Back in 1991, TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES II: THE SECRET OF THE OOZE opened in theaters and featured the up and coming rapper Vanilla Ice performing the song “Ninja Rap”. While Vanilla Ice may no longer be a top musician, his contribution to the franchise is still a pop culture favorite. So, with Jonathan Liebesman and Michael Bay‘s reboot of the series coming, it was time for a new rap song to highlight the film.
The musical landscape is very different now than it was in 1991, but rap is still a very popular genre. So, why not recruit some big names like Wiz Khalifa to perform? Performed alongside Juicy J, Ty Dolla $ign, Kill The Noise, and Madsonik, “Shell Shocked” is looking to be a big hit with audiences and fans of the movie. Personally, I only recognized Wiz Khalifa out of that group, but with a catchy chorus that goes “Knock, knock, you about to get shell shocked”, this could be the next “Go, ninja, go!”
Michael Bay films often feature at least one big tune going back to Aerosmith in ARMAGEDDON and even Imagine Dragons in this year’s TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION. I doubt this song will make or break your decision to see the movie, but it certainly shows that at least music is still a factor in the TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES series.
Take a listen to the track below. TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES hits theaters on August 8th.