There are all kinds of reasons we may not be with our friend right now. Maybe they’re away on holiday, or maybe they’ve passed away. Maybe you’re no longer friends for some reason, but you miss that friendship.
Whatever your reason, here are the best songs about missing a friend. I hope it helps bring you closer together again.
“Drowning” by Chris Young
Song Year: 2019
Chris Young sings this emotional song about losing a friend too soon. Chris Young compares the feelings of grief to drowning. Grieving tends to come in waves of feelings of loss, but on this particular night, he is drowning in grief.
He spends the night looking at old pictures of the two of them growing up. Looking at these pictures does not make the grief leave, but he uses them to reminisce on the good times. His friend’s life got taken before it should have been, and he cannot handle the weight of the loss.
“Highway Boys” by Zach Bryan
Song Year: 2022
Zach Bryan sings this song about life-changing. His life took a turn when he became famous and began touring all over the United States. He and his band are the “highway boys” who are always on the road.
He misses his friends and life back home. He then realizes that for a friendship to be real, his old friends back home must put in some effort to come to see him too. Having friends in adulthood is demanding and makes you miss the old days.
“Gone Too Soon” by Michael Jackson
Song Year: 1991
This emotional song is about a life lost before it should have been. This song applies to a friend, a lover, a parent, or a child. Michael Jackson shows the similarities of this life to a comet, a rainbow, a castle, and a flower.
Just like all of these things, this life was beautiful while it was on this earth. But just like all of these things, they fade too quickly before anyone wants them to.
“I Drive Your Truck” by Lee Brice
Song Year: 2012
This song tells the story of a man who lost his brother in the military. He pays tribute and remembers his brother by getting into his old truck and taking it for a spin. He does not change anything in the truck and leaves it the way his brother left it before he was gone.
Lee Brice sings this emotional song that touches the heart of everyone who has lost someone in the military. There is no way to make the pain leave, but we can remember all of the good times we had with that person. Check out other great country songs about a family at this link.
“Love’s to Blame” by For King & Country
Song Year: 2012
The band For King & Country sings this touching song of a couple in love with each other but knowing that being together is not best for either. They are each other’s person and are best friends. But circumstances show that they shouldn’t be together.
In the end, they have to blame love for the pain they feel after separating. From the view of the man, he is letting go because he loves the girl and wants what is best for her. He hopes one day she will understand that.
“All We Are” by OneRepublic
Song Year: 2007
This song applies to a relationship or a friendship. Listeners get to interpret songs the way they take them. In this song, the man is trying to portray a problem. He does not bring it up well, causing tension.
He pleads with the friend that they do not lose each other. He is begging not to say goodbye but realizes it is just a moment of change in the friendship. For a relationship to grow, there has to be change and compromise.
“She’s Alright” by Zach Bryan
Song Year: 2022
Friends come in many different forms. In Zach Bryan’s song “She’s Alright,” his best friend is his mother. After losing his mother, Zach Bryan sings of the grief and sorrow he experiences while missing his mom.
He knows his best friend is looking down on him from the moon in the sky. As long as he sees the moon, he knows his mother is watching over him and that he will be alright. He portrays that you never get over losing your parents.
“Bad Blood” by Taylor Swift
Song Year: 2014
When two people are in a relationship, they become each other’s best friends. Relationships do not always end happily, though. Often, one of the individuals does something in the relationship to cause a lack of trust.
Taylor Swift sings this song about a relationship gone wrong. They have hurt each other and are now at odds. It is hard to lose your significant other and cause hurt and miss the other person.
“Broken Halos” by Chris Stapleton
Song Year: 2017
Chris Stapleton sings this heart-wrenching song about losing your loved ones. Whether that be a best friend, a parent, a sibling, or a child, losing someone is always a time filled with grief. He compares them to angels that come to earth and spend their designated time with you, who fly away when they leave.
While they are here, they make an impact on your life. When they pass away, they get taken back to where they came from. No one knows the answers to why, but it is something we all go through in life.
“Drink a Beer” by Luke Bryan
Song Year: 2013
“Drink a Beer” by Luke Bryan tells the story of a man who has just received news that his best friend has passed away. He does not know what to do, so he walks to clear his mind. He finds himself at the end of a pier where the two often went fishing.
He reminisces on old times with his friends while drinking a beer. He knows his friend was taken too soon, but only God knows why. He copes with the grief by hanging out where he and his buddy used to hang out and thinking about him.
“You Should Be Here” by Cole Swindell
Song Year: 2016
Cole Swindell sings this emotional song about situations most of us go through, losing one of our parents. He lost his father years back. After rising in fame and seeing all of the success he has, he knows his father would be proud and knows he would not have gotten to where he is without him.
He misses his dad and knows his father would be proud of his success. Losing a parent means missing a friend, a mentor, and the one who was there for you when you needed them most.
“David” by Cody Jinks
Song Year: 2015
Cody Jinks sings this emotional song about a small-town man who leaves his hometown for the Marines. He had a best friend back home that tended to get into trouble, but he wouldn’t trade him for the world.
After returning from serving in the Marines, the man joined the local police force. One day he saw his friend speeding and flipped his lights on to get him to slow down. His friend didn’t know it was him, and with his record, he couldn’t risk getting pulled over. The friend ended up wrecking his truck and dying on the scene. The man can’t get over this situation and is losing his friend.
“Supermarket Flowers” by Ed Sheeran
Song Year: 2017
This emotional song is about Ed Sheeran losing his mother. He lost his closest friend but knows she has gone to a better place. She was always there for him when he needed her most.
He knows that without the harsh feelings of grief, that would mean there was no love. The anguish he feels shows that he was once loved immensely by his mother.
“One More Light” by Linkin Park
Song Year: 2017
“One More Light” by Linkin Park brings awareness to mental illnesses and suicidal thoughts. The light symbolizes a single person’s life and its seeming insignificance in the grand scheme of things.
That is the thinking behind someone with suicidal thoughts. Linkin Park sings about caring for that one life and all the people that will miss them if they are gone.
“Alyssa Lies” by Jason Michael Carrol
Song Year: 2007
This heart-wrenching song is about a little girl that is going through abuse at home. Her friend notices bruises on Alyssa’s face and that she is lying to her teachers about where her bruises come from.
Alyssa dies from the abuse later in the song. Her friend is heartbroken because she tried to tell others but didn’t know the extent of the abuse. It is crucial to let others know when you or someone you know is going through abuse.
“See You Again” by Wiz Khalifa
Song Year: 2015
Wiz Khalifa’s song “See You Again” featuring Charlie Puth takes the listener on a journey of grief after losing a friend. It has been a hard road without his best friend, but he knows his friend is in a better place. He will update his friend on everything that’s going on in his life when he sees him one day.
Some friends are more like family, and it is difficult to go through hard times without them. This song gives the hope of seeing your best friend in the afterlife.
“Hear You Me” by Jimmy Eat World
Song Year: 2001
This song is about the grief of losing a friend. This friend gave the man confidence, but he never showed his friend the thanks he deserved. He regrets not showing love to his friend when he had the chance.
This song portrays the importance of telling people how you feel because you never know when it will be the last time you see them.
“Everglow” by Coldplay
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pfX1OKqP80
Song Year: 2015
Many of us lose friends to car accidents. A tragedy like this leaves us missing our friends every day, wondering why it had to happen to them. While grief is prevalent, your love for the friend you lost gives you a certain glow when you think of them.
That glow gives you the strength to keep going in life. Their courage gives you the pride to stay strong and live your life to the fullest because they had it ripped away from them.
“Wake Me Up When September Ends” by Green Day
Song Year: 2004
The grief of losing someone gets renewed every year when the date of their death comes. The day it happened brings back all the memories of the day years ago and makes you miss them even more.
This song shows how it would be better if you could sleep through the painful days of remembering what happened in years past. Summer has passed, and September is upon you again, reminding you of the day you lost your loved one.
“Far Away” by Nickelback
Song Year: 2005
Nickelback sings about the hurt you experience when a relationship doesn’t work out. The man knows it was his fault that they aren’t together, but he regrets his decisions. He misses his best friend and wants her back.
The two have been far away from each other for a while, and he can’t handle the thought of living without her.
“Like 1999” by Valley
Song Year: 2021
Valley sings this song about missing old times with friends before technology took over. The man misses how things used to be in 1999 when life was simpler. He talks to his friends every day through his phone, but they don’t have the quality time they used to.
This song portrays how you can keep the same old friends but still miss how things used to be.
“Nothing’s the Same” by Alexander 23 and Jeremy Zucker
Song Year: 2021
Alexander 23 and Jeremy Zucker sing about the changes that happen when you enter adulthood. You don’t feel the same, you spend your days at the grocery store, and you still hang out with your old friends because things aren’t the same with them.
Missing your friends while you hang out with them is a hard thing to go through. You don’t know what has changed and what has happened, but you can’t figure out how to fix things.
“Stick Season” by Noah Kahan
Song Year: 2022
This song portrays the difficulties of seasonal depression. When you move away from home, you leave everything you have ever known. When you get to return home for the holidays, it is a battle of dealing with seasonal depression and going back to what you know, but things are not the same.
After you leave home, you miss all of your old friends. Coming home for the holidays allows you to see your family and friends but reminds you of why you left.
“Someday (Maggie’s)” by Zach Bryan
Song Year: 2022
Zach Bryan sings this song about always looking to the future. You are constantly planning for what’s to come, so you miss out on your life right now. Once the future comes, you realize how much you miss the past, and you wish you hadn’t worried so much about the future and lived in the moment.
You miss your old friends and past life, not realizing you are living in the future you once dreamed of. You remember all the good times you had with your friends and pine for the times you took for granted.
“Missing You” by Flatland Cavalry
Song Year: 2015
When you go through a breakup, you can’t help but think of the one you once loved and have memories of. You miss the simple pleasures of having someone there for you always. While you miss them, you wonder if they miss you too.
You two used to be the power couple, but you aren’t anymore, and you can’t help but miss those days.
“But Me” by Slade Coulter
Song Year: 2022
When you leave your hometown, you don’t realize how much it will change you. You leave thinking you will come back to the same home. When you finally come home, you understand nothing in the town has changed but yourself.
This type of change can cause you to miss the old friends and old feelings you had back then. While growth is good, sometimes the saying “ignorance is bliss” comes to life.
“Talking to the Moon” by Bruno Mars
Song Year: 2010
Bruno Mars sings this sad song about a failed relationship and missing your best friend. He knows the moon shines for everyone at night, so he sits outside talking to the moon. He hopes his former significant other is out doing the same thing and missing him too.
Popular Songs About Missing A Friend, Final Thoughts
Music is a tool that many use to cope and get through hard times. These emotional songs about missing a friend relate to many people who have gone through the loss of loved ones or failed relationships. The feeling of grief or missing someone is something almost everyone goes through. We can be united in this feeling through music to know we’re not alone.