"I started listening to what the gym guys were listening to. When I first heard Metallica, I was like, 'Right, this is speaking to me.'" WWE Champion Drew McIntyre reveals what's on his workout mix - and the huge role music plays in his life

Reigning WWE Champion Drew McIntyre has opened up on the huge role music has played in his life - as well as revealing some of the bands he's currently got on rotation on his workout playlist.

The Scot - who beat Cody Rhodes in a gruelling three stages of hell match to bag the biggest championship in professional wrestling on last week's edition of WWE Smackdown in Berlin, Germany - is a huge rock and metal fan, though also seemingly enjoys his fair share of Britpop and country.

"My journey into music was not 'heavy'," he tells Louder. "I grew up in a house where my dad was always playing Elvis and Roy Orbison, basically 50s and 60s.

"And then my brother and I, as every Scottish kid would be when you're younger, we would be in pubs on karaoke night, listening to everything. It wasn't until I got a little bit older that my brother and I started expanding our music taste.

"Around that time I started working out, and I started listening to what the guys were listening to at the gym," he continues. "When I first heard a Metallica or a GN'R, I was like, 'Right, this is really speaking to me. This is making the exercises so much easier!'"

While Drew was attracted to rock and heavy metal, it turns out his brother went down a different path.

"My brother got really into rap," he explains. "We shared a room, so sometimes I would get an album, usually a heavier album, and he would get, like, Dr Dre's 2001, or The Marshall Mathers LP. We'd be listening, back and forth, to our different records. At the time, my mum would come by the room and go, 'What are you guys listening to?!'"

Drew's love of music carried far beyond his youth and remains a massive part of his life today; while taking us through his current workout playlist, he namechecks Ozzy, Metallica, W.A.S.P., AC/DC, Guns N' Roses, Smashing Pumpkins, The Distillers, Oasis, George Jones and Hank Williams Jr.

"Music is one of the most important things in my life," he acknowledges. "It gets me psyched up for matches, it helps inspire me. It just gets me through life, no matter what. No matter what kind of time I'm going through, there's always a song for it."

It's a sentiment shared by his colleague and current WWE Women's Champion Jade Cargill. While Jade is more of a pop, hip hop and r'n'b fan than Drew, music shares a similarly important role in her life.

"Music means everything to me," she tells us. "When it comes to the mindset [of being a WWE superstar], when it comes to getting ready, working out...when I wake up in the morning, I have to put on calm music to start my day. Then I'll turn on Cardi B, Glo Rilla, Megan Thee Stallion. Any woman of empowerment to go out there and own that ring."

WWE Smackdown takes place tonight in Wembley Arena, London. Netflix UK and Ireland subscribers can watch Raw, SmackDown, NXT and all WWE Premium Live events as part of their subscription, including Royal Rumble on Saturday January 31 from 7pm GMT.