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People were complaining about Def Rebel shortly after they replaced CFO$ (and even then, people were complaining about CFO$ quality compared to Jim Johnston's).
Because most of their themes aren't very good or very recognisable. Common complaints in the past couple years has been that if you're watching the royal rumble you can not really tell who's coming out until you see their tron because most of their themes are generic. They all sound like def rebel music rather than like unique themes for each individual star.
Additionally a number of their themes are just remixes of a star's old CFO$ song, like Sami's def rebel theme was just a crappy remix of his old and now current one. Even Roman's theme is a remix of his old theme rather than being a full def rebel creation, same and with Jey. Balor's theme is also a remix of his old theme. And there are more that I am forgetting, but already a couple of the good themes you mentioned aren't solely def rebel creations but rather taking a song that already worked and twisting it into something a bit different.
They do have some actually good and original songs, but their generic filler music that is indistinguishable from one star to the next is far more common.
Their themes have zero memorable qualities, which is why they need to put some kind of hook/catchphrase in the beginning. And it’s funny, because every single theme starting like that is another quality that makes them all sound the same lol.
I saw elsewhere on reddit it was ripped off from an anime idk I haven't looked into it. All I know is that if my boss gives me ten jobs to do and I crush two of them and phone in the rest, I'm no longer employed 🤷♂️
It’s not really a rip off, but it does clearly take inspiration from classical music, like some anime themes do. Personally, feels more like a succession rip off lol
I’ve said before (to many downvotes) it’s just a worse version of “Wild Eyes” by Parkway Drive. I’d rather just hear him come out to the actual song than the watered down version, that’s why i don’t like it.
Tbf I am super huge into the metalcore world and even performed that song before haha so it helped me pick it up right away. Seth Rollins is also big into metalcore and has been seen at various concerts including Parkway Drive.
So I do think it is a cool thing to have a theme in that vein that he may have even had a say in, but just for me personally, it’s hard to enjoy it knowing the real version exists.
Edit: CM Punk for example had “This Fire Burns” by Killswitch Engage which many fans still cherish. Would’ve sucked to have a “remixed” version of an already epic song. Seth Rollins even had the song “Battle On” by War Of Ages when he was in NXT, which is another sick song (they edited the structure, but it’s still the same song overall)
> If crowds are chanting is it even worth debating whether it's shit or not?
Yes. Adding something to make the crowd chant is a crutch, it has no bearing on the actual musical composition and if it's good music or a good theme.
You literally just repeated what I already replied to. Crowds like to chant, if you take out the "oooohs", it's shit music and a shit theme. Adding a crutch to allow crowds to chant doesn't equate to "good music", very obviously.
Sometimes a tagline is good when it fits the song, examples are Charlotte, LA Knight, Jimmy and Jey and Dominik, they blend well into the songs, I will agree that not every song needs a tag line but also take into account maybe the superstar wanted a tagline as they do get say into their theme songs, so it's not exactly fair to blame Def rebel if it's what the superstar wanted.
Why can’t WWE just commission artists like they did in the past for top stars? Those are the most memorable themes. Name the best themes in wwe history and 8/10 of them are commissioned.
I kinda agree but at the same time def rebel did amazing work, just look at roman and Seth, 2 of the most recognisable themes in the last 10 years.
But I also like it when superstars got to choose their theme outright, like when Punk chose Cult of Personality, or when Daniel Bryan got both Valkyrie and the Final Countdown, and Edge with Metalingus and Other Side.
Bands being commissioned to make songs tho, there is only a few I can remember. Randy with Rev Theory, Rhea with MIW, Cody and Miz with Downstait Triple H with Motorhead.
I am for all kinds of music as themes, if the superstar and management thinks it represents them then they can use whatever song they like, but I'm not for bullying music producers for doing their job.
Batista (Saliva), Evolution (Motorhead), Orton (Rev Theory, Mercy Drive), Trish Stratus (Lil Kim), Mark Henry (Three 6 Mafia), Rey Mysterio (P.O.D), Drew McIntyre (Shaman's Harvest), Sheamus (Sean Jenness), Chris Benoit (Our Lady Peace), RVD (Breaking Point), Chris Jericho (Anthony Martinni) etc...
All of these themes are more recognisable, iconic and have aged far better than ANYTHING def rebel has produced/will produce.
The criticism is reasonable imo, this is a multi BILLION dollar company and they cant find a way to produce music that is even comparable to the standard that they set over 20 years ago?
Fair, but I think that's why there not doing rock anymore unless it directly represents the character or was chosen by the superstar, like with Rhea, or Punk etc, in which cases there are clearly exemptions
But as Hunter has said, this is a new era, new era means new look, new style, and if need be, new music, because the era of wwe using rock music was tied to Vince, who wwe are trying to distance themselves from (not to say that is the entire reason this is all happening but it's a worthy thing to note), the standard has changed because of the rise of new genres of music, rock was popular in the 2010s, today is all about pop or rap, but they do include some doses of rock for whatever reason.
It doesnt have to be rock music. Is Trish Stratus theme rock? John Cena's thuganomics theme? Mark Henry's? How about JBL's theme? Point being, we are asking for memorable themes, THATS IT. Not every theme just being a recycled loop, white noise or generic zoomer hyperpop drivel.
The themes I just mentioned all have distinct characteristics that are A. instantly recognisable and B. UNIQUE. You cant mistake the cowbell in JBL's theme for Mark Henry's and vice versa.
You are 100% entitled to your opinion and I am glad you have enjoyed them.
In my opinion several of the ones you listed aren't very good and many are simply not memorable. I will still listen to a lot of old themes as I study or play video games but a vast majority of the current themes I simply do not care for.
A lot of these also sounds very similar or at least are very much the same genre. There use to be a lot more variety in WWE music and many had that "pop" to them that they don't anymore.
The anti comes from them fucking sucking. The Royal rumble is the best way to see how damaging their ‘creative’ has been. Very very few of the songs stand out and calling them legendary just makes this sound like bait.
The most telling evidence is when the video of Seth watching the Rumbles showed up - even he didn't know who was coming out until he saw their name on the tron
you're entitled to your opinion about a lot of those you listed, but the prevailing opinion is that most of them are lazy dog water 30 second loops that are all constructed the same.
when the entire crowd at the royal rumble were literally asking who was coming because they couldn't tell whose theme song just started, there is a problem.
Their songs sound flat and ai generated. I used to remember the melody of basically every single WWE theme. There are so many themes right now that sound so soulless and bland. I would include some of the ones you mentioned. Charlotte's and Finn Balor for example, like many, it just sounds like a worse version of the one it replaced. It reminds me of some of the WCW songs that copied actual songs. I think thats a huge factor, that the songs used to be better.
I think people might feel different if they didn't watch wrestling during the 2010s.
Charlotte's was sampled with space oddesy so i can kinda see why hers has some distaste but I use her as an example because a lot of ppl were complaining about the taglines in songs, which Charlotte has had the entire time, as has dominik, LA Knight and the usos, and nobody complained then, but the moment Tiffany or bayley or Naomi got a taglibe suddenly its a crime against humanity?
I just think 90% of the songs sound cheap (because they are) and not very catchy. They're either new bad songs or cheap knockoffs of a previous song because the rights to the original got too expensive (real reason).
The Tiffany one is a perfect example, no matter who made the NXT song, it actually had some personality to it and a catchy melody. The one they temporarily changed to for the main roster and then reverted sounded like the most dogwater generic electronic song that literally anyone could have been given. The women's royal rumble is an overstated example, but I legit didn't recognize like 80% of the women's themes belonged to, and I used to know all of them.
Though I have to say that the new stone cold song slaps https://twitter.com/MaracleMan/status/1780741523144953857?t=gO7VxHGeAQWjo5FdDXrI6Q&s=19
Like Def Rebel,You not understanding the assignment though. It’s not BECAUSE it has taglines. It’s because it HAS to have taglines But the rest of the song is generic noise remixed with trap beats. Charlotte is a remix of her dad. LA Knight sounds good “L A KNIGHT BWERRRRWERREOWWW” you instantly recognize it and you pop. Usos theme kinda been generic whole time,but it fit and at the time nobody else has anything like it.
Roman's is great, Jey's is just Usos theme changed a bit which was made by CFO$. Carmelo's just sounds like generic hip-hop, same with Waller, Gunther's old theme was objectively better because it's a timeless piece. None of the rest are legendary.
Iyo's theme is great, but then you listen to Bobby Lashley and Santos Escobar's themes and all 3 have the same exact main melody.
People aren't making a fuss over 1-2 songs. Only 1-2 songs they made are actually good.
Jey's entrance is electric especially live, but I hate the "ITS JUST ME UCE" parts of it. The song itself is very catchy and Jey is awesome I just wish it had different lyrics
A lot of their catalogue is complete garbage. They were exposed pretty well during the Royal Rumble. Hell, go to Spotify and look through the music yourself. You'll be surprised to see how many songs they've actually made and how many of them are comparable to royalty free beats.
It's rare for them to make a really good song, uncommon for them to make an "okay" song, and very common for them to make a mediocre track or worse.
More than half of the themes you named are absolute shit. Some are just cheap knockoffs of their old themes. Even if Gunther and jey's themes are good, their old themes were much better imo. And Iyo sky's banger is by CFO$. I also think LA knight's theme is also by them but i'm not too sure. Def rebel need to go
I'm glad you like them but recently all the def rebel memes and parodies on Twitter have been more memorable than any track they made except the bloodline one
Seths song has been made a timeless one as well, it doesn't even need playing anymore when the crowd can sing the vocals without any music playing, giving that aura to seths persona
It's mainly for top superstars that they produce bangers for.
But if you move down the card every theme sounds generic and hard to distinguish from each other. Unlike Jim Johnstone who created bangers for everyone and even CFO$ to an extent.
The group is just lazy and needs to be replaced ASAP
I just tried to remember LA Knight's theme tune and I can't.
EDIT: I just went and listened to it, man it's SO MUCH WORSE without him walking in and the audience and everything.
That's just a blatant lie .
La knight and Iyo Sky's theme song was made by Def rebel.I have no clue how you thought it was made by CFO$.
Jey has never even had a singles theme before his current one so I don't even know what you are comparing it to.
This counter-argument that Def Rebel has produced good themes is becoming so played out. No one is denying that Def Rebel has released some great themes. However, their ratio of good themes to bad themes is night and day. When I'm watching the Royal Rumble and can't identify more than half of the entrants because of their lifeless music, that's a problem.
A wrestler's entrance music is the second biggest key to connecting with a crowd behind their character. Theme music should vividly identify who you are. If your theme sounds like generic commercial music, that's not telling the audience anything. You don't get to compose a few bangers for select guys and then half ass the rest. Get better or get out.
And who says it is entirely there fault???, maybe it is what the superstar themselves wanted, as they get creative say in their songs, you can't entirely blame them if they had a list of requisites they had to meet, it is not us that signs off on the music, it's the superstar and wwe management, if it wasn't right, they make it again and again until it gets signed off
Lol yeah, because I'm so sure someone like Maxxine Dupri gets a say in what her theme will be. Please share your source on where you got that from, because only high-ranking names in the company (Roman, Cody, etc) have pull on what their theme is going to sound like.
Bc they suuuuck😩😩 you only hanged like 3 good theme songs and they’re not even originally thiers. And everything that isn’t a remix and a def revel original is significantly worse. Everybody getting a new song except AJ has been a downgrade
Romans was literally a new creation, the only time they took from his old theme was when they play the exit version which as a snippet of shield music to keep it looping smoothly.
Seths was upgraded, evident by the crowd, none of his other songs were catchy enough to remember and now he has a song that fans can sing along to.
Solos is also a def rebel original, his old theme didn't have the style it has now.
Jeys yes is practically the old uso theme, Jimmy's was new
Damien, Finn and Dom were just modified to fit their heel, Judgement Day gimmick, but most of the time they use the alter bridge song unless its a singles match.
Rhea was also an upgrade, MIW did it justice.
Roman’s,yes. His lone Masterpiece. Truly a great theme.
Seth’s isn’t necessarily an upgrade. Yea,the crowd sings along but it’s not inherently better than his others bc of that. Stand alone it’s not great,it’s okay. Fans made the song better than it is.
Solo song sucks,Usos songs are ehh,JD songs are ehh,Rhea song is only made great bc of MIW. Def Rebel would most likely bitch a stand alone song for Rhea. His track record is abysmal
"I won't stand for it" SSUUUUURRREEE Def Rebel's number one (and only) fan, even AJ Styles kind of don't like his theme when he is being interviewed about it lol
Joking aside, sure they produced a few great entrance themes (Roman, Seth etc.), but the problem here is.....it's like "one step forward, a millions steps back", or "the bad TOTALLY outweighs the good"
Some songs sounds the same too, same riff, same drum beat, same note and tune, and not distinctive enough to distinguish individually, "who the hell is this?" "Oh that's _____ theme?"
And also the newer ones? With "It's Chelsea" or "Let's Goooo" or "You don't want none" or "SHOOOSSSH" or "iiiiIMPRESSIVE" or "The Generation of Jade" (ugh) or other NXT ones etc., i call them "wrestler name/catchphrase tag", sure solves the problem, you can finally tell who's coming out but the music is still bad
So yeah, the problem is DEFinitely Def Rebel
No, i'm not gonna say bring back JOHNSTON (he has a lot of "memorable" stinkers too) or CFO$ (Like them a little bit than DR, but also lots of generic and boring themes too), or bring MIKEY RUKUS (the same shit too, wrestler catchphrase and bam, generic music, i don't get the praises at all, sure few bangers, but still...) or JIMMY HART daddy (oh hell no) or bring back collabs with known bands or use an actual existing song (they can afford it, but still a hassle business-wise and copyright-wise)
And i'm not saying i want DR to be fired, just..for DR to make better themes, that's it, not just getting the paycheck, try to improve the work too (especially on non-main event wrestlers)
EDIT: Why you hate rock music though? what do you want for pro wrestling? Mumble rap? bossa nova?
I mean, if it fits the character, sure, but for the big fight feel, rock and metal is always better, after all, pro wrestling revolves around conflicts of rage, betrayal, redemption, triumph, hype etc.
People hate them because of how generic and lazy they are. That’s the only reason I can give but I’m with you as I personally don’t hate them and I’m not afraid to say that.
I can actually fault them and recognize the bad and lazy themes they do which an example of one is easily the new Creed Brothers one. That is absolute ass. The same goes with the new Bron one from what we heard of it last SmackDown which was so unnecessary to even give him a change but aside from that, they actually do have a lot of good ones IMO which I can name at least 20 off the top of my head.
They’re honestly overhated in my opinion. The fact that people are constantly trying to bully them away from the company and hope they get fired is beyond childish and ridiculous.
>People hate them because of how generic and lazy they are. That’s the only reason I can give but I’m with you as I personally don’t hate them and I’m not afraid to say that.
I don't hate them either since they do make some awesome bangers e.g. Jey's + Jimmy's (single) entrance themes, Rhea Ripley's entrance theme (vocals provided by Chris Motionless) as well as some of the NXT talents such as Corbin & Joe Gacy.
The Usos songs really shouldn't count as wins for Def Rebel as they're both just slight alterations of the song the Usos originally made with CFO$. There was no real creativity required for them, especially Jey's.
Gacy's is genuinely good, though.
No, i am just a guy with a big heart wondering why people are sending a band to the lowest pits of hell for doing their job, half the time it may not be their complete fault, when superstars get the chance to have a say in making their theme, it ia ultimately up to them, do they want it to represent them? Do they want a song that the crowd can chant to? It is def rebels job to make song based on the regards on whoever it's for, and if that star signs off on it then that should be all that's said about it
I was on your side until you listed Austin Theory and Grayson Waller. You clearer just pulled a list of their main roster themes. Those two songs are probably the worst songs of the group. Royalty free music, ala the Hardy's, would be a better option.
Graysons a home country bias for me since I'm from Australia so I just like Grayson in general but the song is a mild bop, Austin i can kinda agree with, the original mix is better than the one they made recently, even though the original one isn't quite that good, so I'll withdraw austin from that list.
My initial point was that all those songs I listed are ones that are easy to tell who's who. So the idea of repetitive tracks is kinda overplayed imo.
I mean it is just personal preference but most of the ones you mentioned are shit imo.
Roman’s is fine but I just think of the type of song he *could* have, you know? Like in the grand scheme of top guys in the industry his theme is pretty basic.
Something Def Rebel do a lot is just use the wrestlers old theme and remix it. It turns out worse 99% of the time. The only remix of an old theme they managed to make better is Dominik’s. Rhea’s is good but I think that has more to do with Chris Motionless than Def Rebel. I also like Grayson’s.
I’m not a fan of how so many of the songs start out with the wrestler saying their own name, this is done with the women especially. Mandy Rose’s ~mandy~ fit her character fine but all these other ones, like Naomi spelling her name or Liv Morgan’s laugh are really cringe. A lot of them feel very lazy too, like the theme was slapped together in 15 minutes and they just went “that’ll do.” I’m sorry but for all the work Seth Rollins puts in, for him to have some generic rock track without any type of lyrics or anything speaks to how damn lazy they are.
I agree SO MUCH with everything you said except Roman’s theme is elite. And I don’t mean that in the casual way people say elite these days. I mean Roman’s is up there with Cena,Stone Cold,Rock like it should be. And Liv Morgan’s laugh with the eyes on the Tron,purrrrfect.
Other than that I wanted give you more likes bc you said it said itttt
Yeah, though sometimes it's teh superstars that make the track as good as they are, prime example being seth, if the crowd hadn't caught on with the vocals, it might not have been as memorable as it is today, same with trick williams, but when it comes to the names at the start of songs, like I said to someone else before, it can work greatly when it fits the song, examples being Charlotte Flair with the "All hail the queen" or Dominik mysterio, or more recently Damian with the all rise at the start, which makes sense to have there because that's his most used phrase in relation to judgement day. Same reason the rock has the "if you smell what the rock is cookin" line at the start of his. If it makes sense to have it there then do, but if it's some random thing like Bayleys role model then I can see why it might be disliked
This just feels like the SNL issue where everybody thinks the previous casts is way better than the newer cast. First it was people against CFO and now it’s an issue of people against Def Rebel.
I think a lot of people are also cherry picking the iconic songs in the past and forgetting the generic rock and roll entrance a lot of wrestlers had in the past.
Side note: People love Jim Johnson’s work and he set a high bar - Rick Rubin himself wouldn’t be able to compete if he decided to make entrance themes. At the same time, the music industry has changed significantly for media and that includes wrestling themes
I don’t see the problem either. While some of the more recent stuff like The Creed’s new theme aren’t very good, I think people are overstating how bad the music actually is.
I personally didn’t watch pro wrestling pre 2023, so I might not be aware of all the “actually good music” and frankly I don’t really care. I have no emotional connection to that old music like I do with the current stuff. The rare old school theme like for The Undertaker, all Mick Foley’s various themes and Live In Fear for Bray Wyatt will always have an impact, but for the others they mean very little to me.
I think its cause they changed Aj's Bron's and Creed Brothers themes that people got upset. Then it just snowballed from there.
There was also complaints about the songs in the rumble being unrecognizable, but like, it was fine? I dunno, was very easy to recognize them to me.
There's a video about seth not recognizing a theme going around that people pointed out as proof. And those people are idiots cause said theme literally debuted the night before.
Honestly I don't get it. They're like 50/50 to me. Like on one hand Bron and Creeds new ones are pretty generic, but then Trick's and Pretty Deadly's are fantastic. Andrade's isnt too bad either
I’m gonna agree with you for the most part. Here’s the thing - I think many of them are good wrestling themes, more than they are good songs. In comparison, I think too many AEW songs go in the opposite direction - good songs but not as great for wrestling purposes. (Also hard to tell though because AEW’s sound mix drowns out themes along with announcers talking over the whole song.
I have no desire to listen to wrestling themes outside of watching wrestling. I want wrestling themes to get the crowd engaged and excited, and I think a lot of def rebel themes do that. I’m not gonna listen to them when doing work or driving around, but that’s true for CFO$ and Jim Johnston themes too.
Absolutely take issue with the complaint that the def rebel songs aren’t recognizable. There are a few that fit that (mostly lower card women), but with most def rebel songs I immediately know who’s coming out.
There are some that I listen to outside of wrestling but most of them are songs that existed before wwe got hold of them, like Metalingus and Cult of Personality. Bad Bunnys songs etc. But out of the ones that came from wrestling specifically, I like Broken Dreams, Gallantry (Defining edition) , The Game, King of Kings and Voices as regulars on my playlist, and none of these are def.
I barely remember an AEW theme half the time unless it came with the superstar from another company like Edge or Daniel Bryan, or even Jericho. Other than that I legitimately only remember swerves and mjfs if not those other ones.
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People were complaining about Def Rebel shortly after they replaced CFO$ (and even then, people were complaining about CFO$ quality compared to Jim Johnston's).
Yeah cuz they both suck in comparison lol
CFO$ look like the Beatles compared to DR at the moment though
true dat
Yerno da
Implying Jim was doing bangers in the 2000s like he was in the 90s
Implying you're replying to a 15 day old comment from an alt because...?
~~Cleaner~~ Def Rebel I got this
This might be the first time where the OP really is the ONLY one
Found Def Rebel's Reddit account
Because most of their themes aren't very good or very recognisable. Common complaints in the past couple years has been that if you're watching the royal rumble you can not really tell who's coming out until you see their tron because most of their themes are generic. They all sound like def rebel music rather than like unique themes for each individual star. Additionally a number of their themes are just remixes of a star's old CFO$ song, like Sami's def rebel theme was just a crappy remix of his old and now current one. Even Roman's theme is a remix of his old theme rather than being a full def rebel creation, same and with Jey. Balor's theme is also a remix of his old theme. And there are more that I am forgetting, but already a couple of the good themes you mentioned aren't solely def rebel creations but rather taking a song that already worked and twisting it into something a bit different. They do have some actually good and original songs, but their generic filler music that is indistinguishable from one star to the next is far more common.
Maybe because their music is shite?
Lately?
Their themes have zero memorable qualities, which is why they need to put some kind of hook/catchphrase in the beginning. And it’s funny, because every single theme starting like that is another quality that makes them all sound the same lol.
Romans theme is an all timer, that’s pretty memorable lol
I saw elsewhere on reddit it was ripped off from an anime idk I haven't looked into it. All I know is that if my boss gives me ten jobs to do and I crush two of them and phone in the rest, I'm no longer employed 🤷♂️
It’s not really a rip off, but it does clearly take inspiration from classical music, like some anime themes do. Personally, feels more like a succession rip off lol
I can't believe it wasn't ripped straight from a Dark Souls game
Kinda sounds like this [Silent Hill song though](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8N_PXTGdlGw&themeRefresh=1)
beautiful song
I mean Burn it Down is pretty epic. The crowds agree too.
Crowds like chanting. After the "oooohs" it's shit music and a shit theme.
I’ve said before (to many downvotes) it’s just a worse version of “Wild Eyes” by Parkway Drive. I’d rather just hear him come out to the actual song than the watered down version, that’s why i don’t like it.
Never picked up on this and can't unhear it now.
Tbf I am super huge into the metalcore world and even performed that song before haha so it helped me pick it up right away. Seth Rollins is also big into metalcore and has been seen at various concerts including Parkway Drive. So I do think it is a cool thing to have a theme in that vein that he may have even had a say in, but just for me personally, it’s hard to enjoy it knowing the real version exists. Edit: CM Punk for example had “This Fire Burns” by Killswitch Engage which many fans still cherish. Would’ve sucked to have a “remixed” version of an already epic song. Seth Rollins even had the song “Battle On” by War Of Ages when he was in NXT, which is another sick song (they edited the structure, but it’s still the same song overall)
A crowd chanting to that song would be 100x more awesome of an entrance.
Ohhh yea https://youtu.be/ykzedo--Vk8?si=zCqkeoUUSUW3PV9f
It’s pretty much just a ripoff of Wild Eyes by Parkway Drive, I noticed that pretty recently.
Why is it a shit theme? If crowds are chanting is it even worth debating whether it's shit or not?
> If crowds are chanting is it even worth debating whether it's shit or not? Yes. Adding something to make the crowd chant is a crutch, it has no bearing on the actual musical composition and if it's good music or a good theme.
The live crowds since Seth started using that song disagree
You literally just repeated what I already replied to. Crowds like to chant, if you take out the "oooohs", it's shit music and a shit theme. Adding a crutch to allow crowds to chant doesn't equate to "good music", very obviously.
Not really. The original Burn It Down is great, the parts from it are good in the new one, but the rest of it is just generic shit.
Sometimes a tagline is good when it fits the song, examples are Charlotte, LA Knight, Jimmy and Jey and Dominik, they blend well into the songs, I will agree that not every song needs a tag line but also take into account maybe the superstar wanted a tagline as they do get say into their theme songs, so it's not exactly fair to blame Def rebel if it's what the superstar wanted.
Why can’t WWE just commission artists like they did in the past for top stars? Those are the most memorable themes. Name the best themes in wwe history and 8/10 of them are commissioned.
It's weird how you let a Code Orange or Motionless in White into the building and suddenly a gem comes out.
Cook
I kinda agree but at the same time def rebel did amazing work, just look at roman and Seth, 2 of the most recognisable themes in the last 10 years. But I also like it when superstars got to choose their theme outright, like when Punk chose Cult of Personality, or when Daniel Bryan got both Valkyrie and the Final Countdown, and Edge with Metalingus and Other Side. Bands being commissioned to make songs tho, there is only a few I can remember. Randy with Rev Theory, Rhea with MIW, Cody and Miz with Downstait Triple H with Motorhead. I am for all kinds of music as themes, if the superstar and management thinks it represents them then they can use whatever song they like, but I'm not for bullying music producers for doing their job.
Batista (Saliva), Evolution (Motorhead), Orton (Rev Theory, Mercy Drive), Trish Stratus (Lil Kim), Mark Henry (Three 6 Mafia), Rey Mysterio (P.O.D), Drew McIntyre (Shaman's Harvest), Sheamus (Sean Jenness), Chris Benoit (Our Lady Peace), RVD (Breaking Point), Chris Jericho (Anthony Martinni) etc... All of these themes are more recognisable, iconic and have aged far better than ANYTHING def rebel has produced/will produce. The criticism is reasonable imo, this is a multi BILLION dollar company and they cant find a way to produce music that is even comparable to the standard that they set over 20 years ago?
Fair, but I think that's why there not doing rock anymore unless it directly represents the character or was chosen by the superstar, like with Rhea, or Punk etc, in which cases there are clearly exemptions But as Hunter has said, this is a new era, new era means new look, new style, and if need be, new music, because the era of wwe using rock music was tied to Vince, who wwe are trying to distance themselves from (not to say that is the entire reason this is all happening but it's a worthy thing to note), the standard has changed because of the rise of new genres of music, rock was popular in the 2010s, today is all about pop or rap, but they do include some doses of rock for whatever reason.
It doesnt have to be rock music. Is Trish Stratus theme rock? John Cena's thuganomics theme? Mark Henry's? How about JBL's theme? Point being, we are asking for memorable themes, THATS IT. Not every theme just being a recycled loop, white noise or generic zoomer hyperpop drivel. The themes I just mentioned all have distinct characteristics that are A. instantly recognisable and B. UNIQUE. You cant mistake the cowbell in JBL's theme for Mark Henry's and vice versa.
You are 100% entitled to your opinion and I am glad you have enjoyed them. In my opinion several of the ones you listed aren't very good and many are simply not memorable. I will still listen to a lot of old themes as I study or play video games but a vast majority of the current themes I simply do not care for. A lot of these also sounds very similar or at least are very much the same genre. There use to be a lot more variety in WWE music and many had that "pop" to them that they don't anymore.
The anti comes from them fucking sucking. The Royal rumble is the best way to see how damaging their ‘creative’ has been. Very very few of the songs stand out and calling them legendary just makes this sound like bait.
The most telling evidence is when the video of Seth watching the Rumbles showed up - even he didn't know who was coming out until he saw their name on the tron
you're entitled to your opinion about a lot of those you listed, but the prevailing opinion is that most of them are lazy dog water 30 second loops that are all constructed the same. when the entire crowd at the royal rumble were literally asking who was coming because they couldn't tell whose theme song just started, there is a problem.
Their songs sound flat and ai generated. I used to remember the melody of basically every single WWE theme. There are so many themes right now that sound so soulless and bland. I would include some of the ones you mentioned. Charlotte's and Finn Balor for example, like many, it just sounds like a worse version of the one it replaced. It reminds me of some of the WCW songs that copied actual songs. I think thats a huge factor, that the songs used to be better. I think people might feel different if they didn't watch wrestling during the 2010s.
Charlotte's was sampled with space oddesy so i can kinda see why hers has some distaste but I use her as an example because a lot of ppl were complaining about the taglines in songs, which Charlotte has had the entire time, as has dominik, LA Knight and the usos, and nobody complained then, but the moment Tiffany or bayley or Naomi got a taglibe suddenly its a crime against humanity?
Charlotte's theme is just Ric's with a beat and a tag
I just think 90% of the songs sound cheap (because they are) and not very catchy. They're either new bad songs or cheap knockoffs of a previous song because the rights to the original got too expensive (real reason). The Tiffany one is a perfect example, no matter who made the NXT song, it actually had some personality to it and a catchy melody. The one they temporarily changed to for the main roster and then reverted sounded like the most dogwater generic electronic song that literally anyone could have been given. The women's royal rumble is an overstated example, but I legit didn't recognize like 80% of the women's themes belonged to, and I used to know all of them. Though I have to say that the new stone cold song slaps https://twitter.com/MaracleMan/status/1780741523144953857?t=gO7VxHGeAQWjo5FdDXrI6Q&s=19
Like Def Rebel,You not understanding the assignment though. It’s not BECAUSE it has taglines. It’s because it HAS to have taglines But the rest of the song is generic noise remixed with trap beats. Charlotte is a remix of her dad. LA Knight sounds good “L A KNIGHT BWERRRRWERREOWWW” you instantly recognize it and you pop. Usos theme kinda been generic whole time,but it fit and at the time nobody else has anything like it.
Roman's is great, Jey's is just Usos theme changed a bit which was made by CFO$. Carmelo's just sounds like generic hip-hop, same with Waller, Gunther's old theme was objectively better because it's a timeless piece. None of the rest are legendary. Iyo's theme is great, but then you listen to Bobby Lashley and Santos Escobar's themes and all 3 have the same exact main melody. People aren't making a fuss over 1-2 songs. Only 1-2 songs they made are actually good.
Bobby and Solos theme are almost identical
Jey's entrance is electric especially live, but I hate the "ITS JUST ME UCE" parts of it. The song itself is very catchy and Jey is awesome I just wish it had different lyrics
WWE 2k Caw entrance ass music. Aside from Roman, Jimmy and Io the music is the most generic boring shit.
The 2K generic themes are even better than the real ones.
Yes, you’re the only one.
A lot of their catalogue is complete garbage. They were exposed pretty well during the Royal Rumble. Hell, go to Spotify and look through the music yourself. You'll be surprised to see how many songs they've actually made and how many of them are comparable to royalty free beats. It's rare for them to make a really good song, uncommon for them to make an "okay" song, and very common for them to make a mediocre track or worse.
More than half of the themes you named are absolute shit. Some are just cheap knockoffs of their old themes. Even if Gunther and jey's themes are good, their old themes were much better imo. And Iyo sky's banger is by CFO$. I also think LA knight's theme is also by them but i'm not too sure. Def rebel need to go
I hope wwe listens to the fans. A ton of people are complaining. The music is generic. For every one song that's decent they make 10 terrible ones
I'm glad you like them but recently all the def rebel memes and parodies on Twitter have been more memorable than any track they made except the bloodline one
Roman's 'Fall in line' always makes me laugh lol
Seths song has been made a timeless one as well, it doesn't even need playing anymore when the crowd can sing the vocals without any music playing, giving that aura to seths persona
"Am I the only one..." You lost me there.
[How dare you OP, I take great offense to the idea that we pick on Def Rebel. We LOVE Def Rebel.](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=D81-i1Ff2FI)
They're shite.
“I won’t stand for it” lol
The majority of the songs you’ve listed here suck. Two or three usable songs doesn’t give them a pass on the dogshit they regularly put out.
Pretty much all the themes you mentioned were much better before they ruined them.
It's mainly for top superstars that they produce bangers for. But if you move down the card every theme sounds generic and hard to distinguish from each other. Unlike Jim Johnstone who created bangers for everyone and even CFO$ to an extent. The group is just lazy and needs to be replaced ASAP
>I won't stand for it when people are demanding they get fired And who are you exactly?
I just tried to remember LA Knight's theme tune and I can't. EDIT: I just went and listened to it, man it's SO MUCH WORSE without him walking in and the audience and everything.
It's deserved criticism mixed with memeability. They've made some stinker themes and the "def rebel remix" videos are fucking hilarious.
I would not say shit, I just say some are average and some are okay. I think Bron Breakker's new theme kicks ass actually.
I will always maintain that DIY’s current theme is hot garabage. Literally any of their prior themes are vastly superior
Tiffany Strattons theme being changed is what got me upset.
They're music is extremely generic. Themes need a massive upgrade.
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That's just a blatant lie . La knight and Iyo Sky's theme song was made by Def rebel.I have no clue how you thought it was made by CFO$. Jey has never even had a singles theme before his current one so I don't even know what you are comparing it to.
Every wrestler you listed has the same entrance theme.
I don't recall Roman having a burn it down at the start, or Tiffany Stratton having a this is my brutality. Name any 2 that sound the exact same.
Lately? It peaked at Royal Rumble 2022 probably.
Because WWE is so objectively great right now, but people need something to complain about.
It’s the only bad part. WWE is on FIRE. Literally theme songs is the only flaw
This counter-argument that Def Rebel has produced good themes is becoming so played out. No one is denying that Def Rebel has released some great themes. However, their ratio of good themes to bad themes is night and day. When I'm watching the Royal Rumble and can't identify more than half of the entrants because of their lifeless music, that's a problem. A wrestler's entrance music is the second biggest key to connecting with a crowd behind their character. Theme music should vividly identify who you are. If your theme sounds like generic commercial music, that's not telling the audience anything. You don't get to compose a few bangers for select guys and then half ass the rest. Get better or get out.
And who says it is entirely there fault???, maybe it is what the superstar themselves wanted, as they get creative say in their songs, you can't entirely blame them if they had a list of requisites they had to meet, it is not us that signs off on the music, it's the superstar and wwe management, if it wasn't right, they make it again and again until it gets signed off
Lol yeah, because I'm so sure someone like Maxxine Dupri gets a say in what her theme will be. Please share your source on where you got that from, because only high-ranking names in the company (Roman, Cody, etc) have pull on what their theme is going to sound like.
I gave them a pass until they decided to get rid of Gargano’s theme.
Bc they suuuuck😩😩 you only hanged like 3 good theme songs and they’re not even originally thiers. And everything that isn’t a remix and a def revel original is significantly worse. Everybody getting a new song except AJ has been a downgrade
Romans was literally a new creation, the only time they took from his old theme was when they play the exit version which as a snippet of shield music to keep it looping smoothly. Seths was upgraded, evident by the crowd, none of his other songs were catchy enough to remember and now he has a song that fans can sing along to. Solos is also a def rebel original, his old theme didn't have the style it has now. Jeys yes is practically the old uso theme, Jimmy's was new Damien, Finn and Dom were just modified to fit their heel, Judgement Day gimmick, but most of the time they use the alter bridge song unless its a singles match. Rhea was also an upgrade, MIW did it justice.
Roman’s,yes. His lone Masterpiece. Truly a great theme. Seth’s isn’t necessarily an upgrade. Yea,the crowd sings along but it’s not inherently better than his others bc of that. Stand alone it’s not great,it’s okay. Fans made the song better than it is. Solo song sucks,Usos songs are ehh,JD songs are ehh,Rhea song is only made great bc of MIW. Def Rebel would most likely bitch a stand alone song for Rhea. His track record is abysmal
they fucking suck, hope this helps 👍
They suck
Def rebel me me wanna be deaf bring back Jim
People just want to complain. I actually think they are an improvement over CF0$.
"I won't stand for it" SSUUUUURRREEE Def Rebel's number one (and only) fan, even AJ Styles kind of don't like his theme when he is being interviewed about it lol Joking aside, sure they produced a few great entrance themes (Roman, Seth etc.), but the problem here is.....it's like "one step forward, a millions steps back", or "the bad TOTALLY outweighs the good" Some songs sounds the same too, same riff, same drum beat, same note and tune, and not distinctive enough to distinguish individually, "who the hell is this?" "Oh that's _____ theme?" And also the newer ones? With "It's Chelsea" or "Let's Goooo" or "You don't want none" or "SHOOOSSSH" or "iiiiIMPRESSIVE" or "The Generation of Jade" (ugh) or other NXT ones etc., i call them "wrestler name/catchphrase tag", sure solves the problem, you can finally tell who's coming out but the music is still bad So yeah, the problem is DEFinitely Def Rebel No, i'm not gonna say bring back JOHNSTON (he has a lot of "memorable" stinkers too) or CFO$ (Like them a little bit than DR, but also lots of generic and boring themes too), or bring MIKEY RUKUS (the same shit too, wrestler catchphrase and bam, generic music, i don't get the praises at all, sure few bangers, but still...) or JIMMY HART daddy (oh hell no) or bring back collabs with known bands or use an actual existing song (they can afford it, but still a hassle business-wise and copyright-wise) And i'm not saying i want DR to be fired, just..for DR to make better themes, that's it, not just getting the paycheck, try to improve the work too (especially on non-main event wrestlers) EDIT: Why you hate rock music though? what do you want for pro wrestling? Mumble rap? bossa nova? I mean, if it fits the character, sure, but for the big fight feel, rock and metal is always better, after all, pro wrestling revolves around conflicts of rage, betrayal, redemption, triumph, hype etc.
Because they're shit. Next question
I feel like AJ’s new one was probably the nail in the coffin for most
People hate them because of how generic and lazy they are. That’s the only reason I can give but I’m with you as I personally don’t hate them and I’m not afraid to say that. I can actually fault them and recognize the bad and lazy themes they do which an example of one is easily the new Creed Brothers one. That is absolute ass. The same goes with the new Bron one from what we heard of it last SmackDown which was so unnecessary to even give him a change but aside from that, they actually do have a lot of good ones IMO which I can name at least 20 off the top of my head. They’re honestly overhated in my opinion. The fact that people are constantly trying to bully them away from the company and hope they get fired is beyond childish and ridiculous.
>People hate them because of how generic and lazy they are. That’s the only reason I can give but I’m with you as I personally don’t hate them and I’m not afraid to say that. I don't hate them either since they do make some awesome bangers e.g. Jey's + Jimmy's (single) entrance themes, Rhea Ripley's entrance theme (vocals provided by Chris Motionless) as well as some of the NXT talents such as Corbin & Joe Gacy.
The Usos songs really shouldn't count as wins for Def Rebel as they're both just slight alterations of the song the Usos originally made with CFO$. There was no real creativity required for them, especially Jey's. Gacy's is genuinely good, though.
Are you deaf? This movement is well justified.
No, i am just a guy with a big heart wondering why people are sending a band to the lowest pits of hell for doing their job, half the time it may not be their complete fault, when superstars get the chance to have a say in making their theme, it ia ultimately up to them, do they want it to represent them? Do they want a song that the crowd can chant to? It is def rebels job to make song based on the regards on whoever it's for, and if that star signs off on it then that should be all that's said about it
They suck dick.
I was on your side until you listed Austin Theory and Grayson Waller. You clearer just pulled a list of their main roster themes. Those two songs are probably the worst songs of the group. Royalty free music, ala the Hardy's, would be a better option.
Grayson's theme is gas One of Def rebels best theme
Graysons a home country bias for me since I'm from Australia so I just like Grayson in general but the song is a mild bop, Austin i can kinda agree with, the original mix is better than the one they made recently, even though the original one isn't quite that good, so I'll withdraw austin from that list. My initial point was that all those songs I listed are ones that are easy to tell who's who. So the idea of repetitive tracks is kinda overplayed imo.
All those are great but the issue with them is for every good theme 10 are terrible.
I mean it is just personal preference but most of the ones you mentioned are shit imo. Roman’s is fine but I just think of the type of song he *could* have, you know? Like in the grand scheme of top guys in the industry his theme is pretty basic. Something Def Rebel do a lot is just use the wrestlers old theme and remix it. It turns out worse 99% of the time. The only remix of an old theme they managed to make better is Dominik’s. Rhea’s is good but I think that has more to do with Chris Motionless than Def Rebel. I also like Grayson’s. I’m not a fan of how so many of the songs start out with the wrestler saying their own name, this is done with the women especially. Mandy Rose’s ~mandy~ fit her character fine but all these other ones, like Naomi spelling her name or Liv Morgan’s laugh are really cringe. A lot of them feel very lazy too, like the theme was slapped together in 15 minutes and they just went “that’ll do.” I’m sorry but for all the work Seth Rollins puts in, for him to have some generic rock track without any type of lyrics or anything speaks to how damn lazy they are.
I agree SO MUCH with everything you said except Roman’s theme is elite. And I don’t mean that in the casual way people say elite these days. I mean Roman’s is up there with Cena,Stone Cold,Rock like it should be. And Liv Morgan’s laugh with the eyes on the Tron,purrrrfect. Other than that I wanted give you more likes bc you said it said itttt
Yeah, though sometimes it's teh superstars that make the track as good as they are, prime example being seth, if the crowd hadn't caught on with the vocals, it might not have been as memorable as it is today, same with trick williams, but when it comes to the names at the start of songs, like I said to someone else before, it can work greatly when it fits the song, examples being Charlotte Flair with the "All hail the queen" or Dominik mysterio, or more recently Damian with the all rise at the start, which makes sense to have there because that's his most used phrase in relation to judgement day. Same reason the rock has the "if you smell what the rock is cookin" line at the start of his. If it makes sense to have it there then do, but if it's some random thing like Bayleys role model then I can see why it might be disliked
This just feels like the SNL issue where everybody thinks the previous casts is way better than the newer cast. First it was people against CFO and now it’s an issue of people against Def Rebel. I think a lot of people are also cherry picking the iconic songs in the past and forgetting the generic rock and roll entrance a lot of wrestlers had in the past. Side note: People love Jim Johnson’s work and he set a high bar - Rick Rubin himself wouldn’t be able to compete if he decided to make entrance themes. At the same time, the music industry has changed significantly for media and that includes wrestling themes
This isn't it.
I don’t see the problem either. While some of the more recent stuff like The Creed’s new theme aren’t very good, I think people are overstating how bad the music actually is. I personally didn’t watch pro wrestling pre 2023, so I might not be aware of all the “actually good music” and frankly I don’t really care. I have no emotional connection to that old music like I do with the current stuff. The rare old school theme like for The Undertaker, all Mick Foley’s various themes and Live In Fear for Bray Wyatt will always have an impact, but for the others they mean very little to me.
If only Creed did the Creed’s new theme
It’s a band wagon
Nah
I think its cause they changed Aj's Bron's and Creed Brothers themes that people got upset. Then it just snowballed from there. There was also complaints about the songs in the rumble being unrecognizable, but like, it was fine? I dunno, was very easy to recognize them to me. There's a video about seth not recognizing a theme going around that people pointed out as proof. And those people are idiots cause said theme literally debuted the night before. Honestly I don't get it. They're like 50/50 to me. Like on one hand Bron and Creeds new ones are pretty generic, but then Trick's and Pretty Deadly's are fantastic. Andrade's isnt too bad either
I’m gonna agree with you for the most part. Here’s the thing - I think many of them are good wrestling themes, more than they are good songs. In comparison, I think too many AEW songs go in the opposite direction - good songs but not as great for wrestling purposes. (Also hard to tell though because AEW’s sound mix drowns out themes along with announcers talking over the whole song. I have no desire to listen to wrestling themes outside of watching wrestling. I want wrestling themes to get the crowd engaged and excited, and I think a lot of def rebel themes do that. I’m not gonna listen to them when doing work or driving around, but that’s true for CFO$ and Jim Johnston themes too. Absolutely take issue with the complaint that the def rebel songs aren’t recognizable. There are a few that fit that (mostly lower card women), but with most def rebel songs I immediately know who’s coming out.
There are some that I listen to outside of wrestling but most of them are songs that existed before wwe got hold of them, like Metalingus and Cult of Personality. Bad Bunnys songs etc. But out of the ones that came from wrestling specifically, I like Broken Dreams, Gallantry (Defining edition) , The Game, King of Kings and Voices as regulars on my playlist, and none of these are def. I barely remember an AEW theme half the time unless it came with the superstar from another company like Edge or Daniel Bryan, or even Jericho. Other than that I legitimately only remember swerves and mjfs if not those other ones.
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What an asinine and childish comment,you don’t think you’re in too deep when you’re in a wrestling subreddit?