37 Best Angry Breakup Songs
There’s always one song after a break-up that reminds you of your former partner. It can catch you at odd moments, sometimes hours, sometimes years after the fact.
Here are some of the best angry break-up songs to help you move on from that lost love and let them and those errant, sentimental songs go in the process.
Contents
1. “Before He Cheats” by Carrie Underwood
Song Year: 2005
This angry break-up song is ideal for anyone daydreaming about burning their ex’s possessions. You can’t get away with setting anything on fire. In real life, it’s a recipe for lawsuits and arrests. But as a musical fantasy, it makes for cathartic listening.
Underwood’s vocals are smooth, and the beat is steady. The melody simmers with barely-suppressed fury. Revenge might be best served cold, the lyrics suggest, but fiery, combustible anger has its virtues too.
2. “Thank U Next” by Ariana Grande
Song Year: 2019
Ariana Grande’s “Thank U Next” makes another excellent break-up song. It rattles off the faults of the speaker’s various exes, and it’s a sentiment anyone recovering from a break-up will sympathize with.
But then it starts talking about how the speaker coped with all the loss. It turns out they stopped chasing the ideal romance. Instead, they’re enjoying being single and using it to get to know themselves better. It’s a precinct reminder that as painful as break-ups can be, sometimes they’re the wake-up call we need to reimagine our lives.
3. “So What” by P!NK
Song Year: 2008
P!NK’s “So What” is another excellent angry break-up song. It’s catchy, and the melody is appropriately spikey.
It gives you a musical outlet to vent your frustrations while reminding you that you don’t need a relationship to get the most out of life.
4. “F*ck You, Goodbye” by The Kid LAROI
Song Year: 2020
The Kid LAROI’s song “F*ck You, Goodbye” is one of the more recent songs on this list. When the song debuted in 2020, it was immediately popular. The melody is upbeat, the tempo moves at a clip, and the lyrics are memorable.
It’s also more than an angry break-up song. It’s a reminder that boundaries are always worth setting. Sometimes, enough is enough, and there’s nothing wrong with saying so.
5. “I Hate Men” by Rachel York
Song Year: 2003
Cole Porter’s Kiss Me Kate is a musical adaptation of The Taming of the Shrew, and it spawns one of the most satisfying songs there is with “I Hate Men.”
The lyrics are wonderfully tongue-in-cheek. Clever word-play aside, the song requires a hefty belt and wail from the singer, ideally suited to listeners who want to rail and scream at the person who hurt them.
6.“Ain’t Worth The Whiskey” by Cole Swindell
Song Year: 2014
Country music is rife with angry break-up songs. Its mellow harmonies and the occasional chordal dissonance suit the oeuvre perfectly.
What’s delightful about these country break-up songs is their overt civility. This speaker raises a glass to a former love, but everything from lyrics to instrumentation crackles with tension. There’s an inchoate fury here that isn’t going anywhere fast.
7. “It’s My Party” by Leslie Gore
Song Year: 1963
Leslie Gore’s musical commemoration of the furious, tearful break-up proves that songs about breaking up are older than today’s youth suspect.
The speaker’s insistence that she will indulge in whatever feelings she wants, irrespective of the social situation, is an invitation to vent her anger and frustration. There’s never an opportune moment for a break-up, and a little indulgence is allowed.
8. “Breakin’ Dishes” by Rhianna
Song Year: 2009
Rhianna’s “Breakin’ Dishes” is another angry break-up song about indulging in destruction. In this case, the speaker’s dishes catch the brunt of her ire.
Arguably, it’s not a practical way to temper your anger, but it feels satisfying while you do it. The trouble is that it leaves you less of your kitchen crockery. Rhianna lets you fantasize about that kind of cathartic revenge without indulging in it.
9. “Caught Out There” by Kelis
Song Year: 2009
Kelis dedicated this 2009 rap song to the many women who feel lied to or betrayed by their former partners.
Its lyrics are full of lines imbued with anger and frustration, making it ideal for after a breakup.
10. “Picture to Burn” by Taylor Swift
Song Year: 2006
Taylor Swift does an excellent line in angry break-up songs and “Picture to Burn” is the perfect example.
Its lyrics fantasize about how best to mete out revenge on an ex-partner and range from the petty to the extravagant. They’re the kind of mundane daydreams few of us have the gumption to act out, but it’s fun listening to someone else meditate on doing what you know you won’t.
11. “Don’t” by Ed Sheeran
Song Year: 2014
With its snaps and claps there’s a quiet aura of menace about this angry break-up song by Ed Sheeran.
The tempo is more relaxed than other songs on this list, but there’s no second-guessing the lyrics. In particular, the chorus is a message to people everywhere not to take love lightly. The consequences are invariably messy and painful.
12. “My Happy Ending” by Avril Lavigne
Song Year: 2004
“My Happy Ending” doesn’t start sounding like an angry break-up song. Instead, its speaker is confused and hurt.
But it soon escalates into anger that manifests by belittling the speaker’s old date, their friends, and the choices they made.
It’s not a mature attitude, but it’s a human one, and one that hurt and angry listeners can appreciate.
13. “You Oughta Know” by Alanis Morissette
Song Year: 1995
Alanis Morissette is another artist who overlays angry break-up songs with a veneer of scathing civility.
A surface listening to “You Oughta Know” suggests it’s about two former lovers meeting up and discussing their new romantic entanglements.
Further, listening reveals it's a damning indictment of the ex-partner. The speaker takes every opportunity to remind their partner of how and why their relationship fell apart and anticipates that their new romance also won’t last.
