10 Mainstream Songs That Made Great Wrestling Entrance Themes

With Jim Johnson and CFO$ taking on the mantle of WWE's resident musical masterminds, it can be easily forgotten that mainstream music has played an integral part in the careers of some the industry's biggest names.

It goes without saying that as a song climbs the Billboard charts today, the chances of WWE using it drops considerably, thanks to extortionate licensing fees. Despite this, exceptions have always been made. Be it as part of contract negotiations or getting out in front of a song's success, company purse strings can be loosened for the greater good.

WWE aren't alone in utilizing popular songs for their superstars; the practice has been seen everywhere from WCW to the smallest independent promotions.

Traditionally, smaller and less visible companies have ignored licencing laws altogether and used whatever songs they wanted. You only need to look at ECW to see how lesser companies dealt with the issue.

With the onset of wrestling on YouTube and other steaming services, licensed music is once again a precious commodity.

Beyond the obvious financial impact of having a song played on weekly television, association with a popular superstar can make a song more successful than it ever could be. An old song can be given a new lease of life, and a recent release can be catapulted up the charts.

Whilst every song on this list may not be able to make that claim, they all prove that wrestling and music can be combined to create characters and moments that simply wont be forgotten.

Back in the hairspray and polyester-plagued days of the 1980's, WWE were a lot more liberal with using licensed songs for superstar's entrances. Long before the creation of their in house studio enabled them to duck out of increasingly heavy licensing fees and allowed a further level of control, some of the biggest names of the era had their tracks re-purposed.

Arguably, the most fitting and seamless conversion of mainstream hits into wrestling themes was when Queen's Another One Bites the Dust was adopted by the charismatic Junkyard Dog.

With one of the most popular and recognizable bass-lines of all time, the song had the perfect bobbing, thumping beat for Dog's trademark strut down the aisle. Swinging his chain to the infectious melody, Dog made the song his own and adopted the refrain as a short lived catchphrase.

The song is one of Queen's most well-known hits, reaching number seven in the UK charts before finding further fame in the likes of Iron Man 2 and numerous commercials. Unfortunately for wrestling fans, Junkyard Dog went on to sing and help produce the theme's successor.

Queen was replaced with the organ infused, muddled, sugary mess that was Grab Them by the Cakes.