Prom is an exciting event for many teenagers and may even be a magical night. The music played at any school dance is one of its most memorable aspects, aside from trying to get a dance with your crush!
Here are some of the best prom songs to fit a variety of dance styles and moods to enjoy with your friends or your prom date.
Contents
- I Gotta Feeling – Black Eyed Peas
- Give Me Everything – Pitbull ft. Ne-Yo, Afrojack, Nayer
- Don’t Start Now – Dua Lipa
- Party Rock Anthem – LMFAO
- Club Can’t Handle Me – Flo Rida ft. David Guetta
- We Are Young – Fun ft. Janelle Monáe
- Just Dance – Lady Gaga ft. Colby O’Donis
- Only Girl (In the World) – Rihanna
- The Night is Still Young – Nicki Minaj
- Girls Like You – Maroon 5
- Say So – Doja Cat
- Can’t Stop the Feeling – Justin Timberlake
- Party in the U.S.A. – Miley Cyrus
- Good Girls Go Bad – Cobra Starship ft. Leighton Meester
- Shake It Off – Taylor Swift
- Toxic – Britney Spears
- Let’s Dance – David Bowie
- Turn Down for What – DJ Snake, Lil Jon
- Old Town Road – Lil Nas X, Billy Ray Cyrus
- Perfect – Ed Sheeran
- All of Me – John Legend
- Just the Way You Are – Bruno Mars
- Cha Cha Slide – DJ Casper
I Gotta Feeling – Black Eyed Peas
This hit Black Eyed Peas track is about letting go of one’s worries by partying, dancing, and clubbing. The song debuted at number two on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart under the group’s earlier release ‘Boom Boom Pow,’ making Black Eyed Peas the first group to hold both top positions on the chart.
Related: Hear this song on our list of the best graduation songs.
Give Me Everything – Pitbull ft. Ne-Yo, Afrojack, Nayer
The narrator here wants his lover to give him everything right now at a party or club because “we might not get tomorrow.” This became the first United States Billboard Hot 100 number one hit for Pitbull, Nayer, and Afrojack, as we as Pitbull’s first number one hit in the United Kingdom.
Don’t Start Now – Dua Lipa
Dua Lipa has finally moved on from a romantic breakup in this track. However, her ex is jealous that she is feeling happy and positive without him as she dances with someone new. At its core, the song is about learning to value your own happiness before the needs of others to protect yourself.
Related: Rack up some miles with these great songs to run to.
Party Rock Anthem – LMFAO
This song is about dancing at a party, specifically shuffling, which became popular around the time of the song’s release in 2011, and it’s sure to get you on the dance floor! GoonRock and Lauren Bennett are both featured on the track. GoonRock is also a co-writer and co-producer of the hit. The chorus had to be reworked to feature the iconic lyrics that made the song an instant classic: “Party rock is in the house tonight. Everybody just have a good time.”
Related: Keep dancing to the top party songs.
Club Can’t Handle Me – Flo Rida ft. David Guetta
Flo Rida and David Guetta imagine the biggest party of one’s dreams in this piece. The song was inspired by touring and having a party feeling at huge concerts. Besides being released on the album Only Flo Pt.1, the song is included on the soundtrack for the film Step Up 3D.
We Are Young – Fun ft. Janelle Monáe
‘We Are Young’ focuses on the ups and downs of a youthful narrator’s partying. It can be memorable to have wild nights out, but they also come with a lack of self-control. It was inspired by an actual night out in Nate Ruess’s life. It became the soundtrack for the 2012 Chevrolet Sonic Super Bowl commercial and saw an increase in popularity after that.
Related: Celebrate your youth with these songs for teens.
Just Dance – Lady Gaga ft. Colby O’Donis
Lady Gaga is disoriented in a club with this dance hit. She soothes herself by telling herself to keep dancing until she feels better. This became Gaga’s first single as a solo artist after writing for other famous acts. It seems that the song was inspired by memories of partying in her own life.
Related: Dance the night away with our playlist of dance music.
Only Girl (In the World) – Rihanna
Here, Rihanna wants a love interest to make her feel so special that it seems like she’s the only woman alive and the only person the guy has ever loved. The hit is relatable to any listener who has ever wanted to feel extra-special to the one they love.
The Night is Still Young – Nicki Minaj
Nicki Minaj tells her friends at the club that they are young, and so is the night. Therefore, they can enjoy life, forget their worries and have fun partying. The song is one of five collaborations between Minaj and Dr. Luke on the album The Pinkprint, whose title was inspired by Jay-Z’s The Blueprint.
Girls Like You – Maroon 5
Adam Levine sings as a protagonist who is happy to have a strong and loving woman in his life. They seem to have had some difficulties, but they are both grateful to have each other’s company. The intricate music video for the song features a range of famous and notable women, including Levine’s wife Behati Prinsloo with their daughter.
Related: Listen to more music about girls.
Say So – Doja Cat
Doja Cat is impatient with a shy guy in her life regarding this track. She wishes he would just admit that he has feelings for her. It interpolates the disco beats of Cher’s ‘Good Times’ from 1979 for a retro feel and sound.
Can’t Stop the Feeling – Justin Timberlake
This track focuses on its chorus and pre-chorus sections as Justin Timberlake sings about a happy feeling that his love inspires. Its Michael Jackson-esque beats give it a nostalgic vibe. Timberlake wrote and performed the song for the animated film Trolls, for which he also provided voice acting.
Related: Feel good with these happiness songs.
Party in the U.S.A. – Miley Cyrus
Here’s a hit that became an instant classic for listeners who wanted to show pride as U.S. citizens. The lyrics, partially based on Miley Cyrus’s life, find the singer adjusting to life after moving from the state of Tennessee to Los Angeles. She feels nervous until a song she loves comes on the radio, which helps her realize that she still lives in the same united country.
Related: Sing along with these easy karaoke songs for girls.
Good Girls Go Bad – Cobra Starship ft. Leighton Meester
The main protagonist of this track boasts that he makes good girls do wild things due to their attraction to him. Leighton Meester provides guest vocals as one of the women he has seduced. It was the first Top Ten Billboard chart hit for Meester and Cobra Starship.
Shake It Off – Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift has to “shake it off” to get over the opinions of her critics and the lives of those who have hurt her in this track. The song also serves to help listeners realize that it’s best to let go of life’s many little problems and have fun living life instead of worrying or feeling self-critical.
Related: Feel empowered with these songs about strong women.
Toxic – Britney Spears
Britney Spears loves her guy so much that she is addicted to him in a toxic way in this track. She lets him know how painful her situation is in the lyrics. Spears won her first Grammy Award for this song in the Best Dance Recording category.
Related: This song features on our playlist of toxic relationship songs.
Let’s Dance – David Bowie
While this track’s lyrics sound like they’re about dancing, they are actually about being dishonest in life. The song was sampled extensively for Craig David’s ‘Hot Stuff,’ which became a Top 10 hit in the United Kingdom. Bowie’s original hit Number One transatlantically.
Turn Down for What – DJ Snake, Lil Jon
This song has simple lyrics about dancing and listening to wild beats that make you feel something. It encourages listeners to push themselves to be the best at whatever they do and not quit whenever they hear it play.
Related: You’ll be excited to work out when you listen to these gym songs.
Old Town Road – Lil Nas X, Billy Ray Cyrus
Lil Nas X finds himself heartbroken and disenchanted with a consumerist lifestyle in this track. He decides to give it all up and become a cowboy in the lyrics. The song became a huge hit thanks largely to online platforms like TikTok; Lil Nas X was an unsigned artist when it became popular and had record labels competing for his music. The Billy Ray Cyrus feature appeared on a just as popular remix.
Related: Have fun dancing to the best line dance songs.
Perfect – Ed Sheeran
What’s a prom without slow-dancing songs? Ed Sheeran wrote this song for then-girlfriend Cherry Seaborn, who is now married to Sheeran. The song is about a couple looking forward to a long and loving future together, with children and a life spent growing older together. It could be considered one of Sheeran’s best and most popular songs.
Related: Head over to our songs about falling in love list.
All of Me – John Legend
This track is about John Legend’s wife, Chrissy Teigen, who was his fiancé at the time. According to Legend, the song highlights the balancing act that lovers must deal with to have a healthy relationship full of compromise where two individuals with flaws are concerned. The song is one of the more slow dance-focused tracks where proms are concerned.
Related: Enjoy these good piano songs.
Just the Way You Are – Bruno Mars
Here’s a romantic track perfect for any slow dance at the prom that’s sure to be on the prom playlist. Bruno Mars lets a lover know that she is perfect in his eyes, even if she is feeling insecure or down on herself. This was the lead single from Mars’ debut album and his first chart-topper as a solo artist.
Related: Here are some sweet songs for your crush.
Cha Cha Slide – DJ Casper
This song was actually developed as a workout routine by DJ Casper for the Bally’s Fitness health club in the United States. Gym-goers enjoyed the song so much that it was released as a single. Now, it’s among the most popular group dance songs for events like proms and weddings in the US. Its moves are also quite simple to learn, adding to its popularity as a slide track.
More of the best prom songs:
- All My Life – Rascal Flatts
- You Belong With Me – Taylor Swift
- You Should Be Dancing – Bee Gees
- Wannabe – Spice Girls
- It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday – Boyz II Men
- I Wanna Dance With Somebody – Whitney Houston
- Unchained Melody – The Righteous Brothers
- Sweet Sixteen – Billy Idol
