2. “Word Life”
- Used Between: March 2003-March 2005
- Titles Won With This Song: WWE United States Championship (3x)
The March 27, 2003, edition of SmackDown was more important for John Cena’s career than you may remember. Cena was taken out by Brock Lesnar the previous month, and he was back with vengeance on his mind.
Cena wrestled Rikishi that night in a fairly regular TV match that carries a lot more historical significance than it should. Not only did Cena debut Word Life that night, he also defeated Rikishi after hitting his very first Attitude Adjustment (known as the FU at the time).
Word Life is the track that turned John Cena from “the Velocity rookie” to WWE’s fastest rising star. Love the Doctor of Thuganomics gimmick or not, no one can deny that the song played a massive role in Cena’s transformation.
The song brought energy to the arena, and just like that, Cena had found the attitude and the swagger that he’d been missing until then. It connected with the audience quickly, and Cena started working with names such as The Undertaker, Kurt Angle, and Big Show on pay-per-view.
All these years later, Word Life remains one of the most iconic theme songs of the Ruthless Aggression Era.
