Every time you go to a basketball, hockey, football, or baseball game, you are going to hear music that is designed to excite you as a fan. Music is dramatic, and so is sport, so it is only natural that the two go hand in hand with one another.
Here are four moments in a sporting event when music selection is key to tapping into the adrenaline of the fans in attendance.
1. Your college basketball team just went on a 15-0 run in the second half to take a slim two point lead with three minutes left in the game.
My first exhilarating experience as an Ohio University basketball fan came my freshman year in Athens. OHIO was playing George Mason in the 2008 Bracketbuster game on ESPN, and OHIO had just stormed back from a slight deficit to take a commanding lead in the second half.
The Ozone was on the verge of eruption and the Convocation Center was loud as can be. George Mason was forced to call a timeout, and the place went crazy when this song came on.
An O-H-I-O chant has been added to the end of the verse since then, with a resounding "U!" finishing off the simple, yet highly effective, adrenaline tapping jam.
2. It's 3rd down and 2 yards to go, and your favorite football team is on defense.
If you assumed that I would put a link to "Hell's Bells," that would be too easy! (Sorry Ohio State fans)
Sure, the majority of football teams in the United States use the bells to jack up their crowd, but Hans Zimmer's "The Kraken" from Pirates of the Caribbean is a solid choice as well (Note: Skip ahead to 6:12 in the video to hear the theme at its darkest)
If that's not your cup of tea, then get down with Ozzy Osbourne's "Iron Man." Or AC/DC's "Thunderstruck."
Honestly, you can't go wrong with any of these. I'm ready to charge through a brick wall just listening to them.
3. Your team is lined up in the tunnel and is preparing to take the field for the biggest game ever.
Trust me, if you haven't been in a stadium right before the teams come out, it is absolutely necessary to play the perfect song when the home team is running from the tunnel, or else you lose the intensity that may have been built up by the pregame show. (See Below)
The first one that comes to mind is this Young Jeezy hit from 2008. Definitely makes you want to jump around a little bit and chest bump the person next to you.
Or, perhaps you'll do a few fist pumps, a la Ronnie from "Jersey Shore."
Because I do contain slight bias, there is no entrance song better than the Cincinnati Bengals' "Welcome to the Jungle" as performed by Guns 'n Roses.
In more obscure realms of musical delight, this Powerman 5000 power-synth-grunge anthem just might do the trick. It's weird. It's a little wacky. But the philosophical message of world's colliding coincides perfectly with two teams of guys trying to bash each other into the ground just to run a ball across a line.
4. Pregame Introductions
You can't play mention any of the top pregame songs in sports without mentioned the legendary Chicago Bulls introduction music that become wildly popular during the Michael Jordan reign of the 1990's.
If you are in need of a good jam for your pregame introduction video, look no further than Paul Oakenfold's "Zoo York." (The theme starts at 2:02 of the video)
My personal all-time favorite is Fatboy Slim's "Right Here, Right Now." Forgive my vague use of the word "epic," but that's the perfect word to describe this song.
One final song that many teams use (And OHIO should use too, just saying) is "Remember the Name" by Fort Minor.
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