Dwayne Johnson has told Rolling Stone he is exploring a music career, saying he wants to "sing from the heart" in a style drawing on old-school soul with "some country flavour". The actor and former wrestler cited influences including Sam Cooke, Elvis Presley, George Jones, Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson, framing the move as something he is pursuing for personal fulfilment rather than commercial pressure, at a time when his box-office pull has reportedly softened.

Johnson has dabbled in music before, featuring on Wyclef Jean's 2000 track "It Doesn't Matter" and Tech N9ne's 2021 song "Face Off", with his proper solo debut coming via 2016's Moana, where he voiced Maui on "You're Welcome". He pointed to "Your Dad", a ballad he co-wrote with 2023 American Idol winner Iam Tongi for the companion album Moana: Voices Across the Ocean, which he executive-produced with wife Lauren Hashian, saying the song was written purely for his daughters without the pressure of sales, box office or streaming figures.