THE BEAST

Legendary SLAYER guitarist Kerry King added a brutal dose of metal mayhem to WrestleMania 41 by performing WWE superstar Damian Priest’s entrance theme live at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. As Priest made his way to the ring for his highly anticipated showdown against Scottish powerhouse Drew McIntyre, King shredded his way through “Rise For The Night,” delivering a performance as intense as the match itself.

The blistering track, which was originally introduced on WWE's Monday Night Raw in November 2023, was recently revamped with King laying down fresh guitar parts. Priest acknowledged the metal icon’s contribution on social media, saying King “added some of his genius” to the entrance theme—a perfect pairing for a performer known for his own affinity for heavy music.

In an April 2024 Metal Hammer interview, Priest expressed his deep love for the genre, citing METALLICA and Ozzy Osbourne as his earliest influences. "That's what really got me hooked on heavy metal," Priest said, reflecting on the impact the genre has had on both his personal life and wrestling persona.

While this marks King's first official collaboration on a WWE theme song, it isn’t his first foray into pro wrestling. SLAYER’s “Here Comes The Pain” was featured on a WCW compilation in 1999, and their classic 1988 track “South Of Heaven” was used as a one-time entrance theme for WWE Hall of Famer Edge during WrestleMania 39 in 2023.

King’s WrestleMania cameo follows a banner year for the thrash icon. In May 2024, he released his debut solo album From Hell I Rise, an all-out assault of ferocious riffs and blistering metal attitude, written entirely by King himself. The record was produced by Josh Wilbur (LAMB OF GOD, AVENGED SEVENFOLD, BAD RELIGION) and features an all-star lineup: Mark Osegueda (DEATH ANGEL) on vocals, Phil Demmel (MACHINE HEAD, VIO-LENCE) on guitar, Kyle Sanders (HELLYEAH) on bass, and fellow SLAYER veteran Paul Bostaph on drums.

The KERRY KING band hit the road hard in 2024, starting with a 28-date North American tour alongside MUNICIPAL WASTE and ALIEN WEAPONRY. Their debut live show at Reggies in Chicago quickly led to high-profile festival appearances, including Welcome to Rockville and Sonic Temple.

King didn’t slow down. On his 60th birthday, June 3, 2024, he kicked off a European tour in Tilburg, The Netherlands, tearing across major festivals like Rock Am Ring, Hellfest, Download, and Sweden Rock Festival. The band continued their reign of destruction in the U.S., joining LAMB OF GOD and MASTODON for the six-week Ashes of Leviathan tour, which wrapped in Omaha at the end of August.

From metal stages to wrestling arenas, Kerry King continues to blaze a trail of sonic carnage, showing no signs of slowing down. Whether it’s with a guitar slung over his shoulder or standing in the flames of a WrestleMania entrance, the SLAYER legend is proving that metal and mayhem go hand in hand—and fans of both couldn't be more thrilled.