Sometimes they work and other times they don’t. Take Daniel Bryan’s new theme for instance. Whilst it is a pretty fun little tune to enter the arena to, I cannot help but think of him being laughable when he appears to it. I personally think that the entrance theme of a wrestler says everything about who the WWE want us to see. Give them a serious rock tune and you know that this guy means business. Give him a up-beat and comedic song and that is what you are going to get.

So, am I looking at this too generally or do you think that I am onto something here?

If you think I am being too broad, why do you feel that way?

BTW i think they changed R-truth's music because it has cursing in it lol.( You know the whole pg thing.....). I listened to the whole song and it does but R Truth covers it up pretty well.

 

[Morpheus101]

Was it Limp Wristed's song or was it the fact that the Undertaker went from being the immortal dead man to a jackass biker?

No, unlike some of you guys, I actually have taste in music and I can't stand most of the WWE themes. I do like Mcintyre's, Orton's new theme and all the themes that Motorhead did for HHH and Evolution. Aside from that they're lame. But I for one don't use that for my opinion on whether or not I get behind a wrestler. It's just production value, kind of like shinny wrapping paper on a gift. If the wrestler sucks, no music is going to make him any better.

And yes to that other guy, the WWE recycles themes periodically. Look at Hulk Hogan's "Real American" theme. I remember Windham and Rotundo used that theme initially.

I can't say that I have taste in music, but I do like the themes of:

Triple H (big Motorhead fan here)
Drew McIntyre
Randy Orton
Undertaker
Edge
Kane
Sheamus

I like these wrestlers, but I think their entrance music SUCKS:

John Morrison
Cody Rhodes
Ted DiBiase
The Miz
Nexus (sorry, but the music used for them is ridiculously unsuitable - a keep it simple approach would have been better).

John Morrison is a classic example of a great superstar who could really be even more "over" with a more suitable entrance theme (and entrance in general), in the same way that Triple H's character was helped by his Motorhead entrance theme.

Cody Rhodes....his music is simply awful and he deserves better. It sounds way too "emo" and doesn't really fit his character or his "dashing" gimmick at all (it's not like Cody is portrayed as a whiny teenager).

I don't like Daniel Bryan's entrance music either, but it's not meant to be taken seriously