Hearing that a WWE wrestler made a rap album sounds like a hilarious disaster, but John Cena’s 2005 effort was surprisingly good.
John CenaThe 2005 rap album is a unique piece of nostalgia for any kid who grew up during the era of ruthless aggression. He did extremely well, earning platinum, an accolade that no other fighter can boast to this day. Hearing it in 2023, he might be surprised to learn that it’s actually a high-quality album.
Many people forget that this is actually a collaborative project with Cena’s cousin, Tha Trademark, famous for his main verse on Cena’s iconic entrance music, as well as his 2007 TNA PPV appearance playing the role. Karen Angle’s new lover. Tha Trademark appears on every track on this album, going bar for bar with The Champ every time.
The album, naturally, begins with “The Time Is Now”, a song that has already been criticized ad nauseam on the Internet. This track has amassed 29 million streams on Spotify, a certified hit. Another recurring feature on this album is Long Island-born rapper Bumpy Knuckles, who wrestling fans may recognize from his work on the excellent soundtrack for the video game Smackdown vs. Raw 2006. Knuckles appears on the tracks “Flow Easy”, “Keep Frontin'” and one of the album’s singles “Bad Bad Man”.
All the singles from John Cena’s album had music videos to accompany them
All three singles from this album are exceptional, and all had accompanying music videos that would premiere on episodes of Monday Night Raw and SmackDown, most notably the video for the aforementioned ‘Bad Bad Man,’ a video that featured Cena, Trademark, and Bumpy in costume. as THE A-TEAM from the hit 80’s TV show. It also features a cameo from Gary Coleman himself.
Another song that received the music video treatment from this album was the heartfelt single “Right Now,” a feel-good song that features a sample of soul that feels perfect for 2005. In this song, Cena and Trademark talk about the importance of family, friends. , and keeping the ones you love close. If you’ve never heard it before, it’s definitely worth checking out. The video features Cena at her childhood home with her father John Cena Sr., her friends, and her siblings, recreating famous family photos from Cena’s childhood. It’s a really sweet and heartfelt song and video.
There are other standout songs on John Cena’s rap album
As for the songs that aren’t singles, there are actually plenty of other standouts like “Just Another Day,” where Cena and Trademark rap from the perspective of someone who has found success and someone who is down on their luck and struggling. It’s very well done and features another stellar beat. Another track on the album that tells a lot of stories is the album’s final track, “If It All Ended Tomorrow,” a legacy song that asks the listener what they would do if it all ended tomorrow. In Cena’s verse, he tells the story of receiving a visit at his home from a man whose wife Cena had been sleeping with. The man points a gun at Cena, but he didn’t dare pull the trigger. As the man walked away from him, Cena realizes the fragility of life and how it can be taken from him in an instant. Some pretty deep concepts for a wrestling rapper, huh?
John Cena even performed some of the songs on Monday Night Raw
To help promote the album, Cena would even perform some of its tracks on a July 25, 2005 episode of Monday Night Raw in a battle of the bands concept against Chris Jericho during their feud that summer. This album was indicative of a momentous moment for WWE and its marketing, as WWE Studios was also becoming a reality at that time, with the idea of being able to diversify and try to generate income with the household names they had. under contract through other entertainment media such as film or music. This album proved to be a huge success with how hot John Cena’s character was around this time, and it was released at an interesting time for him as he would begin to slowly shed his rapper persona on TV soon after, beginning the transformation into a more familiar one. friendly version of himself. He eventually became the modern day Hulk Hogan in many ways.
However, this album doesn’t feel like a cash grab. It’s clear this was a genuine labor of love from Cena, who is rapping impressively well on the whole thing. The production is also on par with anything released at the time. Overall, it’s a pretty fun listen in the year 2023. If you weren’t familiar with Cena’s rapper past, definitely check it out.