On August 22, 2022, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson posted an Instagram video of himself methodically banging out a set of bicep curls. All in a day’s work for the wrestler turned action hero, except in this post, he’s cranking Wolf Totem by Mongolian folk-metal heroes The Hu. This did not go unnoticed, not least by The Hu themselves.
“You can see the hard work that he’s put into his body,” says Nyamjantsan ‘Jaya’ Galsanjamts, who performs all wind instruments in The Hu as well as being one third of the band’s vocal frontline. “When you work out at that level, you have to tap into a state of mind of total focus and power and he gets there from Wolf Totem. Just the fact that we’re in his workout playlist is amazing!”
The Rock isn’t only celebrity fan to emerge in the wake of the success of The Hu’s 2019’s viral hit single, and debut album, Their legion of supporters includes everyone from Metallica to Elton John, the latter hailing them as “the band of the year”. Lzzy Hale, Papa Roach’s Jacoby Shaddix and From Ashes To New have lined up to collaborate with them, while their recent single, appears in the new videogame. It’s been a hell of a reception for a band from a country that doesn’t have a track record of producing globally famous metal bands.
