In 2021, wrestling fans who weren’t plugged into pop culture may have been surprised when the ridiculously popular musician Bad Bunny suddenly became a character on WWE television, taking part in an ongoing storyline and even getting physical with the wrestlers. But fans who know their history will remember WWE has embraced pop music since the “Rock ‘n’ Wrestling” era of the 1980s.
At this point, pro wrestling now has a nearly 40-year history of incorporating musicians in the action, so let’s take a look at some instances of artists actually entering the fray in one form or another. WWE also isn't the only wrestling promotion to feature pop stars on their programs.
10 Bad Bunny Enters The ThunderDome
Bad Bunny’s foray into WWE wasn’t anything new, at first -- he had a song about Booker T, so he scored a gig performing at the 2021 Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Bunny’s obviously enthusiastic about wrestling, so he even got to do a top rope spot on The Miz and John Morrison during the men’s Royal Rumble match. But what makes Bad Bunny unique from other performers is that he stuck around after that appearance, appearing on Raw, aligning with Damien Priest, and even becoming the 24/7 Champion on February 15. On top of that, he might even step into the ring at WrestleMania 37.
9 Insane Clown Posse
For some reason, Juggalos and pro wrestling have gone hand-in-hand, perhaps because the rap duo Insane Clown Posse has been active in pro wrestling since 1997. Shaggy 2 Dope and Violent J made their televised wrestling debut teaming with The Oddities against Kai En Tai on an episode of Raw back in 1998, but their wrestling involvement was limited. Since then, the two have wrestled for WCW, TNA, and even Ring of Honor. On top of that, ICP have been running their own promotion, Juggalo Championship Wrestling, since 1999.
8 Cyndi Lauper Hits Two People With A Record
One of the biggest figures in the aforementioned “Rock ‘n’ Wrestling” era was Cyndi Lauper, who became a part of WWE storylines after Captain Lou Albano appeared in the “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” music video. But Lauper wasn’t just there to be a figurehead for WWE’s foray into wider pop culture -- she got physically involved, too.
The most famous example is, of course, the altercation with "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, which was repeated in 2012 with Cyndi Lauper smashing a record over Heath Slater’s head. But at 1984’s Brawl to End It All on MTV, Lauper hit Fabulous Moolah with a purse during a match between Moolah and Wendi Richter.
7 No Limit Soldiers
As much as WCW got flack from fans for being stuck in the past, the promotion did a number of forward-thinking things, like bringing in No Limit rapper Master P, building a short-lived stable around him, and presenting the No Limit Soldiers as babyfaces against the villainous West Texas Rednecks. It backfired thanks to WCW fans preferring country music to hip-hop, but it was worth a try. Master P even got involved in the action a little by hurling a birthday cake at Rednecks frontman Curt Hennig.
6 Flo Rida Shoves Heath Slater
There was a period in the 2010s where it seemed like Flo Rida was WWE’s official musician, having contributed several of his songs as themes to pay-per-views. He would also make a few appearances on WWE television, including a backstage segment on Raw where he shoved Heath Slater as hard as possible. Slater would eventually get a degree of retribution a few years later via his Social Outcasts stablemate Bo Dallas, who entered an in-ring rap battle with Flo Rida and ended up doing a better job somehow.
5 The Misfits vs. Dr. Death
Late period WCW brought in a number of actual musicians to get involved in various shenanigans, including The Misfits in 1999. Aligning themselves with Vampiro in a few feuds, The Misfits would get in on the action with bassist Jerry Only taking on "Dr. Death" Steve Williams in a short cage match on the 11/29/1999 episode of Monday Nitro. As The Misfits and Vampiro brawled with Oklahoma at ringside, Only would ultimately score the win by escaping the cage.
4 Machine Gun Kelly Eats a Table
Machine Gun Kelly is another musician who showed up on WWE television to perform only for something surprising to happen. Unlike Bad Bunny, however, MGK got physical moments after his performance as Kevin Owens would show up and powerbomb Kelly off the top of the ramp and through a table.
No matter what the WWE Universe might think about MGK’s music, it’s impressive that he was willing to do a table spot, considering most celebrities just end up getting mildly physical.
3 Toby Keith Suplexes Jeff Jarrett
Jeff Jarrett had a gimmick as a country singer who hit people with guitars, but he took the concept further by befriending real-life country singer Toby Keith. The two were even rumored to be purchasing TNA in the 2010s, which would have added to the company’s absurd history. Keith was there on the very first TNA pay-per-view, where Jarrett would interrupt Keith’s performance. Keith would get his revenge later in the evening by suplexing Jarrett in a battle royal and then eliminating him.
2 Andy Williams Becomes The Butcher
As fans can tell from this list, there’s no shortage of musicians who have gotten physical with pro wrestlers, but there aren’t that many who actually become active in-ring competitors. Andy Williams -- guitarist of Everytime I Die -- made his pro wrestling debut in 2016, wresting under his real name and forming a tag team with Braxton Sutter (a.k.a. Pepper Parks) called The Butcher and The Blade. In 2019, the two would debut in All Elite Wrestling, adopting The Butcher and The Blade as their ring names.
1 Billy Corgan Gets Extreme
Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan has been active in the wrestling business since the early 2010s, starting his own promotion, Resistance Pro, and leading the charge in TNA and the National Wrestling Alliance. But before all that, Corgan made an appearance on ECW on TNN in 1999, standing alongside Steve Corino for a promo only to take a portable phone to the back of the head from Paul Heyman's parody character, Lou E. Dangerously.