How Songs Help With Grief
Music has a unique way of holding space for emotions that feel too overwhelming to express. When you’re grieving, words alone often can’t capture the complexity of your feelings—but a melody can. Songs about losing someone, specifically songs about losing a loved one, resonate because they mirror your experience, giving you permission to feel and process your emotions.
Grief can feel all-encompassing, but listening to songs allows for what I call controlled grief: creating intentional moments to engage with your pain. Controlled grief simply means setting aside time and space to fully feel them, so grief doesn’t spill into every part of your life. This controlled grief has helped me immensely in navigating my own personal story of loss, and losing my 3 children and husband.
Whether it’s a soft piano ballad that lets you cry or a powerful anthem that helps you release anger, music can transform the way you process loss. It goes beyond just revisiting the pain, these grief songs are for finding moments of connection, release, and even hope through melodies and lyrics.
Songs About Losing a Loved One
Losing someone you love leaves a void that feels impossible to fill. These songs about losing a loved one give voice to the pain, memories, and longing that accompany such loss. They remind us that it’s okay to grieve deeply while offering moments of solace and a way to start dealing with grief.
1. “Wake Me Up When September Ends” – Green Day
This song feels like the soundtrack of seasonal grief, where certain times of the year bring memories rushing back. The longing in Billie Joe Armstrong’s voice resonates with the part of you that just wants to sleep through the hardest moments, waiting for the heaviness to pass.
2. “In Loving Memory” – Alter Bridge
This is one of those songs that feels like a love letter to someone you’ve lost. It’s deeply personal and yet universal, carrying the weight of gratitude and sorrow intertwined. It reminds me of how grief doesn’t just take away—it leaves behind a well of love and lessons that continue to shape us.
3. “Marjorie” – Taylor Swift
Taylor’s delicate lyrics remind us how the people we’ve lost continue to live on through their wisdom and influence.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were singing to me now.”
This line speaks to the way grief creates an invisible thread between the living and the departed, a connection that might fade in clarity but never in significance.
4. “Heaven’s Not Too Far” – We Three
This song feels like a message sent from the other side, a tender reassurance that those we’ve lost are still near, watching over us. It’s both heartbreaking and comforting, like a hug for your soul when you miss someone the most.
5. “How Do I Say Goodbye” – Dean Lewis
Listening to this is like walking through the moments leading up to a goodbye you don’t want to say. It echoes the pain of knowing you’ll have to let go but also reminds us of the immense love that makes letting go so hard in the first place.
6. “This Is What Losing Someone Feels Like” – JVKE
There’s rawness in this song that feels like the first wave of grief crashing over you. It captures the shock, the disbelief, and the hollow ache of realizing someone you love is gone, and there’s no going back.
7. “Do They Have Internet in Heaven” – Simon Robert French
This song brings levity to grief, reminding us of the humor and humanity we shared with the people we’ve lost. It feels like a gentle nudge to keep talking to them, even if the conversation has shifted to one-sided.
8. “You Said You’d Grow Old With Me” – Michael Schulte
This song carries the pain of unfulfilled promises, the kind that stay with you long after someone is gone. It’s a reminder of the futures we plan with loved ones and the heartache of moving forward without them.
9. “Tears in Heaven” – Eric Clapton
Few songs have captured the universal grief of losing someone quite like this one. Written from Clapton’s own tragedy, it’s a quiet reflection on loss, hope, and the yearning to see someone again in a place beyond this life.
10. “Wish That You Were Here” – Florence and the Machine
This song captures the aching loneliness of grief with haunting precision.
“And now I’m reaching out with every note I sing / And I hope it gets to you on some pacific wind,”
Lyrics like this feel like a desperate message sent to someone you can no longer reach.
The line, “Oh there it is again, sitting on my chest / Makes it hard to catch my breath,” paints grief as a physical weight—a feeling so many of us know too well. Florence’s voice carries both the sorrow of loss and the love that remains, making this song a bittersweet embrace of memory and longing.
Songs About Grief and Mourning
Grief is an intricate web of love, longing, and the ache of what was lost. These songs about grief don’t offer easy answers, but they hold space for the sorrow, the unanswered questions, and even the beauty that can emerge from sitting with our pain.
11. “Places We Won’t Walk” – Bruno Major
This song feels like a quiet, wistful sigh, a reflection of all the paths you planned to take with someone who is no longer here. It’s simple but profound, evoking memories of unfulfilled plans and the silent realization that some dreams will always belong to the past.
12. “See You Again” – Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth
This one brings the comfort of hope—hope that love doesn’t end with goodbye. It’s a reminder that while we may be apart for now, the bond we share transcends time and space. I’ve found myself leaning on these lyrics during moments when the absence felt overwhelming.
13. “Beloved” – Mumford and Sons
With every note, “Beloved” captures the sacredness of goodbye. It’s the kind of song that wraps its arms around you, helping you find solace in the love that remains even after loss. It reminds me of those tender moments with my son, where words failed, but love spoke louder than anything else.
14. “The Night We Met” – Lord Huron
This song feels like time folding in on itself, bringing you back to a single moment you wish you could relive. Its haunting melody mirrors the way grief pulls us into the past, longing for one more chance to change the story. It’s heartbreaking, but in a way that feels necessary to let the tears flow.
15. “Bigger Than the Whole Sky” – Taylor Swift
Taylor’s lyrics here strike at the heart of loss: the questions, the confusion, and the enormity of what’s left behind. I hear this song and think of all the unspoken words and unrealized futures. It’s a quiet acknowledgment that some losses are too vast to ever fully comprehend.
16. “O Children” – Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
There’s something unshakable about this song, something that pierces straight through the heart. The sorrow in it feels almost unbearable, like an aching longing for a world that could have been different.
“Forgive us now for what we’ve done / It started out as a bit of fun”
These lyrics bring up so many emotions—regret, fear, and above all, a deep, desperate hope for the next generation to have a better chance. The weight of wanting to protect the innocent while grappling with your own failures is a universal ache for anyone who’s experienced loss.
17. “Waiting For You” – Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
“Waiting For You” feels like sitting in the stillness of grief, when time seems to stop. It captures the quiet moments of mourning, the ones where you’re not crying or shouting but simply sitting with the empty space where someone used to be. There’s a raw truth to it that resonates deeply.
18. “All of the Stars” – Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran’s lyrics feel like a tender letter to someone who’s no longer here, each word infused with longing and love.
“It’s just another night, and I’m staring at the moon / I saw a shooting star and thought of you,”
Lyrics like these capture those quiet moments when grief sneaks in, a fleeting but powerful connection to someone you miss deeply.
The softness of Sheeran’s voice feels like a lullaby for the broken-hearted, a promise that love doesn’t end with loss. It’s a reminder that even in their absence, the people we’ve lost are woven into the stars, the moon, and the quiet beauty of the world around us.
19. “I’ll Never Forget the Time I Spent With You” – The Lathums
Listening to this song is like looking through an old photo album. It’s bittersweet but deeply comforting, reminding us that while grief may fade, the love and memories remain forever etched in our hearts.
20. “Running Up That Hill” – Kate Bush
This song speaks to a primal yearning, the need to bargain with the universe when life feels unbearable.
“If I only could, I’d make a deal with God / And get him to swap our places”
Those lyrics carry the weight of watching someone you love struggle and wishing you could take their pain away. It’s the soundtrack for moments when helplessness takes over, but it also validates those feelings, letting you know you’re not alone.
Songs About Death and Acceptance
Grief often brings us to a crossroads where we wrestle with acceptance. These songs about death, from their melodies to their lyrics, speak to the complex emotions surrounding death, finding peace, and learning to carry the loss with grace.
21. “Fix You” – Coldplay
This anthem feels like a warm embrace in your darkest hours.
“Lights will guide you home, and ignite your bones, and I will try to fix you.”
These lyrics speak to the universal yearning to heal the pain of someone we love, or even ourselves. The song holds a tender reminder that while grief can’t be “fixed,” there’s beauty in someone simply being there, lighting the way when everything feels broken. It’s an offering of hope amidst the heaviness, a promise that you don’t have to walk through this alone.
22. “Fuck Heaven” – The Wanted
Bold and raw, this song doesn’t sugarcoat the reality of loss. With lyrics that rage against the unfairness of death, it resonates with those who have found themselves angry at the universe for taking someone too soon. Its unflinching honesty is strangely comforting, giving you permission to feel every messy emotion.
23. “Death With Dignity” – Sufjan Stevens
This haunting track feels like a private conversation between a grieving soul and their lost loved one. The stripped-back instrumentals and gentle, pained lyrics are an ode to the complexity of love and loss. It’s for those moments when grief feels quiet but ever-present, like a soft hum in the background of life.
24. “Bloodstream” – Stateless
This song plunges you into the raw, physical experience of grief.
“I think I might’ve inhaled you / I could feel you behind my eyes / You’ve gotten into my bloodstream / I could feel you floating in me”
The lyrics capture how loss feels like it seeps into every fiber of your being. It is a presence, coursing through your veins, taking over your senses. The pulsing rhythm mimics the relentless ache of grief, urging you to confront it. Yet, there’s something cathartic about this immersion, as though leaning into the pain can help you find your way through it.
25. “Supermarket Flowers” – Ed Sheeran
Written about the death of Sheeran’s grandmother, this song is like a snapshot of mourning, tender and deeply personal. “You were an angel in the shape of my mum,” feels like a balm for those grieving a parent or caregiver. It’s a gentle reminder of the beauty in the memories we hold, even in the face of pain.
26. “Asleep” – The Smiths
This haunting melody carries an almost lullaby-like quality, soft yet piercing.
“Sing me to sleep, I don’t want to wake up on my own anymore.”
It’s a vulnerable exploration of longing for peace amidst the chaos of grief. While deeply melancholic, it also holds a strange comfort for those in the depths of their sorrow.
27. “Wait” – M83
There’s an ethereal quality to this song that feels otherworldly, almost as if it exists in the space between life and loss. Its lyrics and swelling music are a call to surrender. To wait, to let time and grief shape you in their slow, inevitable way.
28. “Introduccion” – Nicolas Jaar
This instrumental piece sounds like the world after loss—muted, heavy, and unrelenting.
It evokes the pit in your stomach after a funeral, that disorienting sense of finality when you realize something has happened that will never not have happened. The absence of lyrics mirrors the way grief often leaves you speechless, while the layered, almost detached soundscapes capture the surreal haze of mourning. Listening feels like walking through a world that’s the same but forever changed, as though you’re moving but not really connected to anything around you. It’s grief in sonic form.
29. “You’re Somebody Else” – Flora Cash
“You were the better part / Of every bit of beating heart that I had / Whatever I had”
These lyrics pierce through the noise, laying bare the emptiness that follows a profound loss. They echo the way grief can strip you down to your rawest self, where even your strongest memories feel fragile.
“I finally sat alone / Pitch black flesh and bone / Couldn’t believe that you were gone”
This verse captures that unbearable stillness after a loss, the quiet realization that life will never feel the same. The song doesn’t just reflect sadness—it validates the depth of connection and the void that remains when someone you love is no longer there. Its haunting melody wraps around the listener like a shared sorrow, offering solace in its shared vulnerability.
30. “Blackbird” – The Beatles
“Blackbird singing in the dead of night / Take these broken wings and learn to fly.” This classic reminds us that even in the darkest hours, there’s hope. It feels like a quiet nudge to pick up the pieces, however slowly, and carry your loved one’s memory as you step forward.
Other Resources to Help With Grief
Grief is a deeply personal journey, but you don’t have to navigate it alone. In addition to music and grief songs, there are a variety of resources available to support you as you work through loss. Whether it’s professional guidance, free tools, or a deeper dive into your emotions, these resources can be part of your healing process.
Professional Support
Sometimes, grief can feel impossible to carry on your own. Therapy can be a lifeline during these moments. A trained therapist provides a safe space to express your feelings, explore your pain, and work through the complexities of loss. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, reaching out for professional help is a courageous step toward healing.
Free Youtube Playlist on Grief
For those looking for accessible support, we’ve curated a free playlist of videos that walk through the grief journey. These videos include heartfelt insights from my personal experiences and professional perspective as a psychiatric nurse practitioner. From understanding grief theories to practical strategies for coping, these resources are designed to offer compassion and guidance.
Free Grief Course
Our free grief course, Grieve with Purpose, is a comprehensive resource designed to help you navigate your unique grief journey. It combines the principles of controlled grief with actionable steps to process loss in a healthy way. This free course is for anyone seeking tools to understand and manage the emotions that accompany loss.
Grief Documentary
If you’re looking for a deeper connection, I invite you to watch my documentary, I’m Right Here Mama. It’s a heartfelt glimpse into my personal journey through grief; sharing the pain, the struggles, and the steps I took toward healing. Through this intimate story, I hope you’ll find a sense of understanding and inspiration, knowing that even in the depths of loss, there is space for healing and growth.
Grief Intensive
If your grief feels heavy and overwhelming, and you’re ready to explore it more deeply, I invite you to consider joining the Grief Intensive. This gentle and transformative grief retreat is designed to help you separate grief from trauma and discover pathways toward healing. With compassionate guidance, practical tools, and the support of a nurturing community, it’s a space to face your grief with courage while uncovering moments of peace and purpose along the way.
Conclusion
Grief is a journey, not a destination. Songs about loss can be a powerful companion, offering comfort and validation when words fail. But healing often requires more than music; reaching out, connecting with resources, and allowing yourself the time and space to grow around your grief.
You are not alone. Your grief may change you, but it doesn’t have to define you. With intention and compassion, you can navigate this journey and find hope in the love that remains.