Jim Johnston spent decades creating music for some of WWE’s biggest names, and he has zero problem telling wrestlers something they probably don’t want to hear: just because you play the character doesn’t mean you understand that character better than everybody else.
While speaking on Ropes N Riffs, Johnston got into the weeds about how entrance themes should actually be created and whether the wrestler themselves should have the final word. When he was asked point-blank whether a wrestler is the person who knows their character best, Johnston didn’t hesitate for even a second. His answer was a hard no.
“Absolutely not. Just like Harrison Ford is not the best person to ask about who should be the score for this movie I’m making.”
Johnston didn’t stop there, because he believes the person playing the character can actually be too close to it. In his mind, the composer and the people directing the larger presentation need to be able to stand back and see the whole movie instead of focusing only on what sounds cool to the person walking through the curtain.
“Sure. um the director and the composer that they they need the distance and the the wide swath of the whole movie and the story and the other characters and and how Harrison Ford’s character is interacting with th those other characters. That’s the story and that’s the score.”
That’s where Johnston thinks wrestlers can get themselves into trouble. A wrestler might hear a Metallica song in the car, start driving 15 miles per hour faster and decide that’s exactly the kind of energy they need for their entrance, but Johnston says that has almost nothing to do with whether the song actually tells fans who that wrestler is.
He said working directly with performers can sometimes turn the conversation into nothing more than their personal musical taste. To Johnston, that’s way too shallow when you’re talking about something that is supposed to become part of a wrestler’s entire identity.
“when you’re dealing directly with the performer, it just becomes this sort of shallow thing of when I’m driving in my car, every time this song comes on, I drive faster. It’s like, okay, well, maybe that’s true and maybe it’s a great song, but that has nothing to do with whether it should be the score to your career. I mean, this is really important stuff.”
Johnston then made it clear that he isn’t talking about some harmless argument over which song sounds cooler. He believes getting this decision wrong can follow a wrestler throughout their career and even have consequences for the company trying to make money off them.
“And the difference between getting it right and wrong and halfway right wrong is has real ramifications to the to that person’s career and to the company.”
This isn’t the first time Johnston has gone after the idea that wrestlers should simply pick music they personally enjoy. Ringside News previously covered Johnston calling it a “horrible idea” for wrestlers to use commercial songs simply because those are the tracks they personally like, because those songs already come loaded with emotions and associations that may have nothing to do with the wrestler’s character.
That philosophy explains a lot about Johnston’s WWE work. He wasn’t trying to make songs that The Undertaker, Triple H or Steve Austin would necessarily crank up while driving down the highway, because he was trying to make music that transformed them into those characters the second it hit.
Johnston clearly believes wrestlers having creative input is one thing, but handing them the steering wheel just because it’s their character is another story entirely. In his world, the wrestler is the star of the movie, but that doesn’t suddenly make them the director, composer and entire production crew too.
Do you agree with Jim Johnston that wrestlers don’t necessarily know what fits their own characters best, or should talent have the final say over something as important as their entrance music? Sound off in the comments and let us know what you think.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
