
The wrestling-metal connection continued to thrive at the 2023 WWE Royal Rumble in San Antonio, Texas over the weekend, as the likes of Motionless In White, Code Orange, Alter Bridge and Downstait provided the soundtrack to some of the biggest moments of the event. This continued a mutually beneficial tradition for superstars of both entertainment forms. Below is a breakdown of the biggest moments from a big night in the world of wrestling and metal.
Rhea Ripley wins the Royal Rumble
When South Australian pro-wrestling phenomenon Rhea Ripley outlasted 30 other competitors and became the first woman to ever win the Royal Rumble from the #1 position, it was the sound of her favourite band, Motionless In White's Demon In Your Dreams that could be heard blasting out of the speakers as she pointed in the direction of the WrestleMania sign. See the moment for yourself below.
Ripley will now go on to represent both Australia and her rather metal faction Judgement Day at WrestleMania. Whether or not Motionless In White will be there to team up with WWE's contracted producer def rebel for a live run through of Demon In Your Dreams remains to be seen, but given the history between the event and metal, we wouldn't put it past them coming together to create a wrestling-metal WrestleMania moment in Hollywood.
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Alter Bridge Soundtrack Edge's Latest Return With Metalingus and Judgement Day's Entrance with The Other Side.
Alter Bridge a history with the 'Rated R Superstar' the legendary Edge and so it was no surprise that when he returned to the ring for the latest stage of his career renaissance it was to the sounds of Metalingus by Alter Bridge. Watch as the crowd in San Antonio loses their collective minds and sings along to Metalingus in full voice.
Fittingly, Alter Bridge also provide the theme for Judgement Day, making them the official soundtrack to an ongoing feud that escalated further in the rumble when Edge eliminated Judgement Day members Damian Priest and Finn Balor who in turn teamed up with the still legal third man of their faction, Dominik Mysterio to eliminate Edge. Throw in a spear from Edge's real-life wife Beth Phoneix on Rhea Ripley and it seems we could be in for a rather metal-heavy feud at Elimination Chamber on the road to WrestleMania.
Bray Wyatt Enters The Pitch Black Match To The Sounds of Code Orange 'Shatter'
Bray Wyatt has long been associated with Code Orange with the band having provided the theme song for his previous run as the horror-movie-monster gimmick 'The Fiend'. That connection has continued in Wyatt's latest run, with Code Orange penning a song, the rather eerie Shatter specifically for Wyatt's latest wildly creative, cryptic and slightly creepy run. The way Code Orange's music matches up with Wyatt's character's movements on this entrance is a match made in heaven for fans of the spookier side of this wrestling thing. Listen to the song for yourself below.
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Cody Rhodes Wins The 2023 Royal Rumble To The Sounds of Kingdom by Downstait
Cody Rhodes is a bit of a controversial figure in the pro-wrestling community, but for those who love the youngest son of the 'son of a plumber' Dusty Rhodes, and to the man himself this moment means everything. Making his return, following a devestating pectoral muscle injury, Rhodes received a major pop from the audience as he made his way into the ring at #30 to the sounds of Downstait's Kingdom. He received an even bigger one when he finally eliminated Gunther (who had been in the match since the beginning in a record-setting achievement of his own) to secure his place in the WrestleMania main event and book his chance at earning the one championship that has avoided his storied family, the WWE Heavyweight Championship. Watch Downstait soundtrack for both the entrance and the celebration below.
If all of this has you curious about the connection between metal and wrestling, then check out our interview with Australian wrestling legend 'The Mad Bastard' KrackerJak who goes deep with us on the topic.
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