The 7: The songs that will get you through your breakup
After any breakup, you’re going to need some songs to keep you company and drown out the voices in your head. The Washington Post put out a list of 14 favorites. We here at 7 don’t want you to dwell that long on your break up, so we edited it down to our favorite number: 7.
1. “I Want to Break Free” by Queen
For that moment when you know it’s time to leave. News aide Kara Elder says this song “would always seem to pop in my head right around the time I was growing tired of a relationship. (And I think it motivated me to break things off, too.)”
2. “Let Him Fly” by Patty Griffin
Retail reporter Sarah Halzack says “Let Him Fly” was her soundtrack for every breakup from seventh grade until she met her now-husband. “Her voice channels all your anger, sadness and resignation in equal parts. And the lyrics are just specific enough to conjure all your worst memories of the relationship, and just vague enough to allow you to project all sorts of personal meaning on them.”
3. “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt
You think your breakup was bad? Gwen Stefani and bandmate Tony Kanal split in 1994 – and then they went on tour singing songs about their breakup. Ouch. Several Post women mentioned this 1995 classic as their go-to heartbreak anthem; it’s perfect for the denial stage of any breakup. Key lyrics: “Don’t speak / I know just what you’re sayin’ / So please stop explainin’ / Don’t tell me cause it hurts.”
4. “Guilt Trip” by Kanye West
Social media producer Tauhid Chappell listened to this song repeatedly after a breakup. “The last part of the song, where Kid Cudi croons, ‘If you love me so much then why’d you let me go’ always stuck to me because my ex said something similar as she clung to me when I said goodbye to her,” Chappell says.
5. “One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later)” by Bob Dylan
For when a breakup catches you by surprise and, at the same time, seemed inevitable all along. Key lyrics: “Sooner or later, one of us must know / That you just did what you’re supposed to do / Sooner or later, one of us must know / That I really did try to get close to you.” Style assignment editor Amy Argetsinger says this song made her realize: “Wow, other people have been through this, too, maybe it’s kind of banal – and it really helped.”
6. “You’ll Think of Me” by Keith Urban
“ ‘Take your records, take your freedom, take your memories, I don’t need ‘em’ is a brilliant bit of songwriting,” says pop culture writer (and country music aficionado) Emily Yahr. “Plus, although the song is so bitter, you get the sense that the narrator would take back his ex in a second … and that’s a unique thing to get through in a song.”
7. “I Will Survive” by Cake
Cake’s version of “I Will Survive” is a favorite of copy editor Brian Cleveland’s “because it has part of the inspiration and hope of the Gloria Gaynor version, but with a lot more anger and swearing.” It covers the entire breakup progression – from not knowing how you’ll function without your ex to doing damned fine on your own, thanks. And you’re certainly not taking them back. So just turn around now; you’re not welcome anymore.