Songs to Remember Loved Ones on Your Wedding Day
Updated November 14, 2023 | Author: Matthew Campbell
Music accompanies all phases of life. Birth. Graduation. Marriage. Holidays. Death. Music is power. It communicates with our souls — our very beings. Where words fail, music takes the lead.
Discover through my list of the best memorial songs to remember loved ones.
When picking out the song to remember a loved one, you must consider the following 3 factors:
- Does the song have a special meaning to both of you?
- Does the song’s meaning describe your relationship?
- What is the tempo of the song (fast or slow) to determine when the song fits best into your wedding day?
As an experienced wedding DJ, I’ve assembled a list of songs to remember loved ones. Songs are selected by the meaning of the song and popular hits by today’s brides. Besides the relationship type between you, additional lists are grouped by genre to match your taste in music
New Memorial Songs
- “Liquor Store In The Sky” by BJ The Chicago Kid, Freddie Gibbs (R&B – 2023)
- “Eyes Closed” by Ed Sheeran (Pop – 2023)
- “Never Not Remember You” by Cooper Alan (Country – 2023)
- “Lift Me Up” by Rihanna (Pop – 2022)
- “Let Somebody Go” by Coldplay X Selena Gomez (Pop – 2021)
- “Red Bird” by HunterGirl (Country – 2022)
- “Beat You There” by Will Dempsey (Country – 2022)
- “Paper Airplanes” by Ruth B. (Singer-Songwriter – 2022)
- “Lifetime” by Three Days Grace (Rock – 2022)
- “Bigger Than The Whole Sky” by Taylor Swift (Pop – 2022)
Trending Memorial Songs
- “Go Rest High on That Mountain” by Vince Gill (Country – 1994)
- “I Can Only Imagine” by MercyMe (Christian – 1999)
- “When I Get Where I’m Going” by Brad Paisley, Dolly Parton (Country – 2005)
- “See You Again” by Wiz Khalifa feat. Charlie Puth (Hip Hop – 2015)
- “Somewhere Over The Rainbow/What A Wonderful World” by Israel Kamakawiwo’ole (World – 1990)
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Celebration of Life Tracks
Remember Your Dad
- “Dance With My Father” by Luther Vandross (R&B – 2003)
- “Thank You for Being My Dad” by Jon Barker (Singer-Songwriter – 2006)
- “Heaven Right Now” by Thomas Rhett (Country – 2021)
- “When I Get There” by P!nk (Pop – 2023)
- “Monsters” by James Blunt (Pop – 2019)
Remember Your Mom
- “Two Of Us” by Louis Tomlinson (Pop – 2019)
- “Bye Mom” by Chris Janson (Country – 2022)
- “Supermarket Flowers” by Ed Sheeran (Pop – 2017)
- “Mother” by Sleeping At Last (Singer-Songwriter – 2023)
Remember a Child
- “Tears in Heaven” by Eric Clapton (Rock – 1992)
- “Who’d You Be Today” by Kenny Chesney (Country – 2005)
- “Liam’s Song” by Tainted Lyric (Country – 2021)
Remember a Friend
- “See You Again” by Wiz Khalifa feat. Charlie Puth (Hip Hop – 2015)
- “Drink A Beer” by Luke Bryan (Country – 2013)
- “Show Me Around” by Carly Pearce (Country – 2020)
- “F64” by Ed Sheeran (Pop – 2023)
Remember a Loved One
- “Sad Song” by We The Kings, Elena Coats (Alternative – 2013)
- “Lay Me Down” by Sam Smith (Pop – 2014)
- “Red Bird” by HunterGirl (Country – 2022)
- “If Heaven Had a Landline” by Brian Congdon (Country – 2022)
Remember a Military Person
- “The Ones Who Didn’t Make it Back Home” by Justin Moore (Country – 2019)
- “Arlington” by Trace Adkins (Country – 2005)
- “Some Gave All” by Billy Ray Cyrus (Country – 1992)
Best Country Hits
- Never Not Remember You – Cooper Alan
- Red Bird – HunterGirl
- Beat You There – Will Dempsey
- Bye Mom – Chris Janson
- Liam’s Song – Tainted Lyric
- Heaven Right Now – Thomas Rhett
- Show Me Around – Carly Pearce
- Knowing You – Kenny Chesney
- Drowning – Chris Young
- The Father, My Son, and the Holy Ghost – Craig Morgan
- Heaven Bound Balloons – Granger Smith
- The Ones That Didn’t Make It Back Home – Justin Moore
- I’ll Carry You Home – Trisha Yearwood
- Broken Halos – Chris Stapleton
- Forever Loving You – Tanya Tucker
- Fishing in the Sky – Travis Smith
- You Should Be Here – Cole Swindell
- Drink A Beer – Luke Bryan
- If Heaven Was Needing A Hero – Jo Dee Messina
- People Are Crazy – Billy Currington
- Cryin’ For Me (Wayman’s Song) – Toby Keith
- When I Get Where I’m Going – Brad Paisley and Dolly Parton
- Arlington – Trace Adkins
- Remember When – Alan Jackson
- I Miss My Friend – Darryl Worley
- Song For Dad – Keith Urban
- One More Day – Diamond Rio
- Angels In Waiting – Tammy Cochran
- Wish You Were Here – Mark Wills
- Holes In The Floor Of Heaven – Steve Wariner
- Go Rest High On That Mountain – Vince Gill
- Angels Among Us – Alabama
- Some Gave All – Billy Ray Cyrus
Unique Indie Hits
- Paper Airplanes – Ruth B.
- One More I Love You – Alex Warren
- Sad Song – We The Kings featuring Elena Coats
Beautiful Rock Tunes
- Lifetime – Three Days Grace
- Birds – Imagine Dragons
- Coming Back Down – Hollywood Undead
- So Far Away – Avenged Sevenfold
- Goodnight, Travel Well – The Killers
- Go On – Jack Johnson
- Call Me – Shinedown
- Tangled up in You – Staind
- The Last Song – Foo Fighters
- In Loving Memory – Alter Bridge
- When I Look To The Sky – Train
- Keep Me In Your Heart – Warren Zevon
- An Original Man (A Song for Keith) – Yardbirds
- Last Kiss – Pearl Jam
- August 7, 4:15 – Jon Bon Jovi
- Tears In Heaven – Eric Clapton
- 100% – Sonic Youth
- I’ll Be There – Escape Club
- The Living Years – Mike + The Mechanics
- One Tree Hill – U2
- Afterimage – Rush
- Wish You Were Here – Pink Floyd
Popular Pop Tracks
- Eyes Closed – Ed Sheeran
- Bigger Than The Whole Sky – Taylor Swift
- Let Somebody Go (Piano Version) – Coldplay X Selena Gomez
- Visiting Hours – Ed Sheeran
- Million Miles – Angelina Jordan
- Not Far Away – Love Street Lovers
- Two Of Us – Louis Tomlinson
- Heaven’s Not Too Far – We Three
- Supermarket Flowers – Ed Sheeran
- Dancing in the Sky – Dani and Lizzy
- If You Could See Me Now – The Script
- Gone Too Soon – Simple Plan
- Are You Here – Corinne Bailey Rae
- Bye Bye – Mariah Carey
- Stop Crying Your Heart Out – Oasis
- For Always – Josh Groban
- Being Boring – Pet Shop Boys
- My Heart Will Go On – Celine Dion
- Candle In The Wind – Elton John
- Angels – Robbie Williams
- Angel Standing By – Jewel
- Time To Say Goodbye (Con Te Partiro) – Sarah Brightman
- I Will Remember You – Sarah McLachlan
- Gone Too Soon – Michael Jackson
- Wish You Were Here – Bee Gees
- Life In A Northern Town – Dream Academy
Tip
If your Mom passed away before your wedding, read 5 Ways of Honoring Your Mother’s Memory At Your Wedding.
R&B Favorites
- Liquor Store In The Sky – BJ The Chicago Kid, Freddie Gibbs
- Lift Me Up – Rihanna
- A Mother’s Prayer – K. Michelle
- Dance With My Father – Luther Vandross
- It’s So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday – Boyz II Men
- Missing You – Diana Ross
Hip Hop Songs for Funerals
- See You Again – Wiz Khalifa featuring Charlie Puth
- Dance – NAS
- I’ll Be Missing You – Puff Daddy & Faith Evans
- Tha Crossroads – Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
Folk Tunes To Honor Loved One
- Jealous of the Angels – Jenn Bostic
- 21 Days – Brian Fallon
- On Your Side – The Innocence Mission
- Thank You for Being My Dad – Jon Barker
Misc Tunes For Slideshow
- With Me – Sum 41
- Somewhere Over The Rainbow – Israel Kamakawiwo’ole
Have a favorite, not on my list? Be sure to share your song at the bottom of the list.
Listen to our podcast about the memorial songs.
FAQs
Why trust Matthew Campbell?
Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd.
Thanks Bridget. Great song and we will add it to the list!
I lost my son Michael who was only 18 tragically to a dui driver 2 months ago. Some very good songs are “Call Me” Shinedown “Pieces” Sum 41 Stonesour “Through the glass” “Coming Back Down” Hollywood Undead “Tangled up in you” Staind “Gone too soon” Simple Plan “Stop Crying Your eyes out” Oasis “If you could see me now” The Script “With Me” Sum 41 hope this helps some people out there as much as they’ve helped me.
Hi Charles. Sorry to hear about your son. Prayers for you and your family. Thank you for the song suggestions. We will add them to the list!
So Far Away by Avenged Sevenfold?
Thanks Mackenzie. Great song and we will add it to the list.
Great list! I have another addition cole swindale “you should be here”
Thanks Rosie and thanks for the great suggestion. We will definitely add it to the list.
These are all really great suggestions but I have another that might be fitting… “if heaven wasn’t far away” by Justin Moore
Thanks Patricia! Great song and we will add to the list.
I recently lost my son he was 38
I would like some suggestion for songs to play at his memorial
Hi Donna. Sorry for your loss. Many of the songs above are great. However, I would suggest playing songs more to his personality. For example, If he was an upbeat, fun loving guy, then have happy songs in celebration of his life instead of the stereotypical songs played at memorials. Hope this helps. God Bless.