53 Best Country Songs About Breaking Up

40. Blame It on Your Heart by Patty Loveless

Song Year: 1993

Country music sensations Kostas Lazarides and Harlan Howard wrote Blame It on Your Heart for Patty Loveless in 1993.

This song touches on one woman’s rancorous emotions towards an ex-boyfriend who slighted her. She scorns him for cheating and lying, saying she won’t make the same mistake twice.

Patty Loveless released this song as the first single from her album Only What I Feel. It spent over 20 weeks on the Billboard Hot Country Singles and Tracks charts.

41. Brokenheartsville by Joe Nichols

Song Year: 2002

It’s a story as old as time: a lousy boy meets a good girl and breaks her heart.

That’s what this song is about. A young man charms and seduces a girl away from her lover. The story is told from the scorned lover’s perspective. He maintains his well wishes for the new couple as he nurses a broken heart.

The song spent several weeks at number one on the Hot Country Songs chart and earned several awards for its compelling lyricism and catchy tune.

42. Bye Bye by Jo Dee Messina

Song Year: 1998

This song is about finally moving on after the end of a relationship. The protagonist expresses her desire to continue living without dwelling on the past. She hops in her car and drives away from her former flame, maintaining that she won’t look back once she is gone.

The song debuted at number 59 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart, eventually moving on to becoming number one later that year.

Joe Dee Messina is a country music singer known for her classic vocals and relatable thematic focus.

43. I’m Gonna Miss Her by Brad Paisley

Song Year: 2001

Brad Paisley is a country music singer and songwriter who has released over 12 albums and won numerous awards. Paisley’s song, I’m Going to Miss Her, is famous for its relatability.

This song is part comedy, part tragedy. It tells the story of a young man who leaves his lover because he wants to spend more time fishing. He heals his broken heart by spending his days fishing and enjoying nature instead of ruminating on the past. As long as he is fishing, he doesn’t miss his ex.

44. Sticks and Stones by Tracy Lawrence

Song Year: 1991

In this song, the protagonist tells his soon-to-be ex-fiancée that she can take all their possessions since he is tired of her worldly life. He means that controls alone do not make a happy home and that she must find something more meaningful to live a good life.
The song is a refreshing take on the post-breakup ballad, and Tracy Lawrence’s smooth vocals and skilled guitarist and fiddle players make the song the hit that it is.

45. Trouble With a Heartbreak by Jason Aldean

Song Year: 2022

Jason Aldean is a prolific country music artist with over ten studio albums. His album, My Kinda Party, is certified quadruple platinum, and his singles have topped the charts several times.

His hit song, Trouble With a Heartbreak, touches on the difficulty of coping with loss. The song is told from the perspective of someone advising the heartbroken, maintaining that recovery will be long and hard but ultimately worthwhile. It’s a great song to get you through your subsequent breakup since it offers an inspirational message of resilience and hope.

46. Better Class of Losers by Randy Travis

Song Year: 1996

Randy Travis is a singer and songwriter who has sold over 25 million albums. Since the mid-20th century, he has transcended the country genre and made gospel music.

Travis’ song, Better Class of Losers, is about the end of a long, tumultuous relationship in which he felt judged for his financial position. His ex-girlfriend’s friends were stuck up and looked down on him, so she left him for someone else. He maintains that he is happy to return to his friends, the losers referred to in the song’s title, as they aren’t as arrogant and cold.

47. Smoke Rings in the Dark by Gary Allan

Song Year: 1999

This song is about a mutual breakup in which both parties determine that they aren’t well suited for one another. Although he has tried to make her love him, he remains lonely even in the relationship. Ultimately, the fire of their love has turned to ash and smoke, referred to in the song’s title.

Gary Allen is a singer and songwriter from California. He made his hit debut in 1996 with the release of Her Man, a hit single. 

48. What If I Never Get Over You by Lady A

Song Year: 2019

This is one song everyone can relate to; it’s about the fear of never getting over an ex-partner. In this song, the protagonist fears dwelling on the relationship forever. She can’t seem to move on and worries about never getting the closure she needs to develop intimacy with another person.

Lady A, formerly known as Lady Antebellum, is an American country music band formed in Nashville, Tennessee. The band comprises Dave Haywood, Charles Kelley, and Hillary Scott.

49. Over for You by Morgan Evans

Song Year: 2023

This song is about when a young man realizes that his lover will leave him. She takes their pictures down from the wall and separates herself from him emotionally. He feels betrayed because she has considered leaving him for a long time. Despite her silence, he realizes the moment has come.

Morgan Evans is relatively new to the country music scene but promises a long and fruitful career. He is a contemporary singer and songwriter with a unique voice and a flair for the dramatic.

50. Wish I Didn’t Know Now by Toby Keith

Song Year: 1993

You guessed it; this song is about cheating and betrayal. Toby Keith sings from the perspective of a man whose wife is cheating on him (or so he suspects). He begs her to keep it a secret and not to tell him anything, as it would hurt too much. 

This is ultimately an experience we can all relate to, and unfortunately, it is all too common.

51. When I Call Your Name by Vince Gill

Song Year: 1989

From hit country artist Vince Gill comes another song about betrayal and lies. The protagonist returns home from work, eager to see his lover, but she has left him a note on the kitchen table expressing her desire to go and be with another man.

The song is about the disappointment that accompanies the end of a relationship and what happens when one party gives up on it entirely.

52. Picture to Burn by Taylor Swift

Song Year: 2006

As its name suggests, this song is about burning a picture of an ex-partner in anger. Taylor Swift writes from the perspective of a slighted woman who resents how her ex has portrayed her as unstable. She lets loose and tells him every criticism she has ever had about his lifestyle, burning his pictures in the process.

Taylor Swift is one of American history’s most prosperous country and pop singers. This is only one of her many hit songs.

53. I Will Always Love You by Dolly Parton

Song Year: 1974

Dolly Parton is one of the richest female singers in the world. She owns an amusement park in Tennessee called Dollywood.

Her hit song, I Will Always Love You, topped the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1974 and was later re-released in 1982.

This song is about the bittersweet end to a relationship and the singer’s surviving feelings for her former lover. It touches on themes of resilience and hopes for the future.

Top Country Songs About Breaking Up, Final Thoughts

The songs on this list are some of the best breakup songs in American country music. Each expresses a different sentiment related to the end of a relationship.

Throw them all together to make the perfect playlist, or pick your favorites and send them to a friend! Happy listening—and may you heal quickly.