Universal Orlando Resort has two of the best roller coasters in Florida with the still new Jurassic World Velocicoaster and the still amazing Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure. However, there’s another coaster at the resort that a lot of people love, not necessarily because of its thrills, but because of its unique audio system. Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit has a synchronized audio track like many coasters but it’s special because the rider gets to pick the music. Unfortunately, a recent refurbishment has meant an apparent reduction in the number of available songs.
Previously, guests had 30 choices when it came to what song they wanted to hear during the ride. Now, Theme Park Insider confirms the official track list has been reduced to just five songs, one from each of five different genres. The list includes…
- "Humble" by Kendrick Lamar
- "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!" by Shania Twain
- "Sandstorm" by Darude
- "Waterloo" by ABBA
- "Welcome to the Black Parade" by My Chemical Romance
I call the loss of all the different songs “apparent” because there is a secret to Rip Ride Rockit that, while it’s not that big a secret anymore means that there are still a lot more than five songs available. There is a “secret song list” of tunes that Universal Orlando makes a bit harder to find but were available if riders knew how to access it.
It has been confirmed that the secret playlist still exists, though the playlist is so extensive that what hasn’t yet been confirmed is if the entire list is still intact, but nothing has yet been reported missing. The question is, could there be new additions made to the secret list? It’s even possible all the songs that were on the ride previously are still there, just a little harder to find, though if they’re there, nobody has found them yet.
Officially, the reason for the change is to make things easier for guests. Previously, a guest needed to choose a genre and then had to pick one of six songs in that genre. Somebody who had never ridden Rip Ride Rockit before would therefore be cycling through a lot of options, going back and forth between menus, trying to find the song they wanted, in the limited time between sitting down and the ride beginning. Now, that person just picks a genre and is ready to ride.
Certainly, a lot of fans of the ride have different feelings about this change. For some, who absolutely love one of the new songs, this is an awesome change. If, however, you’re go-to was one of the tunes that is now gone, then the ride experience may have forever changed for the worse.
Universal Orlando has been going through a lot of changes of late. It just opened a new Minions Land, it's currently in construction on a new Dreamworks land, and it recently closed the Poseidon's Fury attraction, making way for something new, though exactly what we don't know yet. Many have wondered if Rip Ride Rockit, which opened in 2009, will last much longer. It's not gone yet, though the shrinking of the song list may be an indication that it is on the way out.
The best news, however, is that the Muppet songs “Rainbow Connection” and “Moving Right Along” are still there in the secret list.
