Breakup songs in Western music that I want to sing at karaoke: world classics and popular hits

StrongerKelly Clarkson

Kelly Clarkson – Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You) [Official Video]

It’s the perfect song for anyone who’s had their heart broken, gone through something unbearably painful, or feels irritated with someone.

Listening to this track clears away the haze in your heart—it speaks for your feelings so well that it leaves you refreshed.

GirlfriendAvril Lavigne

Avril Lavigne – Girlfriend (Official Video)

Without the lyrics, it sounds like a bright, upbeat song, but once the lyrics are added, it’s actually about a confident, slightly stubborn girl who’s in love with a boy who already has a girlfriend.

It’s a track that makes me a bit envious, thinking how nice it would be to be as bold and self-assured as the girl in the song.

Stay(feat. Mikky Ekko)Rihanna

Rihanna – Stay ft. Mikky Ekko

The lyrics can be interpreted in many ways—perhaps it’s a story about a couple who have grown apart.

It’s included on Rihanna’s seventh album, Unapologetic.

The featured artist, Mikky Ekko, was unknown at the time, and this song became his first to chart.

abcdefuGAYLE

GAYLE – abcdefu (Official Music Video)

Texas-born GAYLE captured global empathy with the anger and disappointment she poured into a song she wrote in the thick of her teenage years about an ex-boyfriend.

Released as her major-label debut in August 2021, the track channels intense emotions toward a former lover through alphabet-based, sarcastic wordplay, while keeping a touch of humor by making an exception only for her beloved dog—an honest, down-to-earth sensibility that shines through.

Known as a track from the EP “A Study of the Human Experience Volume One” and nominated for the Grammy Award for Song of the Year, it reminds us of the importance of releasing pent-up feelings.

It’s a song to play when you’re reeling from heartbreak or when you just need to vent your true feelings to someone.

We Don’t Talk AnymoreCharlie Puth

Charlie Puth – We Don’t Talk Anymore (feat. Selena Gomez) [Official Video]

This song, sung by Charlie who is known for hits like “One Call Away.” A girlfriend he cherished—though they used to talk so much, now they hardly speak at all.

This is recommended for those who want to turn that sad feeling into a song and sing it.