A theme song is one of the most important elements of a wrestler’s presentation.

There have been some iconic theme songs over the years, and when WWE decides to implement a new theme song for a specific wrestler, it’s always a tough task in getting fans to accept the new theme.

Introducing a new theme song has worked wonders for some wrestlers. Most notably, Triple H switching to The Game in 2000, and Edge switching to Metalingus in 2004.

However, WWE has been known to introduce a new theme song for virtually no reason. A beloved theme song can get scrapped in favour of a theme song that has a significant dip in quality, and this leads to a vocal push from fans to see the classic theme song make a triumphant return.

So, with that being said, let’s look at 10 WWE entrance themes that were total downgrades.

10: Keith Lee (Limitless > Generic Jobber Theme)

To say that Keith Lee’s Limitless theme song was good would be an understatement. The theme song was majestic, epic, and created an instant sense of excitement from the fans. Unfortunately, when Lee was infamously called up to the main roster, Limitless was scrapped, in favour of a song that fans quickly labelled as a “generic jobber theme song”.

The song gave Lee no aura, and it’s hardly a surprise that his WWE main roster push went absolutely nowhere. It was reported that WWE weren’t permitted to use Limitless due to their deal with CFO$ coming to end, yet this did little to justify why WWE produced such a lacklustre theme song for a wrestler who was supposed to be one of the future stars of the company.

WWE would eventually introduce yet another theme for Lee, this would be called Born To Bring It; however, by the time Lee debuted the theme, WWE had already seemingly given up on the once promising star.

9: The British Bulldog (Rule Britannia > “Bulldog”)

When The British Bulldog returned to WWE in 1999, the company was in a completely different place in terms of how their product was presented. The Attitude Era was well underway, and Bulldog’s prior gimmick and presentation would have fallen flat immediately in the new era.

WWE would smartly give Bulldog a new theme song; however, instead of the classic, Rule Britannia, Bulldog would use a metal sounding song that was completely lifeless and was arguably one of the most unmemorable theme songs of the entire Attitude Era.

The most interesting thing about the new theme song was that it featured a bulldog barking at the start; however, outside of this, the theme song wasn’t representative of anyone who was going to be a major player in one of the most popular eras in WWE history.

8: Carlito (Cool > Bad Apple)

Former US and Intercontinental Champion, Carlito made his highly anticipated return to WWE at the 2023 Fastlane event. Whilst it was great to see Carlito, there was immediate criticism because WWE had changed his theme song.

Carlito’s first theme song in WWE was symbolic for everything the Carlito character represented, yet his new theme titled Bad Apple was lifeless, and rather dull.

It wasn’t just the WWE fans who weren’t a fan of the Bad Apple theme, as Carlito himself had this to say during an appearance on The Ringer’s Cheap Heat podcast:

“You mean in the intro? It’s a little different. I wanted to do something a little different. It’s been all this time. You gotta change with the times a little bit, so I wanted to kind of keep the cool more, but just come out with something new. From what I’ve heard, people aren’t crazy about the theme song yet. I wasn’t either, so maybe it’s one of those things that might grow on you later on. We’ll see.”

Carlito continued by saying:

“They ran it by me. They wanted to change it. I wasn’t crazy about changing it. I wanted to keep it, I liked it the way it was. But they said they wanted to change it. I went, ‘Alright, let’s see what we can do.’ They asked me for my input here and there. ‘Needs more bass here, needs more drums,’ little things like that. Then the lines they wanted to change, I didn’t want the old lines from before.”

7: Stone Cold Steve Austin (Glass Shatters > Venom)

WWE deciding to change Stone Cold’s theme song in 2000 was a risky move.

Austin’s theme song was iconic, and it could have led to severe backlash if the new theme wasn’t up to the same standard.

Luckily, the new theme from Disturbed was arguably Austin’s most beloved theme song. The new theme kept the glass shatter at the start, yet the track now featured strong lyrics that perfectly represented Austin’s character and no-nonsense attitude.

When Austin turned heel and became a member of the WCW/ECW alliance in 2001, Austin would ditch the Disturbed theme in favour of a lazily produced track.

The theme song was titled Venom, and it was just a complete step-down compared to what came prior. Did the theme song suit the supposedly paranoid leader of the Alliance? That’s up for debate, yet fans don’t exactly have fond memories of Austin’s time using the Venom theme song.

6: Stephanie McMahon (All Grown Up > Welcome To The Queendom)

Stephanie McMahon’s first-two theme songs in WWE were certified hits. Her version of My Time, and then All Grown Up were tremendous theme songs that were exactly what McMahon’s character at the time needed.

However, McMahon eventually decided to ditch the All Grown Up theme, and in 2013, she debuted a theme song titled, Welcome To The Queendom. The new theme was supposed to be an indication that this was a new, superior version of McMahon, yet the theme song didn’t have the same energy as All Grown Up.

The new theme song was definitely a more mature theme, and it may have been out of place for McMahon to still use All Grown Up; however, WWE could have delivered something more memorable for a figure who was such a prominent fixture on TV at the time.

5: Sheamus (Written In My Face > Hellfire)

Sheamus’ Written In My Face theme is considered to be one of the more underrated theme songs of the PG Era. WWE managed to hit Sheamus’ first-ever theme song out of the park, and it’s hardly a surprise that fans for the past 8-years have been urging WWE to bring the classic theme song back.

Sheamus would get a new theme in 2015, and his theme was titled Hellfire. This theme isn’t remotely bad, as it only falls just below Written In My Face in terms of production quality, yet the consensus from the WWE fan-base is that Written In My Face was a better fit for the former WWE Champion.

Sheamus has admitted in numerous interviews that he wants to bring his old theme song back, and this is what he had to say during an interview with Inside The Ropes:

“I definitely would love to bring that song back. Before, I know, it was stopped, they weren’t gonna let me have it. It’s amazing what a song can do or an entrance music can do to bring people back in with that nostalgia. I definitely will keep pushing to have that song back, and it’s something that I haven’t given up on. But I think there’ll be a time and place for that to come back. I think that it will be massive and I’ll be able buzzing off it too because like that just brings back so many memories of the beginning of my career and for fans too as well. So yeah, it’s cool. I don’t know.”

4: Baron Corbin (I Bring The Darkness > Get Ready Ready)

I Bring The Darkness was produced by the master of WWE themes, Jim Johnston, and the theme is notable for being the last-ever WWE theme produced by the acclaimed artist.

The theme song itself is universally liked by the fan-base, as it gave Corbin an instant presence when the song hit.

Corbin would ditch the popular theme when he changed gimmicks, and WWE eventually gave Corbin a theme song titled Get Ready Ready. The theme song was supposed to represent Corbin winning big in Las Vegas, and WWE took a rather literal approach to the theme song. The theme starts with a slot machine jingle, and then the rest of the theme sounds like an arcade. The theme song was heavily panned by fans, and the theme song currently has over 1,200 dislikes on WWE’s YouTube channel.

Since returning to NXT in 2023, Corbin has debuted a new theme titled Burn The Ships, which is a vast improvement, and hopefully the Get Ready Ready theme will never  be heard on WWE programming again.

3: Rikishi (You Look Fly Today > Bad Man)

Upon turning heel in 2000, it became apparent that Rikishi’s widely popular theme song that he would use as a member of Too Cool would no longer work. You Look Fly Today was a fun theme song that made fans get up on their feet and dance, yet with Rikishi now a menacing heel, a new theme was needed with immediate effect.

Rikishi would debut a theme known as Bad Man, and whilst not the worst thing in the world, it was a disappointing theme song that failed to present Rikishi as a main-event talent.

A lot of things went wrong with Rikishi’s heel run in 2000, and the theme song was a significant factor in why the presentation of a heel Rikishi just didn’t work.

2: Drew McIntyre (Broken Dreams > Gallantry)

When Drew McIntyre re-signed with WWE in 2017, his Broken Dreams theme was nowhere to be found, instead, McIntyre would use a theme known as Gallantry.

It took some time for the fans to get used to the theme, and although the theme is a passable theme for McIntyre, there has been an increasing demand to see McIntyre revert to Broken Dreams.

McIntyre himself is fully aware just how popular the theme song is, and McIntyre has been pushing to bring the theme back full-time, yet it looks like WWE has no plans at this stage to make the change.

At the 2022 Clash at the Castle event, McIntyre would bring the theme back for his introduction in the main event, and this was the last time the theme was used on WWE programming to date.

1: Kane (Slow Chemical > Man On Fire)

Slow Chemical is considered one of the most popular theme songs of the past 25-years. Slow Chemical is sung by Finger Eleven, and the idea of Kane having a theme song with lyrics seems like a strange concept, yet it worked amazingly, and it is without question Kane’s most iconic theme song.

In 2008, WWE made the call to drop the theme song after six-years, and there was negative backlash upon WWE making the change. Kane’s new theme would be titled Man On Fire, and it would be a re-work of Kane’s original theme. The new theme wasn’t a total stinker, yet there was no logical reason to make the change, and it just appeared that WWE wanted to cut costs, and produce an in-house theme song for the Devil’s Favourite Demon.

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