Sad Girl Playlist
“When you try your best, but you don’t succeed,” was the first lyric that hit home as a kid. It’s what started my journey towards “sad girl” status. If you don't know, sad girls are the ones who throw up the peace sign while crying, type out emoticons instead of using emojis, and use Lisa Simpson’s crying meme when any minor inconvenience occurs. So whether you’re a sad girl from birth or just here due to being a stressed out college student, welcome to the Sad Girls Club. Here are my top sad girl songs for all you souls that love them as much as I do.
Listen Before I Go – Billie Eilish
Being that Billie Eilish is not only one of my favorite artists but also arguably one of the saddest girls out there, I definitely had to include her on my list in some way, shape, or form. The song is off of her most recent studio album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? When I first heard it, I got chills listening to the deep lyrics that Eilish says, tells a story of “depression and what comes out of depression, which is not a good thing.”
Saddest lyric: “Call my friends and tell them that I love them, and I’ll miss them. Sorry.”
Empty – Olivia O’Brien
Not all sad songs are slow songs with a piano backing track. Olivia O’Brien shows this in her music that often includes pop beats but talks about the feelings of loneliness, anxiety, and depression. In this song specifically, she talks about how drugs and alcohol are used to drown out the stress and pressure that she feels. She talks about feeling helpless and empty but confused about what to do about it.
Saddest lyric: “I’m empty inside. I just don’t feel alive, and I don’t wanna live, but I’m too scared to die.”
Happiness is a Butterfly – Lana Del Rey
Of course, I had to include the original sad girl, miss Lana Del Rey. Here’s the thing. Her most recent album Normal Fucking Rockwell! is the only album of hers that I’ve listen to in its entirety, and I don’t know why I’ve waited this long. The entire album is filled with sad girl vibes that are just my cup of tea, but this song in particular makes me feel things that the other songs don’t. It talks about the ideal that “Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.”
Saddest lyric: “If he's a serial killer, then what's the worst that can happen to a girl who's already hurt? I’m already hurt.”
Sad Forever – Lauv
Lauv really did it with this one, talking about what it’s like to have depression. The song is about how it feels to be so out of control with your emotions to the point where all you want is to not be sad. It’s a great song for when you’re feeling overwhelmed and can’t seem to get anything but negative thoughts out of your mind. It’s real. It’s relatable.
Saddest lyric: “I don't want to wake up and wonder what the hell am I doing this for. I don't want to be medicated. I don't want to go through that war. I don't want to be sad anymore.”
Too Sad to Cry – Sasha Sloan
One of the saddest feelings in the world to me is being so sad that you can’t cry. You just sit there in silence wishing that you could at least cry to get it out. But you can’t. Sasha Sloan has a lot of songs that talk about different circumstances that could make you feel this crushing feeling, but this is the first song where she actually mentions it. She even talks about wanting a relationship with any higher power because maybe it would help, but she’s conflicted. It’s worth a listen if you know this feeling.
Saddest lyric: “I lied to my doctor. She knew I was fakin'. Gave me some pills, but I'm too scared to take 'em. I try and I try, but I'm too sad to cry.”
July – Noah Cyrus
Noah Cyrus has been open about her struggles with depression, but this song in particular talks about what if feels like to be in a relationship with someone that only ever makes you feel like you’re not enough. This is a good song for those of you that feel like you’ve ever been in a relationship for way too long, whether it be romantic or platonic or even if you ever just feel like you’re not enough. You are, by the way.
Saddest lyric: “You remind me every day, I'm not enough, but I still stay.”
Vienna – Billy Joel
Do you remember when you were little, and maybe you wanted to grow up so bad so you could make your own rules and do your own thing? Now, present day, have you ever felt like everything’s moving too fast? Do you feel like you needed to get your life together, like, yesterday? This is all that this song’s about, and as a college student and a borderline adult, this really hits home. Growing up sucks, so why have we been rushing it?
Saddest lyric: “Dream on, but don’t imagine they’ll all come true. When will you realize, Vienna waits for you?”
Somebody Else – The 1975 (Ebony Day Cover)
Okay, before you come at me for not choosing the original, I will admit, the original version is very sad. It’s the one that I listen to when I’m sad but not sad enough to lock myself away. This version, though, is more of a breakup version that almost always leaves my eyes watering. The lyrics are slightly different, but just as a disclaimer: both versions are in my sad girl playlist.
Saddest lyric (cover): “So you said you've found somebody else, and I prayed that that was just a lie. So I said I loved you one more time in case that it would change your mind.”
Saddest lyric (original): “I’m looking through you while you’re looking through your phone and then leaving with somebody else.”
idontwannabeyouanymore – Billie Eilish
Yes, there’s another Billie song on this list. This one is less about the outcomes of depression and more about the lack of self-confidence. You know that feeling when you look in the mirror and you don’t like what’s looking back at you? In the song, she’s talking to herself about that feeling specifically. Unfortunately, it’s a song that a lot of sad girls and boys out there can relate to. So, I had to include it.
Saddest lyric: “Tell the mirror what you know she’s heard before. I don’t wanna be you anymore.”
To Build a Home – The Cinematic Orchestra
My final song on the list is one that has been featured in many sad scenes of tv shows and movies. It’s a song that fills the feeling in your heart of not having something to call your own. There’s a certain feeling you get when you are home. Whether home is where you grew up all your life or if it’s a person… it’s that feeling of having something to call “home” and then losing it. I hope that no one ever feels this, but if you do… this is the song for you.
Saddest lyric: “And I built a home for you. For me. Until it disappeared from me. From you.”
Whatever I’m going through, music helps me get through it. So whether you come to these songs for a sense of relatability or for comfort, I hope these songs help you in the way that they helps me. It may seem ineffective to listen to sad music when you’re sad to help you get through it, but it’s quite the opposite. At least for me, happy songs just make me just wish that I was happy. Sad songs allow me to like I’m not alone. At the end of the day, whatever you’re going through, know that you’re not alone either.