Former WWE composer Jim Johnston is responsible for some of the most iconic pro wrestling entrance themes of all time. But when it comes to the current themes being used in WWE and All Elite Wrestling, he’s not impressed. Chris Van Vliet released his interview with Johnston on Tuesday and at once point asked him about how quickly he was asked to turn around and create a new theme for a wrestler. Johnston said it would often happen the same day that the wrestler would be debuting on television, and said regardless of how much time he had he took great pride in how much the right theme could help a wrestler generate a connection with fans. He then turned to the subject of today’s themes, made by producers like Def Rebel (WWE) and Mikey Rukus (AEW).
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“I think the music now in WWE and in AEW, sorry, this is mean, I think it’s all really homogenous and mediocre and doesn’t have anything to do with the characters,” he said. “I think that’s why there are less big stars. I don’t think that there are no potential big stars [on] the rosters, hiding there. Before Steve Austin was Steve Austin he was The Ringmaster. And there are lots of stories like that, these people need the right storyline, right costuming and definitely the right music to lift them up. Particularly music, you’re serving multiple masters in a way. It’s entertainment for the audience, it’s a big boot in the a— for the wrestler before they go out and to get them in that head space of their character and to get them jacked up to do a great performance.
“If you’re in that situation where you’re not really sure of your character, the storyline is sort of ‘I’m supposed to hate this guy, but why do I hate him? I don’t even know why I’m supposed to hate him!’ and your music is just generic, ‘wrestler guy’ music, and you’re supposed to go out there, be on top of the world and charm everybody — I think that’s a big ask,” he continued.
Johnston later confirmed that AEW has never contacted him about working with the young promotion. Johnston’s three-decade run with the WWE ended in 2017.
What do you think of Johnston’s thoughts on current entrance themes? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
