Backstage News On How WWE Talent Feel About Def Rebel Following Royal Rumble Criticism

The indistinct nature of WWE's current theme songs, made under lead composers Def Rebel, has drawn criticisms lately, especially after the Royal Rumble. The match's reliance on theme songs to identify entrants lampshaded the anonymous quality of the group's output, bringing the situation to something of a boiling point.

According to Fightful Select, very few wrestlers from which the publication has heard are happy with their themes. None of the wrestlers who spoke with Fightful had input on their songs, and many have expressed unhappiness with the music, to little avail. A number of incoming talent have reportedly tried to stave off getting a Def Rebel theme by bringing their own music with them. There is no word on when the deal between WWE and Def Rebel will expire.

The news comes just a matter of months after a previous round of complaints. AEW's heavy use of licensed theme music, as the company has made use of music from Starship, Guns n' Roses, and Europe, has seen WWE begin to dabble in the same arena, with the recent "Saturday Night's Main Event" show featuring the classic song "Obsession" by Animotion. Former WWE Champion Randy Orton recently turned down a Def Rebel theme, opting to keep his longtime "Voices" theme song. AJ Styles also returned to WWE recently with his CFO$-penned song "Phenomenal" once again playing him to the ring. According to Fightful, many like Styles and Orton have successfully had their songs changed or kept, while others have not been so lucky.