Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson Is Launching a Rap Career
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has been known for many things over the years. He burst onto the scene as a professional wrestler in the 1990s. He then parlayed that fame into a successful movie career. But now, he’s branching into a new territory: music.
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is a famous actor and wrestler
When he was younger, Dwayne Johnson was a promising young football player with a bright future ahead of him. He played football in college for the Miami Hurricanes, winning the National Championship in 1991. He later briefly played for the Calgary Stampeders football team in Canada.
In 1996, Johnson decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a professional wrestler. He joined the WWE and participated in matches in the late ’90s and early ’00s under his own name, and later, “The Rock.”
His first film role was as The Scorpion King in The Mummy Returns, released in 2001 at the height of his wrestling career. He went on to have a successful movie career after retiring from wrestling, at one point being the highest-paid actor in Hollywood.
Dwayne Johnson rapped on a song called ‘Face Off’
Throughout the years, Johnson has dipped his toes into the waters of the music industry. In 2000, he was featured on Wyclef Jean‘s song “It Doesn’t Matter.” And in 2016, he sang in Disney’s hit animated musical Moana.
In 2021, Johnson dove head first into the world of rap. He was featured on the song “Face Off” by longtime rapper Tech N9ne. Rappers Joey Cool and King Iso were also featured on the track.
Johnson recounted what it was like recording his first rap song in an interview with Billboard. “The past few days have been, in a word, phenomenal,” he said. “The goal was to create and deliver a song that got your blood pumping, but also, we talked about things that were important to us, in terms of our drive, our cultures, our lives. So these past couple of days have been great, and the fan response has been f—ing crazy.”
Dwayne Johnson wants to do more music
Johnson revealed that he had been approached by musicians over the years to collaborate. But he wanted to wait for a song that he felt was perfect for him. “Face Off” was it.
“This music speaks to me, and I think [Tech N9ne’s] music speaks to a mass, yet specific, audience in hip-hop — who love and embrace the rush, who want that fire, who want that aggression,” he said. “The opportunities in the past that have come my way, to rap, to sing, have been great, and a lot of them are [from] my friends, and they’re monster stars in the world of music. I love and respect their music, but… it’s got to feel right, and it’s got to feel real. And this did, with Tech.”
“I would love to [do more music],” he continued. “Again, it just has to feel right, to feel real, where we can really dig in on something that’s authentic and from the gut. But just as important is delivering something for the people that they would just love and go hopefully crazy over.”
