Johnston studied music and design at
Hampshire College. His career began composing soundtracks for
animated and
industrial films, which led to working for the television networks
HBO and
Showtime. While living in
Connecticut in the mid-1980's, Johnston met Brian Penry, art director for
professional wrestling promotion World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Although not a fan of professional wrestling, WWF began releasing Johnston-produced theme music as
compilation albums beginning with
WWF Full Metal: The Album in 1995, In April 2013, the entrance theme of
Fandango reached number 44 in the
UK Singles Chart. On November 30, 2017, it was announced that Johnston was released by WWE after 32 years. Johnston also scored several film projects for WWE's film division
WWE Studios. These included
The Chaperone, ''
That's What I Am, and The Reunion''. He also provided music for other WWE-affiliated products including the
World Bodybuilding Federation and the
XFL.
Appearances Johnston appeared on camera at Battle at the Albert hall in 1991 as the organ player wearing phantom face paint, playing a Phantom of the Opera version of The Undertaker's theme Funeral March for his entrance. He also appeared on the
videotape Piledriver: The Wrestling Album 2 to introduce the video for
Girls in Cars. He orchestrated the live band at the
Slammy Awards ceremonies, and traveled across the United States in 1995 as part of the "
Raw Band". He also appeared on camera at
WrestleMania XIV and
SummerSlam (in March 1998 and August 1998, respectively) playing the
D-Generation X theme with the
Chris Warren Band. Johnston also had a brief clip in the film
Beyond the Mat by discussing his reasoning behind
Vader's theme music. Johnston also appeared on the bonus DVD for
WWE Originals, the 2004 album by the same name. The DVD featured a 30-minute behind-the-scenes documentary on Johnston, offering insights into the composing, producing, and directing of the album. There are also some humorous interactions of Johnston with
Jonathan Coachman and
Stone Cold Steve Austin. Johnston also appeared on
The Self-Destruction of the Ultimate Warrior discussing
the Ultimate Warrior's theme song, and how it was able to be truly representative of the character. Johnston also appeared on the
WrestleMania XV DVD extras, commenting on WWE's music, and how music is crucial in WWE. He also appeared on an episode of
Total Divas (season 4, episode 8) collaborating with
Nikki Bella. In March 2014, WWE released a 60-minute DVD documentary about Johnston entitled
Signature Sounds: The Music of WWE, following him as he crafts an entrance theme, and revisits some of the stories of his most famous compositions. == Writing process and reception ==