Who's writing WWE’s new entrance music? Not def rebel — not exactly.

For the past year, WWE’s theme songs have relied on stock vocals and lyrics. Under the music direction of ‘def rebel’, the art of writing for characters has been replaced by a sample library.

Image credit: WWE.com

Since 2019, WWE’s music production has been in the hands of a new creative team – def rebel. Long celebrated for its iconic entrance themes, crafted to match a wrestler’s identity, WWE’s sound began to feel oddly generic.

A closer look reveals an unexpected pattern: several recent themes feature lyrics taken directly from royalty-free sample packs, with only minimal changes made before being presented as original material.

While this approach may be legally sound, it raises creative concerns. Is this an efficient production shortcut, or a subtle form of legal musical plagiarism?

Using samples in music production is nothing new, in fact, it’s an industry standard. From pop to hip-hop to film scores, producers often rely on sample packs for drums, synths, and textures to build a fuller sound to a track.

Even WWE’s previous music creators, like the illustrious Jim Johnston and the production duo CFO$, made use of sample libraries for sound design and instrumentation. But there’s a significant difference between using samples to enhance a song and relying on pre-written lyrics as its backbone.

The recent trend, starting around 2024, sees WWE’s def rebel repurposing pre-written vocal lines and presenting them as original compositions. It’s not just lazy, rather it’s creatively hollow, especially in a space where entrance themes are meant to be deeply tied to character identity.

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def rebel has faced growing backlash from fans over the increasingly generic and uninspired sound of many entrance themes.

While the group has delivered standout tracks, most notably for top stars like Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins, much of their catalog has been criticized for lacking the distinctiveness and personality that once defined WWE’s musical identity.

This discontent hasn’t gone unnoticed according to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select, who reported WWE is aware of the fan response internally and is actively addressing the issue.

To illustrate the impact of this trend, let’s take a closer look at a few examples that highlight the core of this issue.

A striking example of this trend is “The Chosen”, the entrance theme for the NXT faction Fatal Influence. On the surface, it sounds like a professionally produced, character-specific track, but under the hood, it’s another product of royalty-free sampling.

The vocals, performed by Bianca Sperduti, a def rebel collaborator since 2020 (she’s also credited as a songwriter on streaming platforms), are not direct lyrical copies of any known sample, but the melody, tone, and vocal delivery match a royalty-free vocal line available on Splice.

It's clear that the performance is built around that original sample, with only slight lyrical variation.

(short audio sample featuring the original vocal samples)

Splice, a widely used platform in the music industry, provides a subscription-based service that grants full access to its extensive sound library, all of which is royalty-free for commercial use.

This means that producers can legally use these samples in their tracks without worrying about copyright infringement.

Paul “Triple H” Levesque, as head of WWE creative, has long been vocal about the importance of music in shaping the product, often emphasizing how entrance themes are integral to defining a wrestler’s persona and connecting with the audience.

Being no stranger to bespoke music during his years as a wrestler, his friendship with Motörhead’s late Lemmy Kilmister led the way for then-WWE music director Jim Johnston to write 3 songs alongside the iconic rock band for the Triple H character, namely “The Game”, “Line in the Sand” and “King of Kings”.

Considering this, it’s a stark contradiction that under his leadership, WWE has been working with a team responsible for cutting corners in the very songwriting process that has always been central to the company’s identity.

The decision to rely on stock material undermines the artistic depth Triple H, and by proxy. Jim Johnston, once championed.

Another glaring example of WWE’s recent trend of relying on royalty-free samples can be found in Dakota Kai’s entrance theme, "Boom Baby".

The track, which serves as a high-energy hyperpop anthem, exclusively uses pre-made vocals with the pitch of the original vocalist altered to reflect a male voice.

While the manipulation creates a new vocal identity, the underlying issue remains: the lyrics are generic and fail to connect with Dakota Kai’s personal story or character arc.

(short audio sample featuring the original vocal samples)

Much like "The Chosen" for Fatal Influence, "Boom Baby" suffers from lyrics that feel disconnected from the characters they’re meant to represent.

These tracks set a troubling precedent, where reliance on pre-written material leads to unclear character identities and an overall lack of emotional connection with the audience.

Shazam has become a common tool around the world to quickly identify the music you hear, so it’s natural that fans have used it to know where to listen to their favourite superstars’ entrance songs.

But if these entrance songs feature prominent elements heard on other tracks then it’s easy for the app to identify a completely different song altogether, such is the case on the aforementioned theme songs.

By ‘shazaming’ the track, the app can lead users to a song made by ALEXZANDER, “Erase My Heart”, which features the same vocal verses, word for word, as both tracks utilize the same sample pack.

This type of discovery is problematic for WWE, as it exposes the lack of originality in their presentation. When fans can easily pinpoint pre-written lyrics or vocals in other songs, it undermines the integrity of WWE's musical identity, further cementing the fact that many of these themes are not as unique as they seem.

Since WWE RAW’s move to Netflix in 2025, this noticeable shift in songwriting has also occurred in the bumper themes of the red show, with many of the songs now featuring lyrics and vocals pulled directly from sample packs.

(short audio sample feautring the original vocal samples)

These bumper songs, designed as brief musical transitions, have been part of the show since 2010, when it was introduced on SmackDown with Rev Theory’s “Hangman”. Needless to say, the lack of originality in the recent tracks is quite evident.

According to def rebel in-house talent, hip-hop artist Supreme Madness, the team receives detailed briefs for each piece of music, outlining the required sound and emotional tone for the track.

The briefs, in theory, ensure that the music aligns with the creative direction of the show, which theoretically should prevent any lackluster material from being produced. Notwithstanding, this recent trend undermines the authenticity of the tracks, even if they fit the brief.

Despite passing quality control, the lyrics themselves are lifted from stock content, which raises questions about the true creativity behind the music. Fans may not notice these shortcuts, but they ultimately affect the quality of WWE’s musical identity.

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In the world of modern music production, producers are increasingly using royalty-free content from platforms like Splice, where everything from beats to vocals is available under a license that allows for commercial use.

On the surface, this practice is perfectly legal, producers are within their rights to use the material as they see fit, making necessary tweaks to fit their vision.

However, when they make only slight alterations, such as changing a few words, and then claim full songwriting credits, it raises significant questions about the integrity of the creative process.

Legally, they are in the clear, but creatively, it becomes murky. Is altering a few words enough to justify taking full credit for a piece of music that is largely constructed from someone else’s work?

To the average listener, the result can feel indistinguishable from plagiarism. By claiming songwriting credit for work that is largely pre-made, the producer or artist isn't simply using samples, they are distorting the concept of authorship.

Speaking with MusicTech, Splice’s SVP Content, Kenny Ochoa, raises a point: “There will always be producers with more technical skill than others, but why would anyone gate-keep creativity?”

When we zoom out and look at the broader music industry, the trend of using pre-made samples and royalty-free loops is undeniably everywhere. MusicTech’s article highlights Sabrina Carpenter’s chart-topping “Espresso”, which features a distinctive guitar riff found on Splice’s sound library.

The reality is that platforms like Splice have made it easier than ever for creators to build tracks without needing to start from scratch, which isn’t a problem of its own.

Sampling and loop culture have become so mainstream that it's now the norm, especially in genres where time is of the essence and viral success is key.

However, WWE presents a unique case: the company is built on larger-than-life characters, each with their own identity, storylines, and connection with fans.

Entrance themes are a crucial part of this, designed not just to sound good, but to reflect the persona of the wrestler, to elevate their narrative and make an emotional impact.

In this context, the question arises: is plug-and-play music really the right fit? While stock samples might be a practical solution for quickly churning out content, they risk stripping away the authenticity and individuality that have always been at the core of WWE’s musical presentation.

When every track starts sounding like it was pieced together from the same collection of pre-made parts, the uniqueness of each wrestler’s entrance fades, and with it, the emotional connection between the character and the audience.

WWE’s strength has always been its ability to make every moment feel personal, and if music becomes just another mass-produced commodity, that authenticity could be lost.

Even Jim Johnston occasionally used sample packs, mostly for drum patterns or to add texture and atmosphere to his tracks. These elements were used sparingly and always in service of a larger, original composition built around a character’s identity.

Similarly, the CFO$ duo, would also incorporate Splice’s library toward the end of their tenure, though their use of samples leaned far more creative, rather than dropped in wholesale like def rebel.

Pro Wrestling Nexus had reported late last year that def rebel was nearing the end of their contract, but those claims turned out to be unfounded.

However, with growing concerns over the quality and originality of their work, this could still lead to their eventual dismissal if WWE chooses to reassess their approach to music production.

As the debate over artistic integrity and creativity continues to unfold, it remains to be seen whether WWE will stick with this current direction or opt for a change to preserve the authenticity of its music.