10 Best WWE Entrance Themes

A wrestler's entrance music is one of the most important things in sports entertainment. It not only announces the arrival of a particularly beloved face or loathed heel, it also can inform a crowd just exactly what kind of person is about to come down the ramp.

Some themes become so intrinsically linked with their characters that they are almost unthinkable without their music: Imagine Hulk Hogan in the 80s without Real American or Triple H without Motorhead's The Game.

There is a lot of good music in the WWE today and the creators CFO$ have managed to embrace a variety of different styles, focusing on emphasizing particular characteristics of a superstar without reducing the performer to just his or her music.

With that in mind, let's take a look at what we think are the 10 best entrance themes in the WWE today. We're not just judging the quality of the music itself, but also in the effectiveness it has on both a crowd and its ability to convey the various aspects of the wrestler it accompanies.

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#10 Sami Zayn

Before his heel turn and rejuvenation under the "friendship" of Kevin Owens, Sami's theme was pure babyface joy. Entire crowds have sung along to it and it served his upbeat, never-say-die attitude perfectly. Now, as a heel, the song serves an effective counterpoint to his persona, turning what was lively and upbeat into something annoying, even abrasive and irritating. Something that Zayn is surprisingly good at conveying.

#9 Aleister Black

Although relatively new to the WWE, Aleister Black has arrived as the complete package. His look, his demeanour, and move-set all balance each other in a way that serves his character perfectly, and which has only been bolstered further by his theme music. Aggressive, dark, and foreboding, the music speaks to the darkest side of his character saying more than Black ever has in a promo while also providing him with the opportunity to stand out as someone to be truly afraid of.

#8 Rusev

Rusev's character is the foreign invader, a man who has come from the sinister reaches of eastern Europe, ready to prove his superiority over America and the West at large by his strength and ferocity. His music is militaristic, driving, monstrous, yet it doesn't fall into cliche and resort to patriotic tropes that are abounded with similar characters in the past. It's a theme that's far more nuanced than the storytelling the actual wrestler has been given during his tenure in the WWE.

#7 Samoa Joe

To look at the growth of the WWE's stance on ethnicity, one only needs to compare Samoa Joe's theme with that of a similarly built Samoan wrestler in the WWE's recent past, Umaga.

Umaga has tribal drums, speaking to his primal, uncivilized nature, while Joe's is entirely unconcerned with his background or the differences in his culture to a mainstream audience. Umaga's theme is about his otherness because of his ethnicity; Joe's theme is about his personality, one that says he's about to kill you. It also feels like a lost Godzilla theme song and that's cool too.

#6 Finn Balor

Finn Balor has two distinct entrances: one as the rock n' roll star wearing a cool leather jacket and the other as the crawling, dreadlock wearing, demon. What's great about his theme music is that it works for both aspects of his character. It builds into numerous crescendos that Balor takes advantage of with his signature pose, further emphasized by the brilliance of the lighting that dares a crowd to play along with. Who knows if it would work if Balor were to ever turn heel, but for the character he portrays right now, it fits superbly.

#5 Rich Swann

Rich Swann is one of the undoubted highlights of 205 Live. Charismatic and athletic, he proved his worth on NXT before joining the cruiserweight roster and being a major part of showcasing the overall talent on display. Swann's music is foot-tapping, head-bobbing joy, and one of the few on this list that could stand on its own as a piece of music separate from its wrestler. It's further enhanced by the way in which it accompanies Swann as he dances to the ring. He clearly loves the song as much as we do.

#4 Shinsuke Nakamura

Shinsuke Nakamura is an enigmatic, charismatic performer who seems like a cross between Michael Jackson and the disreputable uncle your family doesn't want you to spend time with.

Even before he joined the WWE, his entrances have been an important part of his character, just look at his gloriously over the top appearances at Wrestle Kingdom 8 in 2014 and Wrestle Kingdom 9 the following year. His theme was always going to be special. However, few were prepared for his debut and its effectiveness in conveying Nakamura's strengths as a character. The driving, lilting cello, followed by the drums and the drop of the violins form an incredible 30-second encapsulation of Nakamura's character and coupled with his very obvious charisma, it makes for a very special entrance indeed.

#3 Bobby Roode

When Shinsuke Nakamura turned down the Glorious theme tune when it was offered to him, it not only forced WWE to give him a different, more appropriate theme, it also provided an opportunity for it to be utilised for someone entirely more suited. Bobby Roode is excellent at playing a self-important heel, one who regards themselves as better than anyone in the arena and the audience, so what better music for someone than a self-aggrandizing song that declares that they will overcome and be glorious?

Coupled with the spotlight and the revolving pedestal, it forms a truly entertaining, yet pompous and overblown entrance that's perfect for the character it accompanies.

#2 Bray Wyatt

There is no music, no entrance, like Bray Wyatt's. It's an entrance that relies on a crowd to be a part of and despite the poor way he's been booked, one in which they happily contribute. The theme, Live in Fear by Mark Crozer, is odd and bizarre, with surreal and yet oddly threatening lyrics shot through it set to a lackadaisical bass string that bursts into a raunchy electric guitar at the end. It's seductive and dangerous and informs Bray Wyatt's character as someone who is not to be trusted.

#1 Bayley

A pop dance track that urges people to rise to their feet and that insists that there's no stopping us now, Bayley's theme is a song that holds immense appeal and charm, fully brought to bear by the skill of the wrestler who walks out to it (and with the help of a half a dozen wavy tube men). While other songs may emphasize strength or dominance, Bayley's theme is about the determination to never give up, while also having fun and speaks to the innate appeal of the character herself. It is the perfect encapsulation of a WWE theme, one that would not work without the character, nor would the character work quite as well without.

And that's our list. Please feel free to offer better ones in the comments below!

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