Watch SiM Perform Their New Anthem for ‘Apex Legends’

In the multiplayer shooter Apex Legends, being a champion is everything. The 60-player, squad-based game has become a massively popular esport worldwide, but unlike others that focus on military or fantasy warfare, Apex is actually about a game within a game, where competitors fight for glory in a Hunger Games-style battle royale.

It’s fitting, then, that the first-ever Apex Legends official anthem shares that same theme. Titled “CHAMPiONS,” by Japanese alt-metal band SiM, the track is a high-energy power ballad that weaves together the band’s signature genre-blending sound and lyrics inspired by the in-game world where, tonally, it would fit right in.

Watch the full performance below:

Although initially teased in a post on X (formerly Twitter) by the official Apex Legends esports account on Jan. 23, the full song premiered live during day four of the Apex Legends Global Series 4, the annual worldwide tournament for the game held this year in Sapporo, Japan. Performed during the opening ceremony of the penultimate day of the competition, it was the first time that fans had ever heard the track — and they felt the impact.

Having one of the biggest rock bands from Japan introduce an original song for Apex before a largely Japanese audience makes sense; the region is one of the biggest markets for the game, and its esports community is fanatical. Many of the fans cheering in the crowd wore official jerseys representing their favorite teams or highly detailed cosplay of the game’s characters, called “Legends.”

The two-track set began with “CHAMPiONS,” followed by the group’s most well-known hit, 2022’s “The Rumbling,” another theme song collaboration — the first of two produced by SiM for the final season of the mega-popular anime Attack on Titan.

The track’s English-language lyrics directly reference aspect of the game, with lines like, “My ultimate is ready; let the experiment begin,” alluding to the special abilities that Legends have at their disposal that can turn the tide of a match.

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SiM themselves are huge fans of Apex Legends, with lead singer MAH especially having logged in plenty of hours. “’CHAMPiONS’ is a powerful and dramatic song,” MAH tells Rolling Stone. “I’ve been playing Apex Legends for over four years, so we wanted to create a song that would make a very special experience for all of the fans watching the ALGS Year 4 championship both in the venue and at home.”

MAH and guitarist, SHOW-HATE both found themselves competing on the main stage the night prior to the performance in the Sapporo Showdown, a tournament featuring content creators, ALGS casters, and fans who had qualified in the days prior in the arena’s free-play area.

As esports have continued to grow in popularity internationally, so too has the scope of the spectacles around their live events. A huge part of that are anthems like “CHAMPiONS,” which have become a regular part of annual celebrations for specific games. While some games, like Overwatch, have primarily stuck to in-game music for its anthems, others like League of Legends regularly partner with mainstream artists for their big tracks.

It was League of Legends that helped popularize the trend, beginning with their first official theme song for its World Championship in 2014, “Warriors” by Imagine Dragons — a track now synonymous with the game. In later years, high profile artists like Lil Nas X and K-pop group NewJeans contributed to the pantheon of League anthems, with the most recent being Linkin Park’s “Heavy Is the Crown,” revealed last Sept. before its live performance at the League of Legends World Championship 2024.

With “CHAMPiONS,” the team behind Apex Legends esports are looking to create their own musical legacy they, too, hope will become a lasting part of the game’s global culture.

The track will be officially available to stream on digital platforms like Apple Music and Spotify beginning on Feb. 19.