Clap, clap.
For anyone who has no idea why you added two claps has not been bombarded on X or TikTok the last few days. You are missing out on an earworm that has folks from London and Paris and Tokyo, America, Scotland Canada and Mexico believing in TNA wrestler Joe Hendry.
For years, Hendry has gained recognition and stood out by writing, performing, and singing his songs on the way to the ring. Joe also pens hilarious parody diss tracks to shame the wrestlers he is feuding with. Hits include “Edge’s B***h” for Matt Cardona, with more recent tracks “I Am” and “Cheez-It Champion” aiming at AJ Francis before their match at TNA’s Rebellion PPV.
Arguably, his biggest success so far is his entrance music: “I Believe in Joe Hendry”. The song debuted last year when TNA was still Impact Wrestling. At present the song has 407K views on YouTube.
The track is going viral. Now Hendry, who was a musician before wrestling and was signed by Sony’s music label, has picked a new opponent: the UK Singles Chart.
On 16th April, Joe Hendry posted on X the following tweet:
“Apparently it only takes around 4,000 single sales to enter the charts
Which would force BBC Radio 1 to play ‘I Believe in Joe Hendry’.”
What do we think?”
So Cheesy and So Memeable and It Gets Stuck Your Head
“I Believe In Joe Hendry” haunts my brain even when I am not on X. I can’t scroll without being greeted by Hendry’s face.
The dazzling white teeth. The smiling wide cheesy of a man who looks so sickeningly happy. Like he’s a cross between a pop star and that overly enthusiastic salesman. The blank white void of space behind him that exists is only so bad they’re good old-school music videos from history. Like Genesis’ “I Can’t Dance”, only instead of a dance, it’s hand clapping. Oro Take That’s “Do What You Like”. without the dancing or food-fighting.
The repeated scene of Hendry’s easy-to-copy signature move, the double clap, is such a copiable and accessible move. Like iconic music videos, it’s got a dance move associated with its artist. Clap, clap. The simplicity of this and the easy call-and-respond nature of it means it can be used by anyone at a wrestling show, street corner or dance floor. Then add in the waving your hands from side to side like you are at a concert, a football game drunk or both. Simple, cheesy, and universally fun.
Spliced between scenes of Hendry, standing on top of what I believe is Arthur’s Seat, an extinct volcano in Edinburgh, Hendry looks like he’s king of the world. His silk shirt and white trousers look like they might rip under the intensity of his guitar shredding. It evokes the cheesy nostalgia of classic music videos that the internet has both made fun of and adopted with childish glee. It’s perfect mem fodder and led to the song’s success on TikTok.
Read the 1,219 (at the time of writing) comments on YouTube to see how many folks believe.
Why Else Should You Believe is Joe Hendry?
Beyond the catchy and funny music parodies, Hendry is a wrestler who has been rising for some time. Evolving through a list of progressively grander nicknames.
From “The Local Hero”, a reference to a segment in the UK music magazine Kerrang!, to “Stadium Joe”. The latter was fuelled by the idea of Joe’s delusions of being a headline music performer. Although, Hendry beyond music and wrestling has competed on large stages in front of big crowds before. Hendry represented Team Scotland in the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia as an amateur wrestler.
This is the base of Hendry’s powerhouse and technical wrestling prowess. As an amateur wrestler, Hendry won the British Senior National Championship in Greco-Roman wrestling in 2018. Also, he has a black belt in judo and holds a degree Master’s degree in business and marketing. The latter of which has helped him make his songs so ear-grabbing.
Hendry was later a prominent figure in WhatCulture’s WCPW/Defiant Champion and Internet Champion. He also featured on ITV’s short-lived arrival of the classic World of Sport Wrestling in 2018. The slow transition to the North America indie scene started in 2018, Hendry had matches for Ring of Honour and Impact Wrestling before signing with Impact in 2022. There are grappling skills behind Hendry’s smooth personality.
Career Mode
Hendry has the catchphrase and aura that can grab fans. All things that could rival the popularity of WWE wrestlers like LA Knight and the chants of “yeah” he induces with every hit. WWE at one stage was the destination. Hendry once reported as stating. “I will become the WWE champion”, at an event in Canada by Slam! Wrestling.
Physically, Hendry has the look of a WWE superstar in the making. On X, some users have even described Hendry as looking like a created wrestler from a WWE videogame.
Hendry also told Slam! Wrestling’s Caleb Smith: “My journey through professional wrestling feels like I have been playing the WWE video game and you play the career mode.” (full interview can be found here)
Given the viral success already of “I Believe in Joe Hendry” and WWE now regularly putting PLEs in the UK, one might wonder if WWE is also listening. Waiting for Hendry to become a free agent. This year Clash at the Castle is in Scotland. If a “Local Hero” was able to debut, I think there would be sore hands and voices across Glasgow.
Wrestling and Music History
Hendry is not the first wrestler to crossover into music. Captain Lou Albano played Cyndi Lauper’s dad in the “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” music video. Tied into Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Connection, WWE released The Wrestling Album in 1985. It reached 84 on the US Billboard Album Chart. It also gave us the classic and hilarious “Land of a Thousand Dances”.
The following year, the AWA followed suit with their song “The Wrestle RockRumble”, which was a rip on the 1985 “The Super Bowl Shuffle”. The former would then be parodied before Wrestlemania XXVII with the “Wrestlemania Rumble”.
WWE has also across the decades released various albums featuring wrestlers singing/talking/ rapping/existing. Wrestlers beyond WWE have also released music and albums, from Chris Jericho to R-Truth to more recently AEW World Champion Swerve Strickland.
In terms of the UK charts, a wrestling theme did make it viral and to number 37 before. Fandango’s “ChaChaLaLa” was briefly so over that Everton Football Club were strongarmed into playing it before one of their matches in 2013.
The BBC did not play it. Maybe because the song was lyric-less? Differently today, wrestling is more mainstream and more socially accepted. The songs have gone viral, it’s humorous and the young folks Radio 1 tries to attract will potentially have heard the song somewhere.
With enough sales (just 4,000 Hendry suggests) and social media buzz, the BBC might be strongarmed also. The BBC will have to believe in Joe Hendry.
Clap, clap.
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