Former WWE composer Jim Johnston has criticized the company's current theme songs, describing them as generic and lacking the distinctiveness of past tracks.
In comments to The False Face, Johnston said the music "just sounds like noise to me, and all the themes just sound generic." He noted that earlier compositions allowed viewers to identify wrestlers from another room, a quality he believes has been lost.
Johnston, who worked with WWE for over 30 years before his 2017 departure, credited the decline partly to a shift away from music's role in building stars. He said the approach has contributed to the absence of new figures comparable to Steve Austin or The Rock.
The composer also explained his past decision to limit interactions with wrestlers during theme creation. He stated that such meetings often led to mismatched requests based on personal tastes rather than character needs, adding that few talents understood the storytelling aspect of the music.
Def Rebel has handled WWE themes since 2019, following the tenure of CFO$. Johnston composed tracks including The Rock's "If You Smell," DX's "Are You Ready?" and The Undertaker's "Rest in Peace."
