Post by Sno0p on Jun 16, 2006 9:57:18 GMT -5
May 30, 2006 - It's hard on Smackdown for a pimp.
credit:[glow=red,2,300]ign.com[/glow]
No, I'm not talking about The Godfather and his "pimpin' ain't easy" days. I'm talking Mark Henry, the artist formerly known as Sexual Chocolate, who recently enlisted the help of Three 6 Mafia to pen his new theme song, even getting the rap group to perform his anthem on Smackdown last Friday.
Three 6 Mafia is one of the hottest rap groups around after their song, "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" was not only featured on the Hustle & Flow soundtrack, but surprisingly took the Oscar for Best Original Song.
Is Henry's new theme up to the same caliber?
When not watching Smackdown, wrestling fans can listen for themselves as "Some Bodies Gonna Get It" is also one of the featured tracks on the WWE's new CD Wreckless Intent.
"We just want to let everyone know, WWE is doing big things in the music industry," said Henry, proud that his new theme might be the CD's hottest track.
I caught up with The World's Strongest Man as he cruised in his car, no doubt bumping Three 6 Mafia as he looked for some bodies to gone get.
Here's what Henry had to say…
IGN Sports: How did your collaboration with Three 6 Mafia come about? Were you a big fan of theirs from back in the day?
Mark Henry: Definitely. I'm a Texas boy so southern hip hop is a whole different brand in itself. I've been around southern hip hop and Memphis music since Eightball and MJG, this is just the next wave. It's awesome because Three 6 Mafia made the song specifically for me. You know you've arrived when things start to get done for you like this.
IGN Sports: How important of a role does music play in wrestling?
Mark Henry: It's important because it gets the crowd going, and when they hear specific songs, they know right away who the person is coming to the ring. It's a collective 'yea' or a collective 'nay', and the music lets the crowd interact with who you are.
IGN Sports: What are some of your favorite WWE theme songs of all time?
Mark Henry: I used to like The Junkyard Dog's "Grab Them Cakes". Ric Flair's theme still moves me. And in the last five years, my favorite is John Cena's. I also like Gangrel's music, that was awesome. The Undertaker's theme isn't really a single, but in terms of eerie music, you can't beat it.
IGN Sports: Who has the worst theme song?
Mark Henry: Oh my God, if you're talking terrible theme songs, you have to mention Matt Hardy. I can't understand what they're even saying. There's a point in Matt Hardy's song where it sounds like they say "I want to meet the cheese." I'm always like, "meet the cheese?" Just goofy stuff.
IGN Sports: Big news is the return of ECW. What do you think of the extreme brand coming back?
Mark Henry: I think it will be great because more people will get to be on television. Give people some time in the ring that are not wrestling right now on Raw and Smackdown. I think ECW is definitely one of those things that is going to draw people out of the woodwork.
IGN Sports: You've definitely shown a lot of improvement in the ring lately. How much hard work does it take behind the scenes, in terms of practicing new moves or going over spots in your mind that you want to attempt, before you see it pay off in the ring?
Mark Henry: Wrestling isn't like ballet, it's not about practicing a routine. You need to focus. You need to concentrate. You need to know your craft. You need to know your opponent because where their strengths are, you have to avoid those and go towards their weaknesses. That's what I think about. I think about ways to expose a weakness. I'm more on the bigger side, so people don't think I have speed. I'm not the fastest guy, but I guarantee I'm not the slowest. What I try to do is look at my opponent, then go over what could happen in my mind. That's the way to put on a good match. If someone needs to go through a table to get the job done, that's what is going to happen.
IGN Sports: Doesn't going through a table hurt you just as much?
Mark Henry: You have to be willing to give it out to get it.
IGN Sports: When you look at the Smackdown roster, who do you see as the next breakout star?
Mark Henry: Bobby Lashley has a big future ahead of him. He's a strong guy, but besides that, he hardly makes any mistakes, and when he does, the next week you can see it corrected. It's only going to be a matter of time before he runs out of mistakes to make.
IGN Sports: How tough are you on the young stars? Do you make them carry your bags or buy you lunch?
Mark Henry: I'm not as hard on the younger guys as other people were to me, but I am a contributor to it. I send them to get me something to eat. Don't ask me for no money, either. It's more verbal hazing from me.
IGN Sports: What was Wrestlemania like for you this year? Your match with Undertaker had to have been the biggest of your career so far.
Mark Henry: Right there with it was the opportunity to lace it up with The Rock five years ago. The match with The Undertaker was just a shade above it. Being in there with Undertaker, you have respect, but you also have to have an uncontrolled aggressive nature toward him because, if not, he'll eat you alive. I didn't let the respect take it to the point where I was in awe. He still needed to watch himself being in there with me.
IGN Sports: What about Chris Benoit? He's the one who injured you and put you out for a long period of time. Do you want another shot at The Crippler?
Mark Henry: I'm telling you, man, Chris is a rough, aggressive guy, and I hope the matchmakers and the powers that be make sure we keep touching because I'm not finished with him yet. Not by a long shot.
IGN Sports: You talk about being The World's Strongest Man. How much can you actually lift?
Mark Henry: You know what, I'm able to lift whatever is necessary at the moment because I'm able to set my mind on it. It's not necessarily physical strength. It's something that comes from focusing and just having a power that comes from my soul. I can't describe it or put it in words. There have been times where I wasn't physically ready for the lifts I needed to perform in my career, but when the lights go on and my name gets called, the weights always moved.
IGN Sports: So at the high point, training for the Olympics, give me some numbers, how much could you lift?
Mark Henry: I've squatted over 1,000 pounds several times in my life and I was able to dead lift 900 pounds several times. There are a lot of people who will never even touch that kind of weight, but I was able to do it multiple, multiple times in my life. I've had a pretty good career with the lifting, and now it's all about wrestling. But I'll tell you what, when you're lifting 1,000 pounds, it's not for the faint of heart.
IGN Sports: Smackdown vs. Raw 2007 is coming out later this year. As a videogame fan, what do you want to see from your character in the game?
Mark Henry: I want to see my hair move. [laughs] I want to see my character definitely be the strongest and be able to do things other characters can't do. I think they make it too easy for everybody to pick up these big guys over their heads. I'd also like to see my character be able to jump from one announce table to the other, smash right through. You see, I'm a big gamer. I'm the type of guy who plays Madden and NBA Live and by the time my franchise is through, there aren't any real players left in the game. So it's really important to me that they get the WWE game right.
IGN Sports: You can even fight in the crowd in the new game. If Mark Henry jumps into the stands, what can we expect to see?
Mark Henry: A lot of people are going to get hurt.
credit:[glow=red,2,300]ign.com[/glow]
No, I'm not talking about The Godfather and his "pimpin' ain't easy" days. I'm talking Mark Henry, the artist formerly known as Sexual Chocolate, who recently enlisted the help of Three 6 Mafia to pen his new theme song, even getting the rap group to perform his anthem on Smackdown last Friday.
Three 6 Mafia is one of the hottest rap groups around after their song, "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" was not only featured on the Hustle & Flow soundtrack, but surprisingly took the Oscar for Best Original Song.
Is Henry's new theme up to the same caliber?
When not watching Smackdown, wrestling fans can listen for themselves as "Some Bodies Gonna Get It" is also one of the featured tracks on the WWE's new CD Wreckless Intent.
"We just want to let everyone know, WWE is doing big things in the music industry," said Henry, proud that his new theme might be the CD's hottest track.
I caught up with The World's Strongest Man as he cruised in his car, no doubt bumping Three 6 Mafia as he looked for some bodies to gone get.
Here's what Henry had to say…
IGN Sports: How did your collaboration with Three 6 Mafia come about? Were you a big fan of theirs from back in the day?
Mark Henry: Definitely. I'm a Texas boy so southern hip hop is a whole different brand in itself. I've been around southern hip hop and Memphis music since Eightball and MJG, this is just the next wave. It's awesome because Three 6 Mafia made the song specifically for me. You know you've arrived when things start to get done for you like this.
IGN Sports: How important of a role does music play in wrestling?
Mark Henry: It's important because it gets the crowd going, and when they hear specific songs, they know right away who the person is coming to the ring. It's a collective 'yea' or a collective 'nay', and the music lets the crowd interact with who you are.
IGN Sports: What are some of your favorite WWE theme songs of all time?
Mark Henry: I used to like The Junkyard Dog's "Grab Them Cakes". Ric Flair's theme still moves me. And in the last five years, my favorite is John Cena's. I also like Gangrel's music, that was awesome. The Undertaker's theme isn't really a single, but in terms of eerie music, you can't beat it.
IGN Sports: Who has the worst theme song?
Mark Henry: Oh my God, if you're talking terrible theme songs, you have to mention Matt Hardy. I can't understand what they're even saying. There's a point in Matt Hardy's song where it sounds like they say "I want to meet the cheese." I'm always like, "meet the cheese?" Just goofy stuff.
IGN Sports: Big news is the return of ECW. What do you think of the extreme brand coming back?
Mark Henry: I think it will be great because more people will get to be on television. Give people some time in the ring that are not wrestling right now on Raw and Smackdown. I think ECW is definitely one of those things that is going to draw people out of the woodwork.
IGN Sports: You've definitely shown a lot of improvement in the ring lately. How much hard work does it take behind the scenes, in terms of practicing new moves or going over spots in your mind that you want to attempt, before you see it pay off in the ring?
Mark Henry: Wrestling isn't like ballet, it's not about practicing a routine. You need to focus. You need to concentrate. You need to know your craft. You need to know your opponent because where their strengths are, you have to avoid those and go towards their weaknesses. That's what I think about. I think about ways to expose a weakness. I'm more on the bigger side, so people don't think I have speed. I'm not the fastest guy, but I guarantee I'm not the slowest. What I try to do is look at my opponent, then go over what could happen in my mind. That's the way to put on a good match. If someone needs to go through a table to get the job done, that's what is going to happen.
IGN Sports: Doesn't going through a table hurt you just as much?
Mark Henry: You have to be willing to give it out to get it.
IGN Sports: When you look at the Smackdown roster, who do you see as the next breakout star?
Mark Henry: Bobby Lashley has a big future ahead of him. He's a strong guy, but besides that, he hardly makes any mistakes, and when he does, the next week you can see it corrected. It's only going to be a matter of time before he runs out of mistakes to make.
IGN Sports: How tough are you on the young stars? Do you make them carry your bags or buy you lunch?
Mark Henry: I'm not as hard on the younger guys as other people were to me, but I am a contributor to it. I send them to get me something to eat. Don't ask me for no money, either. It's more verbal hazing from me.
IGN Sports: What was Wrestlemania like for you this year? Your match with Undertaker had to have been the biggest of your career so far.
Mark Henry: Right there with it was the opportunity to lace it up with The Rock five years ago. The match with The Undertaker was just a shade above it. Being in there with Undertaker, you have respect, but you also have to have an uncontrolled aggressive nature toward him because, if not, he'll eat you alive. I didn't let the respect take it to the point where I was in awe. He still needed to watch himself being in there with me.
IGN Sports: What about Chris Benoit? He's the one who injured you and put you out for a long period of time. Do you want another shot at The Crippler?
Mark Henry: I'm telling you, man, Chris is a rough, aggressive guy, and I hope the matchmakers and the powers that be make sure we keep touching because I'm not finished with him yet. Not by a long shot.
IGN Sports: You talk about being The World's Strongest Man. How much can you actually lift?
Mark Henry: You know what, I'm able to lift whatever is necessary at the moment because I'm able to set my mind on it. It's not necessarily physical strength. It's something that comes from focusing and just having a power that comes from my soul. I can't describe it or put it in words. There have been times where I wasn't physically ready for the lifts I needed to perform in my career, but when the lights go on and my name gets called, the weights always moved.
IGN Sports: So at the high point, training for the Olympics, give me some numbers, how much could you lift?
Mark Henry: I've squatted over 1,000 pounds several times in my life and I was able to dead lift 900 pounds several times. There are a lot of people who will never even touch that kind of weight, but I was able to do it multiple, multiple times in my life. I've had a pretty good career with the lifting, and now it's all about wrestling. But I'll tell you what, when you're lifting 1,000 pounds, it's not for the faint of heart.
IGN Sports: Smackdown vs. Raw 2007 is coming out later this year. As a videogame fan, what do you want to see from your character in the game?
Mark Henry: I want to see my hair move. [laughs] I want to see my character definitely be the strongest and be able to do things other characters can't do. I think they make it too easy for everybody to pick up these big guys over their heads. I'd also like to see my character be able to jump from one announce table to the other, smash right through. You see, I'm a big gamer. I'm the type of guy who plays Madden and NBA Live and by the time my franchise is through, there aren't any real players left in the game. So it's really important to me that they get the WWE game right.
IGN Sports: You can even fight in the crowd in the new game. If Mark Henry jumps into the stands, what can we expect to see?
Mark Henry: A lot of people are going to get hurt.