Best Wrestling PPV Theme Songs

A key component to the appeal of sports-entertainment has always been music. There's a rich library of unforgettable theme songs for both wrestlers' entrances and for pay-per-views/premium live events, be it WWE, AEW or any other promotion.

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WWE's Ruthless Aggression Era featured some poor entrance theme songs that didn't do the wrestlers justice.

Many fans associate all these various songs with the hype & atmosphere surrounding major wrestling shows, their fond memories of unforgettable events, and even credit them for introducing new bands/recording artists.

10 WWE WrestleMania 22: "Big Time" - Peter Gabriel

The Classic Peter Gabriel Song Was His Second Top-Ten Single On The Billboard Hot 100

"Big TIme" was first released in the US in November 1986, and released in the UK in March 1987.
"Big Time" was included on Peter Gabriel's fifth studio album, So, along with "Sledgehammer".

For several years, heavy metal songs from the latest bands were used for WrestleMania. In 2006, WWE decided to go for something different by using Peter Gabriel's "Big Time" as the theme song for WrestleMania 22.

Aside from being one of Gabriel's greatest songs, the lyrics & tune of "Big Time" lend themselves beautifully to the atmosphere and spectacle of WrestleMania. The "Big Time" theme for WrestleMania 22 also reflected what was one of the best overall Manias in the show's history.

9 TNA Slammiversary 10: "Glorious" - Raphael Lake

The Independent Pop Artist's Song Was Chosen For TNA's Tenth Anniversary

"Glorious" was released in 2012 as part of the Epic Rock compilation album.
Epic Rock featured songs from various independent artists. The album was published by Extreme Music.

For TNA to reach its tenth anniversary in 2012 was nothing short or remarkable. And Slammiversary 10 needed a theme song worthy of such an epic celebration. Hence, they reached out to Raphael Lake to use "Glorious".

The lyrics of "We Won't Bow Down To Anyone" sent a message of defiance to TNA's critics, as did the almighty cry of "We Are Glorious". Raphael Lake's song reflects everything that makes TNA Wrestling essential, and was a perfect theme for one of the promotion's greatest pay-per-views.

8 WWE Survivor Series 1998: "Deadly Game" - Jim Johnston

The Longtime WWE Music Composer Produced Another Classic Theme Exclusively For The Deadly Game Tournament

From 1985 to 2017, Jim Johnston was the music composer for WWE.
Throughout his time working for WWE, Johnston composed over 10,000 pieces of music for wrestler's entrances and themes for TV shows/pay-per-views.
Although Johnston mostly composed pieces by himself, in later years he collaborated with artists like Motorhead, Disturbed, Kid Rock and Mariah Carey.

Survivor Series 1998 promised a new champion would be crowned in the 14-Man "Deadly Game" tournament. Veteran WWE Music composer Jim Johnston was tasked with creating the ideal theme for the pay-per-view.

"Deadly Game" is a multi-faceted piece that features a great beat, soulful backing singers, rock music, and also naturally evolves a nice rap song mid-way through. "Deadly Game" also has clever lyrics that reflect the stakes & nature of the tournament.

7 AEW Double Or Nothing: "Double Or Nothing Theme" - Mikey Rukus

The Double Or Nothing Theme Has Been Used For Every Edition Of AEW's Flagship Show Since The Inaugural Event In 2019

Mikey Rukus is famous for composing customized walkout & theme music for MMA Fighters/Companies as well as All Elite Wrestling.
As well as composing theme music for AEW wrestlers and shows, Rukus also hosts his Be Kind & Rewind podcast.
Rukus has also appeared on AEW's Unrestricted Podcast to discuss his life and work.

Like Jim Johnston and Dale Oliver, Mikey Rukus has composed perfect entrance themes for wrestlers, capturing the very essence of a wrestler's personality/gimmick with his music (such as Adam Cole, FTR, and Timeless Toni Storm). One of Rukus' greatest pieces is the Official Theme Song for Double Or Nothing.

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AEW clearly puts time and effort into their wrestlers' theme songs, featuring some of the best entrance music in wrestling today!

The "Double Or Nothing Theme" features a great guitar riff to get listeners hyped up for the action ahead, and the saxophone helps convey the casino theme of Double Or Nothing. For fans, the song resonates perfectly with its blend of jazz & rock.

6 WWE Money In The Bank: "Official Theme" - Jim Johnston

Johnston's Official Theme Was Used For Money In The Bank From 2011 To 2019

An earlier variation of this theme was used for Donald Trump's entrance in the Battle Of The Billionaires at WrestleMania 23.
At the inaugural Money In The Bank pay-per-view in 2010, "Money" by I Love Dragons was used.
From 2020, "Gotta Get That" was used for the MITB theme, which was letter reworked as "Cash In".

For a time, WWE were reluctant to use third-party songs for their pay-per-views, preferring to use themes that they exclusively had the rights to. Cue Jim Johnston to produce another iconic theme for the annual Money In The Bank event.

With soulful vocals, the sound of cash-registers and a flawless beat, Johnston's "Official Theme Song" for Money In The Bank not only captures the essence of the pay-per-view and the Money In The Bank concept, it also evokes fond memories of the event's most glorious moments.

5 WWE Survivor Series 2002: "Always" - Saliva

"Always" Reached No.1 On The Billboard Modern Rock Tracks, Making It Saliva's Only No.1 Hit Single

Saliva also performed "Always" live from The World restaurant at Survivor Series 2002.
On the same night, Saliva also delivered a live performance of "King Of My World", which was Chris Jericho's theme at the time.
"Always" was featured on Saliva's third studio album, Back Into Your System. The album reached Gold status.

Regarded as perhaps Saliva's single-greatest-song, "Always" is not just a phenomenally good anthem, it also has such depth. The lyrics convey the emotional torment of a lonely man, haunted by a woman from his past, and wandering around lost and alone in an empty city.

"Always" always proves to be a versatile song, reflecting all the intense rivalries/situations going into the 2002 Survivor Series. With the show being one of the greatest Survivor Series events in history, "Always" also brings back happy memories of that night.

4 WWE Armageddon: "The End" - Jim Johnston

Johnston Produced Two Versions Of "The End" For Various WWE Video Packages Before It Was Used As The Official Armageddon Theme

Johnston's original rendition of "The End" was first featured in the opening video package for Armageddon 2000.
The 2002 event was the first Armageddon pay-per-view to use "The End" as the official theme song.
Armageddon took place every December from 1999 to 2008. The only exception was 2001, when the December pay-per-view was renamed Vengeance.

From its slow, deliberate beat, "The End" brings forth a true sense of impending doom, before exploding into a beautiful cacophony of guitar riffs. Jim Johnston again worked his magic for Armageddon, producing a theme that reflects blood feuds escalating and culminating in the final battle of the year.

The initial 2000 rendition of "The End" was masterful in itself, especially with the singing and ominous lyrics, but the subsequent remix (from 2002 onward) is even better with additional chords to enhance the sense of doom.

3 WWE SummerSlam 2001/ECW One Night Stand 2005/06: "Bodies" - Drowning Pool

"Bodies" Was Also Used As The Entrance Theme For The WCW/ECW Alliance During The Invasion Angle

"Bodies" is Drowning Pool's debut single from their debut album, Sinner.
Sinner was Drowning Pool's most popular album, reaching Platinum status.
Sinner was also the band's only studio album to feature original lead singer, Dave Williams before his premature death in 2002.

Released in May 2001, "Bodies" came out at the perfect time for WWE. With the Invasion angle in full swing in Summer 2001, WWE had the perfect theme for that year's SummerSlam. And the song's legacy was so great, that WWE reused it for both the ECW One Night pay-per-views in 2005/06.

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An exciting aspect of ECW was the entrance theme songs, ranging from rock and metal to hip-hop and rap music.

Although "Bodies" is a song meant to be about moshing, the versatility of the lyrics leave the theme open to interpretation. The lyrics could be applied to the intensity of the WWE/Alliance feud, as well as the nature of ECW. The overall tune is terrific heavy metal, which made "Bodies" a perfect fit for the shows it was used on.

2 WWE SummerSlam 2002: "Fight" - Jim Johnston

Jim Johnston Composed Another Original Theme For The Hotly-Anticipated Annual Event In 2002

"Fight" was later was used on DVD menus for future SummerSlam shows.
"Fight" was included on the WWE Anthology compilation album, released in November 2002.
There was an alternate version of "Fight" that has only been featured on the official DVD release for the 2002 event.

SummerSlam 2002 had major showdowns to look forward to and boasted an epic card from top-to-bottom. Ergo, the show needed the perfect theme to capture the intensity heading-in.

Cue the legendary Jim Johnston, who produced the definitive theme song for SummerSlam. "Fight" is a perfect rock song, with the lyrics reflecting the spirit of Shawn Michaels' return to the ring to fight Triple H. "Fight" brings back memories of what's regarded as the greatest SummerSlam of all time.

1 WWE WrestleMania 17: "My Way" - Limp Bizkit

Limp Bizkit's "Rollin'" Song Was Also Used By WWE For The Undertaker's Entrance Theme At The Time

"My Way" was featured on Limp Bizkit's third studio album, Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water.
The album also included two versions of "Rollin'", and reached multiple Platinum status worldwide.
Lead-singer Fred Durst has appeared as a secret playable character in WWF Raw (Xbox) and WWF SmackDown: Just Bring It (PlayStation 2).

With both WWE and Limp Bizkit at the height of their popularity heading into WrestleMania 17, it was simply a match made in heaven. Although perhaps not a conventional song for a WrestleMania, there's an undeniable magic about "My Way".

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WrestleMania is WWE's biggest event of the year, so the company wants the best theme song they can find for the PPV.

A lot of "My Way"'s appeal has to do with how perfectly it was used for the video-package to hype the main-event of WrestleMania 17, with the lyrics appropriately summing up the Rock/Austin rivalry, and the tune itself being Limp Bizkit's finest hour. Just like WrestleMania 17 was for WWE.