26 Songs About Loving Someone Who Is Taken
Sometimes we don’t choose who we fall for and that can be with a person who is in a relationship with someone else or wants back an ex after they move on with someone else. If you are in such a situation, here are some songs to connect with:
1. Cher Llyod – Want You Back
The song is about how she broke up with a guy whom she thought was not good enough for her. However, when he moved on she wanted him back and didn’t want any other girl to have him. She is jealous of the fact he is doing things they used to do together with his new girl.
It is the first track off of Cher’s debut studio album Sticks and Stones (2011).
2. Ariana Grande – Break Up With Your Boyfriend
The message in the song led to speculations that the song is directed at ex-boyfriend Big Sean who was dating Jhene Aiko. Ariana sings about meeting a boy at a party and feels attracted to him. However, she realizes that he has a girlfriend. She tells him to break up with his girlfriend so that she can have him for herself.
3. Trey Songz – Can’t Help But Wait
Trey sings about a girl that is dating a guy who isn’t treating her the way she deserves. He does the bare minimum, lies and makes her cry then turns to ask for forgiveness. However, Trey doesn’t want to come between her and her man and all he can do is love her from afar. He believes he can treat her better than her boyfriend does. He just wants her to finally open her eyes and see that she is worth more than that.
The track is part of the album Trey Day released in 2007.
4. Cher Lloyd – I Wish
This is the lead single from Lloyd’s second studio album, Sorry I’m Late which was released in 2014. The main message in the track is wishing to be better than her ex’s new girl so that she could steal him back.
Cher starts out by describing how she thinks the new girl is perfect and feels stupid for convincing herself that she ever had a chance with him. She sees that she is not this guy’s type but she still wishes that she was.
5. DJ Khaled – You Stay
The artists ponder why their significant other decides to stay with their respective man despite being treated poorly.
6. Drake – Marvin’s Room
The title of the song is a reference to Marvin Gaye’s studio which is popularly known as Marvin’s Room. It is where Drake recorded the track.
In the song, we see Drake deciding to call his ex while drunk to vent the feelings he still has for her. He shares how lonely he is, how in love he is still with her, reminisces the times they had and goes further to try to get her to leave her new man.
7. Disclosure feat Lorde – Magnets
8. Taylor Swift – You Belong With Me
The song tells the story of a boy who is in some sort of toxic relationship but he likes the girl too much to be able to see that another girl, Taylor Swift, would be a better match for him.
Taylor Swift stated that the inspiration behind the song was after she overheard a friend of hers talking to his girlfriend and he was completely on the defensive while his girlfriend was just yelling at him. He felt bad for him at the moment. This helped her come up with the first line of the song and build it from there.
9. Eric Ethridge – If I Met You First
10. Ella Mai feat Chris Brown – Whatchamacallit
Chris Brown teams up with Ella Mai to sing a song about a secretive relationship. The mischievousness and secretive nature of it fuels their attraction to each other further. They choose not to wait till they are about single since it won’t be as fun then.
11. Shawn Mendes – Treat You Better
This is the lead single for Shawn’s second studio album, Illuminate. There was speculation that it was about Camila Cabello but at the time they insisted that they were just friends.
Lyrically, Shawn sings to a girl he has an interest in but she is currently dating another guy He promises her that he will make a better boyfriend than the guy she is currently with. He says she deserves to be loved properly and respected.
12. Adele – Rumor Has It
The song is part of the album 21 and became her fourth consecutive top twenty in the US peaking at #16. Slinky Winfield is the man who is the subject of the song. He left Adele for a Burberry model whom Adele admits might have amazing looks but looks deteriorate over time. She values personality more as it’s easier to connect with someone. There is a rumor being spread that he is leaving her for Adele.
13. Halsey – Is There Somewhere
Halsey tries to show her listeners her point of view on falling in love with someone despite being in a relationship and being their second choice. She accepts her feelings for him and she comprehends him only participating in it for lust. However, she is willing to pretend they’re together.
Halsey stated that the track is a prologue to her other track “Room 93”. It tells the story of a couple in a hotel room experiencing a tender moment together.
14. Nicki Minaj, Sean Garret – Get It All
This is the lead single from Sean Garrett’s debut mixtape The Inkwell. Lyrically, the song is about Sean having an affair with a certain lady and he believes he may be falling for her. The girl is encouraging him to break it off with his girlfriend since she can be a better one.
15. Avril Lavigne – Girlfriend
The hit track is about liking a man who is taken by a partner who is unworthy of them. Avril wants the guy to dump his partner and make her his girlfriend instead.
Despite Avril writing the track while drunk, it ended up topping the chart and has received numerous remixes in different languages.
16. Avant – Lie About Us
In the song, Avant, who has fallen for his mistress, tries to convince her to be patient before he can leave his current girlfriend and let the whole world know about them. She is tired of sneaking around and she thought she was going to be able to wait for him to leave his lady but now she’s getting impatient. Avant is afraid of breaking his main chick’s heart but he knows it’s a step he has to go through with.
17. Halsey – So Good
Lyrically, the song is about someone who is away but is on your mind because you feel something for them. Halsey stated it is about a friend she was in love with since she was always there for her, however, at that time she was with someone else.
18. Whitney Houston – Saving All Of My Love For You
This is a song written by Michael Masser and Gerry Goffin. It was originally a minor hit for Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. Whitney’s cover was able to top the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was her first #1 song.
Lyrically, Whitney sings about being the other woman. She is having a secret relationship with a married man who has a family that needs him there. Even though she doesn’t like not being his priority, she feels that no one man can be as good as him. She would rather just wait for her turn rather than find a man just for herself.
19. Olivia Rodrigo – Happier
In this track, Olivia wishes the best for an ex-lover in his new relationship but at the same time, she also hopes to remain a significant memory in his life. She hopes he is happy but doesn’t want him to be as happy as he was with her. She admits to being selfish with him and not wanting him to find a girl who is better than her.
The song is part of the album SOUR which centers on her breakup with her ex-boyfriend Bassett.
20. Ne-Yo – Do You
Ne-Yo reminisces about an ex and he is torn by the way things ended. He writes a letter to state how he felt about how everything ended even though she has moved on. He reaches out to his ex because the thoughts of her have been weighing heavily on him. He wants to get some form of closure by telling her that he has not stopped thinking about her.
Ne-Yo’s ex has already moved and is engaged to someone else. The two just had a baby girl. Ne-Yo makes it clear that he doesn’t want to cause any trouble between the two of them.
21. James Blunt – You’re Beautiful
During an interview with Oprah, James Blunt stated that the song is about seeing his ex-girlfriend on the subway in London with her new man who he didn’t know existed. She and he locked eyes and lived a lifetime at that moment but didn’t do anything about it.
In another interview with Huffington Post, James said that it is about a guy who was as high as a kite on drugs in the subway stalking someone else’s girlfriend when that guy is there in front of him.
22. James Arthur – Can I Be Him
The slow tempo track describes Arthur’s feelings towards someone he loves but they don’t love him back. Her singing reminds him of a time he felt unbroken and now she is all he wants. The girl, however, doesn’t notice him and is actually dating someone else.
The track is off the album Back from the Edge, released in 2016.
23. Olivia Rodrigo – Drivers License
This is the first single on Olivia Rodrigo’s debut album SOUR. Her ex-boyfriend Joshua Bassett is the main subject of the song and the album. He broke up with her and shortly started dating Sabrina Carpenter. Olivia stated that the heartbreak was so confusing to her.
Joshua helped Olivia learn how to drive when they were still dating. In the track, Olivia is in denial that he could actually love someone else so quickly.
24. Ed Sheeran – Happier
Ed shares his mindset after learning that his ex-girlfriend has already moved on to a new man. In an interview with GQ, he had this to say about the track:
“Happier” is another standout ballad with his cleverest and most mature lyrics yet, looking back on a failed relationship with an original twist.
25. Kelly Rowland, Nelly – Dilemma
The track is part of Nelly’s Nellyville and Kelly Rowland’s Simply Deep and has been thought to be the biggest song in their careers. It was Nelly’s first single in countries such as the UK, Ireland, Australi, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Lyrically, it is about a man and a woman falling in love despite the woman already being in a relationship. She always thinks about him even when hanging out with her boyfriend. Nelly is basically just waiting for her to dump her man so that they can be together.
26. Robyn – Call Your Girlfriend
The other woman is tired of waiting and thinks it unfair that he keeps her waiting. She advises him on how to split up with his girlfriend so that she can end up as his official girlfriend. She then goes into detail about what to tell her at different stages of their break-up conversation and how he should respond based on how she reacts.
The song is part of the album Body Talk (2010).