"To me, it's not just about the actual genre of the music, but rather how that music makes you feel." - Triple H.
As wrestling punters and fans will know, WWE NXT is a great platform for up and coming stars in the wrestling industry; before they move on to Smackdown and RAW or even stay at the top of the NXT hierarchy. However, it's also become a great platform for heavy bands to get their name out there as well to a new audience who may not be aware of their band or even aware of this music in general. Whether it's Baroness and Code Orange (pictured above, who played at NXT in Brooklyn last year) to even bigger bands like Bring Me The Horizon and Asking Alexandria getting their songs played on the show; NXT has hosted many of these band's material to new eyes and new ears.
Speaking with Simon Takla recently, co-host of the Rock You Like A Hurricanrana podcast, veteran wrestler Triple H - real name Paul Michael Levesque, who is Executive Vice President of Talent, Live Events and Creative for WWE Professional wrestler and producer for NXT - was asked what the process of choosing the bands and what his was reasoning behind NXT using a louder, heavier soundtrack. Here's what Triple H had to say about it:
"When we started doing NXT, I wanted it to have a different image and feel. Part of that was to me, if you look at the WWE from a musicall standpoint, WWE is much more pop music; it appeals to as many people as possible so it's more pop-music. We're a bit more niche, we're a bit more of an edge, and I wanted to feel that edge. To me, it's not just about the actual genre of the music, but rather how that music makes you feel. Whether it be heavy metal or hip-hop, if that sounds makes you feel that edge, that's really what I wanted.So we take that and we look at whatever the storyline [of the wrestler] is and try to encapsulate that feel. I go through a lot of music with our staff here, we go through a lot of stuff, and I feel there's something very cool about helping to break talent. So we try to use as much up and coming talent and bands who are right on the edge of breaking or close to it. A lot of these bands get a huge social rub from doing stuff with us, and they get a lot of eye balls on them, like Code Orange playing for us. I feel that it can help that genre of music to continue to grow and flourish and it can help the brand; it's a win-win for everybody. It's mostly about creating a feel. I want a certain feel for when you watch NXT, and that music gives you that.
Plus, I like it, which is a bonus!"
Be sure to follow Rock You Like A Hurricanrana for the more from the wrestling world, especially their NXT-themed episode in which they discuss the heavy music influence on the show. Also, as Triple H himself mentioned, here's Code Orange's live performance of Aleister Black's entrance theme back at NXT Takeover Brooklyn last year:
NXT Takeover Philadelphia streams live on the WWE network this Sunday at 12pm.
