Add as a preferred source on Google Jim Johnston, the man behind some of the most iconic entrance themes in WWE history, isn’t happy with the current state of pro wrestling music.
In a recent interview with The False Face, the former WWE music director said today’s entrance themes have lost their personality and no longer serve what he considers their most important function: identifying a wrestler before he even reaches the ramp.
“It’s not cathartic and it’s not something that, oh what a scoop Jim is trashing the way things are now, but I’ve been pretty vocal about it. It just sounds like noise to me and all the themes just sound generic. It used to be, whether it was my music or a Jimmy Hart theme or an outside band thing, you used to be able to be making dinner in the kitchen with the TV in the other room and you’d know who was coming out. You could almost follow the program from the other room. Now, I just don’t think it’s like that at all. And for some reason, the powers that be have forgotten their roots, how powerful music is in creating stars. And I further believe that’s why they’re not creating, either WWE or AEW, they’re not creating big stars anymore. There are no new Steve Austins. There are no Rocks around now. And it’s because everyone’s in this layer of generic.”
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Over more than three decades, Johnston helped build WWE’s sonic identity. Among the songs he composed, wrote, or produced are “I Won’t Do What You Tell Me” for Stone Cold Steve Austin, “Rest in Peace” for The Undertaker, “If You Smell…” for The Rock, “No Chance in Hell” for Vince McMahon, “Are You Ready” for D-Generation X, “Voices” for Randy Orton, and “Unstable” for Ultimate Warrior.
Johnston also worked on entrance music for Triple H, Kurt Angle, Kane, Chris Jericho, Shawn Michaels, and Brock Lesnar, among many others. He remained with the company until 2017.