A household name to WWE fans, pop-rock and nu-metal artist Poppy is set to perform and debut a new song during the second night of NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver on Thursday, April 8, Billboard can exclusively announce.
The singer-songwriter, actress and internet personality first performed on NXT in Oct. 2019 and twice last year in February and again for NXT's Halloween Havoc .
"Music has always been such a big part of WWE," says Paul Levesque, WWE's evp, global talent strategy and development. (Levesque is also a WWE superstar who debuted as "Triple H" in 1995, and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2019.) "Music adds so much to the emotion of what it is we do and that connection has been there since the very beginning when you had the rock and wrestling connection with Cyndi Lauper as part of the WWE."
Collaborations between musicians and the WWE have evolved, Levesque points out. "They were sort of just transactional at first. Like, 'We want to use your song, pay us this much to use the song,' and that was the end of it. But now bands are super collaborative because they need the platform and we want to work with them. Now it's like, 'Hey, how can we work together to make this big for you and to make it big for us?' We have over a billion social media followers globally so the size and scope of WWE on every level can help these artists tremendously. When we work all together, it's magic."
Most recently, Bad Bunny has been making the rounds at WWE performing his smash hit "Booker T" at the 2021 Royal Rumble. But he didn't stop there. The Puerto Rican Grammy-winning artist is making his Wrestlemania 37 debut on April 10. His opponent: The Miz.
"Bunny finds himself at a place in his career where he can just say I want to be in the WWE and that's amazing to me," Levesque adds. "He got a place in Orlando and he's been training three times a week for the past three months. He has taken it so seriously. I love those collaborations. And Poppy is like Bunny in the way that every time I see her, she wants to get in the ring and wrestle and start training."
Quite a lot has been happening:
WWE News: NXT Congratulates Code Orange and Poppy For Grammy Nominations, New WWE Merchandise,
– WWE’s NXT sent a message of congratulations to both Poppy and Code Orange, who are nominated for Best Metal Performance at the Grammys. Both acts have performed for the brand in the past and Code Orange did the updated version of Bray Wyatt’s theme.
– WWE has posted a new video that acts as a gift guide for those shopping WWE products on Black Friday.
Poppy on Canceled Tours, New Music | SPIN
The pop-metal shapeshifter was gearing up for a European tour behind her acclaimed January LP, I Disagree , when her manager broke some unfortunate, pandemic -related news.
“I got the call right when I was about to fly [over there],” she tells SPIN . “We were like, ‘Do you think we can get in and get out, just do the U.K. and come home?’ It was maybe four hours later, they were like, ‘Oh, the borders are closed.’ That phone call was crazy for me and will always stick in my head.”
“It feels right to me,” she says of that music. “I’ve been excited in the past, but this feels special.”
The singer-songwriter joined SPIN to reflect on her chaotic but productive year, the inspiration of David Lynch, her love of professional wrestling and a new LP that’s “not like any other Poppy record you’ve heard.”
SPIN: What are you up to?
Poppy: I’m just organizing my jewelry collection. And then later I’m going to go into the studio and work on something.
Looking back, I’m so glad we got a new album from you before the insanity —
The unfortunate events.
One unfortunate event was having to cancel your tour with Deftones and Gojira, which I know you were excited about.
When I can acknowledge something is sad at the surface, I try not to crack it open and reflect on it from an internal perspective where I’m drowning in my own sorrow and misery. When I got that news, I recognized that it’s a sad event, but then I tried to find the positive in it. The positive is that it’s being rescheduled to 2021, so fingers crossed that we’re in fact able to do that. But when I first heard the news about being able to go on tour, I believe I was doing a couple of press events or shoots. My manager called me, and I was very excited because I’m a huge fan of Deftones — and Gojira, as well. My sister was the one who got me into them when I was pretty small. They’re one of her favorite bands, so that was a cool sister moment, where I was like, “Guess what just happened?”
I’m just looking forward to when I can go on that tour but also just play music again. I feel like a broken record to keep saying that — all of my friends and my team hear it from me almost every day. But I think it could help heal the world. I read this quote from an article with David Lynch, and he believed that the quarantine and lockdown would cause people to be a little nicer by the end of it. I hoped [so], but I also feel it’s made people more aggressive. I was anticipating the extremes — either a softer heart or a colder heart from the general population. I believe we’re going to be experiencing the ends of the spectrum when the world returns to some form of normality.
I didn’t know you were a David Lynch fan. What are some of your favorite Lynch projects?
I love Blue Velvet and, of course, Twin Peaks . But my favorite, going back far in his line of work, is Eraserhead , which is so experimental and out-there — it’s something I return to often when I need inspiration. He’s an artist with no restrictions, and everything he does is a step up from the last thing. Eraserhead ages so well, like a fine wine.
Poppy Comments On Performing At WWE NXT's Halloween Havoc, Io Shirai - eWrestlingNews.com
During a recent interview with Spin.com , Poppy commented on appearing at NXT Halloween Havoc to perform Io Shrai's theme song, and more. You can check out some highlights from the interview below:
On performing at Halloween Havoc: "I've played "Scary Mask" now twice on Halloween. The first time was awesome — that was in the middle of a marathon run, but I absolutely wanted to do it. I played a show and then went to Florida to play "Scary Mask," ran to the airport to fly to London and play an NME event, came back and played another show to pick up on the rest of the tour. It was awesome — I didn't sleep for like four days. I played the intro music for Io Shirai, and we've become friends. She's one of my favorite wrestlers now. She had a bit recently where she put a trash can over her head and jumped into a group of girls during a match, which was awesome. I love wrestling, so when I had invitation to come play, I had to do it."
On wanting to work with WWE for a long time: "That was also one of my side dreams from a very long time ago — I wanted to work with WWE. I got the idea after I saw Paul Reubens, Pee-Wee Herman, make an appearance on WWE back in the day. They used my music in a video game and for a couple of intro songs, and then invited me to play. I think I've done it three or four times now. [Before the 2020 appearance], I had to go through some pretty intensive testing and screenings because they run a very tight ship. Everyone had to wear masks — it was a whole process. But I was cleared, and it happened!"
Quite a lot has been happening:
Poppy plays booming medley of songs at WWE's NXT TakeOver
Poppy has been taking off in a massive way over the past year, particularly after dropping her album I Disagree back in January and she’s breaking into new territory with a performance for wrestling fans.
The musician hit the stage for a medley performance at WWE ‘s NXT TakeOver: Portland event yesterday (February 16).
Poppy played her tracks “Fill The Crown” and “Anything Like Me” as a medley performance while wearing a wildly strange outfit.
Poppy will be heading out on tour this summer with Deftones and Gojira. You can see the full list of dates below.
07/27 – Portland, OR @ Theatre of the Clouds at Moda Center
07/28 – Seattle, WA @ WaMu Theater
07/30 – San Francisco, CA @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
08/01 – Las Vegas, NV @ Pearl Concert Theater at Palms Casino Resort
08/02 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Greek Theatre
08/04 – Phoenix, AZ @ Arizona Federal Theatre
08/05 – Alberquerque, NM @ Isleta Amphitheater
08/07 – Bonnner Springs, KS @ Providence Medical Center Amphitheater
08/08 – Milwaukee, WI @ The Eagles Ballroom*
08/09 – Minneapolis, MN @ The Armory
08/11 – Chicago, IL @ Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
08/12 – Sterling Heights, MI @ Michigan Lottery Amphitheater at Freedom Hill
08/14 – Boston, MA @ Agganis Arena
08/15 – Laval, QC @ Place Bell
08/17 – Toronto, ON @RBC Echo Beach
08/19 – New York, NY @ The Rooftop at Pier 17
08/20 – Asbury Park, NJ @ Stone Pony Summer Stage
08/22 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Met Philadelphia
08/23 – Washington, DC @ The Anthem
08/24 – Bridgeport, CT @ Harbor Yard Amphitheater
08/26 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Petersen Events Center
08/27 – Indianapolis, IN @ The Amphitheatre at White River State Park
08/29 – Nashville, TN @ Nashville Municipal Auditorium
08/30 – Atlanta, GA @ Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park
09/01 – San Antonio, TX @ AT&T Center
09/02 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
09/03 – Irving, TX @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
09/05 – Denver, CO @ Pepsi Center
What do you think of Poppy’s performance at the WWE event? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Watch Poppy Crush an Arena Crowd at NXT Takeover: Portland
Last night (Feb. 16) at NXT TakeOver: Portland, Poppy made her return to WWE television. The enigmatic post-genre artist opened the show with performances of “Fill the Crown” and “Anything Like Me” from her 2020 album, I Disagree .
This time, Poppy and her band had the stage to themselves, crushing the arena full of NXT fans right before TakeOver’s opening match between Keith Lee and Dominic Dijakovic.
After TakeOver: Portland, NXT founder Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque praised Poppy’s performance. “It’s one of those crazy moments where she’ll come out with something new and, man, it just fits to do something with us. She wants to be a part of it, she just gets it. She just fits right into our world. She puts on amazing performances. It just kind of sets the vibe and the tone. I always hope and strive for those things to add to the ambience of the evening. Tonight, Poppy did that. She had this place rocking.”
Poppy has long expressed her love for Triple H as well, and the duo tweeted a photo together backstage:
Poppy Cosplayed as Kakegurui's Yumeko at NXT's Halloween Havoc
For her performance during NXT 's special Halloween Havoc episode, musical artist Poppy cosplayed as none other than Yumeko Jabami, the main protagonist of the popular anime series Kakegurui .
Poppy performed at Halloween Havoc as part of Io Shirai's entrance, accompanying the reigning NXT Women's Champion to the ring for her "Tables, Ladders and Scares" match against Candice LeRae. During the entrance/performance, Poppy could be seen sporting the distinct red school uniform worn by Yumeko in Kakegurui . Poppy is no stranger to NXT, having collaborated with WWE and its developmental brand in the past. What's more, the artist appears to have bet on the right superstar, with Shirai ultimately defeating LeRae to retain her title.
NXT: Halloween Havoc marked the return of a long-defund professional wrestling brand. Halloween Havoc was originally a World Championship Wrestling (WCW) pay-per-view event, the first iteration of which was broadcast 1989. WCW ran a total of 12 Halloween Havoc PPVs from 1989 to 2000. The 12th and final Halloween Havoc PPV aired on Oct. 29, 2000, with WCW going out of business and subsequently being purchased by WWE (then WWF) in March of 2001. Following the buyout, Halloween Havoc more or less remained dormant, with the brand only really being utilized in some of WWE's video games.
However, NXT has revived numerous defunct WWE and WCW brands already, with Halloween Havoc perhaps being most comparable to this past July's NXT: The Great American Bash , a special edition of NXT's weekly show that revived the Great American Bash PPV name previously used by both WCW and WWE. For certain iterations of its TakeOver events, NXT also brought brack WWE's In Your House and WCW's WarGames .
Poppy And WWE Are Teaming Up At NXT TakeOver Phoenix
So, uh, here’s some fun news we never expected to type words about. Per an announcement made on social media by Triple H, the #NXTLoud theme for the upcoming NXT TakeOver: Phoenix event on Royal Rumble weekend is ‘X’ by Poppy. That Poppy.
If you aren’t familiar with Poppy, she’s a YouTube personality who has been described as , “a combination of Andy Warhol’s pop accessibility, David Lynch’s creepiness, and Tim Burton’s zany comedic tone.” To clarify that a little, here’s her … accepting, I guess? NXT’s invitation.
If you haven’t heard ‘X,’ I guess you should just watch the following video and experience it for yourself.
NXT’s done a great job of reaching outside WWE’s box of “official themes” for events — which have evolved from in-house musak to nu metal to dad rock to top 40 friendly R&B over the past 30 years — and as of now, I just really hope Poppy shows up in person at the show and interacts with someone. Velveteen Dream, preferably. How would they even understand each other? Would they be best friends?
NXT TakeOver Phoenix takes place on January 26, 2019, at the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona.
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