While the anticipation of a big wrestling match is what gets fans to purchase a ticket for an event, few things hit them harder than the arrival of their favourite wrestlers accompanied by their theme music. From Hulk Hogan’s “Real American” to Bryan Danielson’s “Final Countdown” a wrestler’s theme sets the tone for the character and helps fans understand who they are before they even step foot inside the ring. Whether it is about bellowing music of sinister chords, theme music defines wrestlers without them speaking a word.

Among the most iconic wrestling themes is The Rock‘s collection across his storied career. Whether he was the Blue Chipper, The Brahma Bull or the Final Boss, The Rock’s theme music has set the tone for his character throughout his WWE tenure due to how different each iteration is. Across all of his different characters, his iconic theme music has been different enough to signify to fans exactly what kind of Rock they are dealing with.

9 Method Man’s Remix Did Little For The Rock’s Legacy

Inviting Outside Music Talent Does Not Always Work

During the height of CDs, WWE would produce a new album each year to showcase the entrance themes of popular wrestlers. Most wrestling fans would flock out discs as they came out to jam along to their favourite entrances, but not every CD was certified platinum.

In 2000, the Aggression album was released which included hip-hop versions of wrestler’s entrances. Method Man did a sample of The Rock’s music, but it did not befit his legendary status then. The Rock’s music is an iconic part of his persona, and remixing it did not benefit his character at all. It was actively rejected by audiences during its brief appearance as his theme song.

8 The Blue Chipper Left A Lot To Be Desired

Rocky Maivia Did Not Start Off On The Right Foot

It may be difficult for modern wrestling fans to recognize, but there was a time in WWE history when The Rock was not the most electrifying man in entertainment. He was a long way from achieving legendary status when he arrived in WWE in 1996 and seemed to be destined for failure directly from his debut.

Arriving as the first third-generation wrestler in WWE history, Rocky Maivia was pushed very heavily from the onset as a supreme babyface who would smile awkwardly and slap hands with every fan. However, fans instantly rejected the ultimate good guy in search of more nuanced characters, easily leaving this persona as one of WWE’s failed projects.

7 Destiny Sounds Very Similar To His Infamous Music

As Time Went On, Things Got Better For Rocky

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Despite his initial stumble as the Blue Chipper, Rocky Maivia began to pick up some more steam as a character as he became more nuanced and interesting. While Maivia still had a long way to go in his career before he would become The Rock, he started to show glimmers of what would come later.

In early 1997, The Rock lost his Blue Chipper persona and debuted new music titled “Destiny”. While still not as electrifying as his later personas, this one begins to show similarities to what would become his more iconic theme music in the Attitude era, complete with the low bass line.

It’s Criminal That WWE Tries To Erase This Group From Memory

While The Rock would eventually become one of the most renowned singles competitors in WWE history, he was once part of one of the most prolific stables during the early stages of the Attitude era. After becoming frustrated with the crowd’s reactions to him as a smiling good guy, he reverted to a much harsher and cocky persona known as The Rock and joined the Nation of Domination group.

While the Nation has largely been erased from WWE’s history due to the racial undertones of the gimmick, there is no denying how impactful it was during The Rock’s formative years. With the bellowing “We are the Nation of Domination!” starting the group’s entrance, fans instantly knew that the group meant business and were out for blood.

4 Know Your Role Is What Started The Rock’s Meteoric Rise

This Song Is Most Often Associated With The Attitude Era

WWE’s Attitude era produced some of the biggest stars in professional wrestling history during the company’s biggest business period. With some of the biggest personalities leading the charge, WWE produced record numbers and became a pop culture phenomenon. Before he became a bonafide Hollywood star, The Rock was one of WWE’s biggest stars during its biggest era.

Fully in his People’s Champion mode, The Rock was among the elite at WWE’s main event level. His persona as a brash, third-person talking jock carried him into becoming a star that few wrestlers have ever reached, and his theme music where he constantly repeats his own name cemented himself as that character that fans loved to hate.

3 The Final Boss Is Absolutely Electrifying

The Rock Struck Gold With His Latest Return To Wrestling

With the Bloodline storyline continuing strong leading into WrestleMania 40, WWE fans were clamouring for The Rock to return and be a part of the compelling story. However, when he showed up and challenged Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, fans rejected the idea and preferred Cody Rhodes face Reigns at the event, and loudly voiced their displeasure at The Rock’s idea.

Despite being a legendary figure in WWE, The Rock was able to quickly pivot his fan-favourite character and transition into The Final Boss while backing Roman Reigns and the Bloodline. As what appears to be an idealized version of his character, The Final Boss is showcased with a remix of The Rock’s most legendary theme accompanied by electricity, showcasing his newfound power that he can use at any point.

The Rock Turned Everyone Against Him By Becoming Even More Arrogant

Despite being one of Hollywood’s most beloved figures today, wrestling fans were particularly perturbed at the thought of The Rock leaving WWE for the pastures of making movies. He was blatantly booed by audiences after he completed his full-time wrestling career in 2003 despite being a fan favourite directly before that. Thankfully, this transition also gave fans one of the best iterations of The Rock.

Upon his brief return to wrestling in 2003, The Rock transitioned into a Hollywood version of himself who was even more cocky than before. Complete with outlandish theme music – complete with the first 59 seconds without words – he became Hollywood Rock, who fans may have despised at the time, but have now come to realize just how brilliant this character was.

1 “If You Smell” Could Pop A Crowd Better Than Anything

There Is Instant Electricity When This Music Hits

For wrestling fans who did not experience the Attitude era live, it is difficult to describe just how amazing the period was to be a wrestling fan. Crowds may be incredibly hot for the WWE product today, but the Attitude era was seemingly the loudest time for crowds popping for their favourite wrestlers. Very few wrestlers have been able to produce a crowd as loud as The Rock during his peak in WWE.

In 2001, The Rock was WWE’s most bankable star and was leading the company as their top star and champion. Crowds chanted his name and became absolutely unglued when his signature “If you smell” hit at the start of his entrance theme, signifying the arrival of their People’s Champion. Crowd reactions like this are difficult to come by, and The Rock’s reaction at his peak will be difficult to duplicate.