Line #40 Main/VillainSong


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6	[[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/TheGreatMouseDetective https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mouse_detective_disneyscreencapscom_1724.jpg]]]]
7	[[caption-width-right:350:''From the brain that brought you the Big Ben Caper,\
8	The head that made headlines in every newspaper!'']]
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13	->''So, prepare for the coup of the century,\
14	Be prepared for the murkiest scam!\
15	Meticulous planning, tenacity spanning,\
16	Decades of denial, is simply why I'll,\
17	Be king undisputed, respected, saluted,\
18	And seen for the wonder I am!\
19	Yes, my teeth and ambitions are bared;\
20	Be prepared!''
21	-->-- '''Scar''', ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994''
22
23	The Villain Song [[EvilIsHammy is an over-the-top]], [[EvilGloating gloating]] [[EvilLaugh cackle]] about their EvilPlan, philosophy of life, or why they do what they do [[{{Pun}} (their leitmotive?)]]. Said philosophy is usually that [[TakeOverTheWorld the world is there for the taking]], or that the world has wronged them and they will take {{revenge}}, or that they [[ForTheEvulz just like hurting people]] and [[NothingCanStopUsNow nobody is going to stop them]]. The villain usually gets lots of eye candy to go with their song -- live performers will dance up a storm, while animated villains will get pyrotechnics all around them. If they don't get huge visuals, it better ''damn'' well be because the song itself steals the show, and trying to distract from that with a lot of flashy visuals is just ''asking'' for [[Franchise/{{ThePhantomOfTheOpera}} a chandelier to fall on someone.]] This song is usually delivered in a minor [[{{Scales}} key]] and typically features dramatic evidence of the villain's evil nature, such as playful abuse of loyal minions, taunting of prisoners, or random destruction of incidental locations of the villain's secret lair, usually for the purpose of abusing minions or taunting prisoners.
24
25	The nuttier the villain is, the better the song is. TheBarnum (see "Master of the House" from ''Theatre/LesMiserables'') and the StrawNihilist (see "Epiphany" from ''Theatre/SweeneyToddTheDemonBarberOfFleetStreet'') get particularly good ones.
26
27	This song is almost always a measure of how important the villain is. If the villain has one, they'll get equal billing with the hero, and will probably steal the show. If they don't (e.g. Dr. Carrasco in ''Theatre/ManOfLaMancha'', Charlie Cowell in ''Theatre/TheMusicMan''), they're not very important to the plot, and nobody qualifies as the BigBad. Villains can get other songs where they pretend to be nice, but if they don't get at least one song to strut their villainy, they're (usually) not important (the big exception being villains who successfully offer a DealWithTheDevil: There, the hidden malice and seductiveness is usually the point of the song anyway).
28
29	Occasionally followed up by an EvilLaugh and/or a FadeAroundTheEyes immediately, and a DarkReprise later on.
30
31	Depending on genre, it can overlap with CreepyJazzMusic, RottenRockAndRoll, FreakyElectronicMusic, or SinisterTangoMusic. It is by no means limited to these genres, though.
32
33	Compare VillainLoveSong (where the villain sings about their admiration towards an object of affection, which can overlap), TheVillainSucksSong (which is sung ''about'' the villain by someone else), and RockMeAsmodeus (the devil directly involved in rock & roll).
34
35	Contrast NoSongForTheWicked. Now has [[https://villainsong.fandom.com its own Wiki.]]
36
37	Creator/{{Disney}} has had so many examples that they get their own page. All examples from media by Disney go there, while all the other pages are strictly for non-Disney examples from the media they cover.
38
39	'''Please note that just because a song is sung by a villain, doesn't necessarily make it a Villain Song. ''Franchise/ThePhantomOfTheOpera'' may have a showstopper in the form of "The Music of the Night", but he doesn't use it to gloat over his villainy. Villain Songs don't have to be personally sung by the villain either (see the title song from ''Film/{{Spaceballs}}''), though exceptions are fairly rare outside examples of TheVillainSucksSong.'''
40
41	[[noreallife]]
42	----
43	!!Examples:
44
45	[[index]]
46	* VillainSong/{{Disney}}
47	* VillainSong/AnimeAndManga
48	* VillainSong/ComicBooks
49	* VillainSong/FanWorks
50	* [[VillainSong/AnimatedFilms Films — Animation]] (Non-Disney)
51	* [[VillainSong/LiveActionFilms Films — Live-Action]]
52	* VillainSong/{{Literature}}
53	* VillainSong/LiveActionTV
54	* VillainSong/{{Music}}
55	* VillainSong/ProWrestling
56	* VillainSong/{{Theatre}}
57	* VillainSong/VideoGames
58	* VillainSong/WebAnimation
59	* VillainSong/WebComics
60	* VillainSong/WebOriginal
61	* VillainSong/WesternAnimation (Non-Disney)
62	[[/index]]
63
64	[[folder:Advertising]]
65	* ''Advertising/LouieTheFly'': Starting with ads in the 1960s, Australian insect repellent brand Mortein gave a Villain Song for their TalkingPest of a mascot.
66	-->Louie the Fly, I'm Louie the Fly, straight from rubbish-tip to you!\
67	Spreading disease with the greatest of ease, straight from rubbish-tip to you!\
68	I'm bad and mean and very unclean, afraid of no one, except the man with the can of Mortein.\
69	Hate that word, Mortein!
70	* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' advertised ''Streets of New Capenna'' with a song for each of its demonic mafia crime families.
71	[[/folder]]
72
73	[[folder:Comedy]]
74	* "Asshole" by Creator/DenisLeary is a {{Jerkass}} Song, with the narrator reveling in doing stuff like pissing on the seats of public toilets and driving a car that gets bad gas mileage because [[ItAmusedMe he likes to annoy people]].
75	-->"[[TheStinger I'm an asshole, and I'm proud of it]]."
76	[[/folder]]
77

Context Main / VillainSong