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A list reformat discussion is currently open on the List of songs about suicide
This is a list of songs about suicide, divided between those in which the suicide is the main theme of the lyrics, and those which mention suicide but not as the main theme. This division is not always clear-cut. Sad songs without mention of suicide should not be listed here.

When adding a new song, try to provide a short one-line summary of how it relates to suicide. Some entries provides a stable Archive.org copy of the lyrics and/or a very short summary ("verge-of-suicide by drowning," "suicide by sleeping pills," "aborted suicide with razor blade," "suicide of a friend," etc.)

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Main theme

Against suicide

Mentioned

Allegedly about suicide

These are songs that are believed to allude to suicide, but have not been confirmed or denied by the artist(s) in question.

Misinterpreted

Songs either misinterpreted as songs about suicide, or where a reference to suicide cannot be ruled out.

  • "I Hate Myself and Want to Die" by Nirvana. This song is a joke, as frontman Kurt Cobain explained many times. The title was meant with extreme sarcasm, as many people thought Kurt was suicidal, so he made a joke out of it.
  • "Goodbye Cruel World" by Pink Floyd in The Wall *
  • "Seasons in the Sun" by Jacques Brel, English lyric by Rod McKuen, recorded by the Kingston Trio and a pop hit by Terry Jacks. This song is actually about the slow and prolonged death (apparently from disease) of a man whose wife is having an affair with his best friend, and does not deal with suicide in any appreciable form. It is, however, a touching lament from the dying man to his family and friends.
  • "One" by Metallica (The song talks about how a person, not dead but not alive, wants to die, but physically can't)
  • "King's Crossing" by Elliott Smith(This song describes a return to heroin use)
  • ".45" by Shinedown (Quote from Brent, their lead singer: "The inspiration from the song really came from – I think a lot of people kinda take a literal sense because of the lyrics – but the song is basically about the day that you wake up and you look at yourself in the mirror and you finally decide that you want to try to become comfortable in your own skin, and realize that you’re gonna have to make yourself happy before you’re going to make anyone else happy. And basically, the 45 isn’t an actual literal term for a gun, I used it as a metaphor for the world, the 45 is actually the world and what it hands you every day of your life. When you get up, it’s a gift to be alive to begin with. A lot of different people, when I’ve talked about it, they said, “Do you really honestly mean that?” And I’m like, “Well, yeah.” Because I’ve been in that situation where I didn’t know if I wanted to continue going on and I didn’t know how to necessarily make myself comfortable with who I was, trying to find a way of learning more about myself. And you come from a dark place sometimes, and that’s really the reality of the song. It’s about overcoming and about moving forward. And it’s basically about understanding that it’s not always going to be good, but you re

 

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