The list spans several decades and many different moods, but all are rooted in some type of pain.
Below, you’ll find our ranking of the 50 greatest breakup songs of all time, as voted on by our staff. And in honor of Valentine’s Day, we decided to dig deep into the genre. We here at The Ringer believe that since heartache comes in many forms, so should the breakup song. Its cutting-edge hip-hop sound – delivered here in the shape of an ethereal flute sample offset by sharp, clipped minimalist beats by producer Karriem Riggins – formed the backbone for the singer’s hard-hitting meditations on racial inequality and black oppression.What makes a song a “breakup song”? Does it have to be empowering, à la “I Will Survive” or most of the songs on Lemonade? Should it be for the lonely, like Carole King’s “It’s Too Late” or Bob Dylan’s “If You See Her, Say Hello”? Does it have to address the breakup in the lyrics? (Taylor Swift has many entrants in this category, and Marvin Gaye penned an entire album about his divorce.) What about songs with a famous backstory, like “Cry Me a River” or any track off of Rumours? New Amerykah Part One (4th World War) found Badu taking a huge stylistic and thematic detour from her previous efforts. The track ends with a delicious nod to rare-groove man Johnny Hammond’s “Can’t We Smile.” 14: Soldier 15: Time’s A Wastin’Ī highlight from her second album, Mama’s Gun, “Time’s A Wastin’” fuses funky bass lines with lush strings and playful keyboard interjections to underscore Badu’s cautionary tale to a young black man. Released in 2003 as a supposed EP that was actually longer than most artists’ full-length albums, Worldwide Underground’s immaculately executed analog grooves were exemplified by the deep basslines, dreamy keyboard runs and exquisitely funky guitars of this single – a nostalgic ode to youthful days spent smoking weed with friends.
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