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When I talk about the top 10 wedding songs for 2020, I am talking about the best wedding music for your first dance, last dance, ceremony, father and bride and mother and bride dances. I conducted some very thorough research for my top 10 wedding music list, so sit back and enjoy my top 10 wedding songs for 2020 and some amazing bands that perform that music!
Before I start with my top 10, like thousands of other wedding couples, you may find these guides as useful too. A Seventh Second we’re here to help in every way we can, especially since lockdown life. We also have a pretty amazing special offer for wedding couples right now which you can see below to. Don’t miss out!
The best wedding bands for your 2021 and 2o22 wedding!
Do I need a first dance at my wedding?
and finally…
COVID-19 may have stopped weddings for a while there but weddings are now back! Before we head off on a musical journey through each of my wedding songs, let me explain why my list is a little bit special. When compiling my list, I didn’t just simply look at Spotify and copy and paste their playlists into here and leave it at that as most blog posts have over the years. No, I’ve taken it further giving you a far more comprehensive list because we don’t do things in halves here at Seventh Second and neither do our wedding bands when performing these songs. I compiled my results from the following sources.
Few! It’s been quite the task compiling all this but I think it’s worth it. I hope you find it super useful for your wedding music planning.
I also thought it useful and fun to add a memorable, romance, fun factor and dance difficulty score out of 10 for each song. Trivia, background history and musical insight (from us wedding musos) amongst other information for each song is included in my top 10 too. You want the best wedding music possible and wouldn’t it be cool for your guests to see what a music aficionado you are and what a killer wedding you put on?? You might discover something amazing about a song that means a lot to you in my top 10 as well! This article is a great read on how music is a truly intimate social experience privately and publicly and I think the songs picked by couples for their wedding day proves that idea completely.
This is the fun stuff I try to include with each of my top 10 songs.
Here’s a quick peek at the top 10…
Anyway, let’s get stuck into this list of the top 10 wedding songs of 2020. There are some classic and contemporary tunes here to suit all wedding themes so you shouldn’t be short of ideas come wedding day. In no particular order, let’s start with the boy wonder, Ed Sheeran…
With 2.9 billion, yes billion views on Youtube, Thinking Out Loud is one popular tune and it’s here to stay! I’ve known as much for the last 4 years as I’ve consistently seen this song requested as a first dance song. In fact, it’s probably been the most popular first dance choice with all our newlyweds and that’s no surprise with its romantic music, lyrics and stunning “first dance” stylised video where Ed struts his stuff with professional dancer Brittany Cherry.
Romance score
10 out of 10
Fun score
4 out of 10
Dance difficulty
4 out of 10
Memorable score
5 out of 10
Our wedding band From the Top (below) have performed this song a lot and always thought it sounded a lot like Marvin Gaye’s 1973 classic, Let’s Get It On. Interestingly, the Gaye family estate won a copyright lawsuit against Ed’s Thinking Out Loud in 2018. If you love Thinking Out Loud but are worried it’s been overplayed at weddings, I’d strongly suggest Gaye’s tune for your first dance song. A fun fact about Thinking Out Loud is despite its enormous popularity, Ed has always maintained he has better songs!
John Legends’ All Of Me is another wedding music classic being regularly performed at wedding ceremonies and for first dances. With over a billion streams and counting on Spotify, it’s one enduring tune! A combination of highly personal, romantic lyrics and steady tempo make it perfect for intimate first dances or emotional wedding ceremonies.
Romance score
10 out of 10
Fun score
4 out of 10
Dance difficulty
5 out of 10
Memorable score
6 out of 10
With a full live band, Ignition Showband (below) love performing this song for couples as they can add musical depth and romanticism to make your wedding music moment truly special. Did you know that Mr Legend wrote the song for his wife Chrissy Teigen? No wonder it resonates with newlyweds all over the world. Mr Legend even performed the song at Kanye and Kim’s wedding. That’s one high profile wedding song!
With a whopping 1.5 billion views on Youtube, I can safely say that a Thousand Years is not only one of the most popular wedding songs out there but is officially one of the biggest wedding ceremony songs out there.
Romance score
10 out of 10
Fun score
4 out of 10
Dance difficulty
5 out of 10
Memorable score
7 out of 10
Our solo wedding singer Rae (below) has performed this song many times and it never fails to bring everyone together at the wedding ceremony. Even though it is over 8 years old now, the song Christina penned for the Twilight movies endures and is a firm favourite with newlyweds every year. Did you know that Christina is a huge Twilight fan and after crying like a baby watching Breaking Dawn she wrote this stunning song for it? It explains the raw emotion displayed in the song.
Possibly more well known for his rhythm stomping tunes Uptown Funk and 24K Magic, Bruno Mars is a pop institution. With 40 million Youtube views, his 2010 hit is an obvious pick for many newlyweds wedding music lists. With its upbeat feel and lyrics seemingly written for every wedding ever, it’s a firm dancefloor favourite with couples.
Romance score
8 out of 10
Fun score
8 out of 10
Dance difficulty
5 out of 10
Memorable score
7 out of 10
Flair (below) love performing this song for everyone, getting the whole dance floor moving or foot-tapping along to newlyweds strutting their stuff. A funny fact about this tune is that Bruno’s lyrics describe spontaneously marrying your partner after getting way too drunk in Vegas!
A true classic whether performed at a wedding or not, Etta James’s At Last has been a popular wedding and more specifically, father and daughter dance at weddings for years now.
Romance score
9 out of 10
Fun score
4 out of 10
Dance difficulty
3 out of 10
Memorable score
4 out of 10
Our acoustic wedding trio Encore can’t count the number of times they’ve performed it and it never gets old or boring. With a fantastic female vocalist, this song adds a vintage touch to any wedding. Over 177 million streams on Spotify makes this song wedding music royalty and you wouldn’t be making a bad choice if you picked this song for a special moment during your wedding. At Last was originally written by Mack Gordon and Harry Warren in 1941 for the big screen and was only picked up by Etta James in 1961.
Ahh, the King! Elvis had many, many great songs and I perform plenty of them at weddings for couples young and old but Can’t Help Falling In Love stands out as a classic first and last dance. The perfect song to dance to, it oozes love and commitment and with 297 million streams on Spotify, you can’t go wrong with this wedding classic.
Romance score
9 out of 10
Fun score
6 out of 10
Dance difficulty
3 out of 10
Memorable score
6 out of 10
The Usual Suspects (below) agree it’s a beautiful song to perform and it’s always lovely to witness beaming wedding couples enjoy this song and an intimate moment together. Elvis was one of the first to notice the songs emotional power and potential and even performed a unique version of the song for his grandma on her birthday. What a good grandson he was!
You Are The Best Thing by Ray Lamontagne may not be an obvious choice or even a song you had considered for your wedding music list but trust me, it’s a firm favourite, especially as a last dance to end your wedding party with.
Romance score
7 out of 10
Fun score
8 out of 10
Dance difficulty
6 out of 10
Memorable score
8 out of 10
Good Fellas (below) enjoy performing this song full blast as its upbeat, happy vibes give you and your wedding guests a spring in your step at the end of a brilliant wedding day. Over 21 million views on Youtube make it a pretty popular song and Ray must be pleased because before his amazing musical success, he was essentially homeless, drifting from city to city!
If you like some foot-stomping, folk style wedding music, Tom Odell’s massive hit, Grow Old With Me is a must-have. With 27 million Youtube views, it’s not quite as popular as Another Love but its quirky style has given it cult, first dance wedding music status!
Romance score
8 out of 10
Fun score
7 out of 10
Dance difficulty
6 out of 10
Memorable score
9 out of 10
Our acoustic folk band Paper Boats (below) never complain when asked to perform this song as its thumping feel and raise the roof ending gets every single person up and dancing with the brand new Mr and Mrs. It’s a great song for any wedding and I’d strongly suggest you give it a listen and consider it. Did you know that Tom, only 22 when he released Grow Old With Me, says he writes some of his best music when his house is a mess and he hasn’t done the washing up in ages? It takes all sorts!
This one may come as a surprise to some as it’s not on most peoples playlists but believe me, year after year, this song is constantly picked for first dances UK wide. What you might find even more surprising are the 81 million streams it has on Spotify. It’s one popular tune!
Romance score
8 out of 10
Fun score
5 out of 10
Dance difficulty
6 out of 10
Memorable score
7 out of 10
Our all-action wedding band Electric Jukebox (below) guarantee they will be asked to perform The One at one wedding per month at the least and why not? Its beautifully truthful lyrics and stunning arrangement make it a wedding go to and a tune that not everyone will be expecting but will know and enjoy. The boys in Kodaline first performed the song at their friend’s wedding and said it was scarier than performing it at Glastonbury. The One was clearly part of wedding music royalty from day one then.
Last but certainly not least is Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls. Like The One, Iris is a firm first dance favourite and an extremely popular wedding music song. 226 million Youtube hits don’t lie – this song is here to stay and gets regularly requested by newlyweds or their guests when we DJ.
Romance score
8 out of 10
Fun score
5 out of 10
Dance difficulty
7 out of 10
Memorable score
7 out of 10
Our popular wedding band League of Gentlemen will be performing this rock-tinged first dance classic for years to come and with its fun ballad-style arrangement and insightful lyrics we don’t mind one bit! Did you know that the song was written about Nick Cage’s character in City of Angels where he falls so deeply in love that he sacrifices all to be with someone? I can’t think of a better story to compliment your wedding day or a better way to end my top 10!
If none of those songs tickled your fancy, I always recommend the songs below too. Classics, modern classics and even recent Hollywood academy award winners make up my list and our wedding bands like Flair below will grace wedding stages performing these brilliant songs this year. If you want even more wedding music suggestions just ask.
Marry Me – Train
Stand By Me – Ben E. King
Johnny Be Goode – Chuck Berry
Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton
Shallow – Lady Gaga/ Bradley Cooper
Your Song – Elton John or Ellie Goulding
Pencil Full Of Lead – Paolo Nutini
Chasing Cars – Snow Patrol
Spotify has some great playlists out there and their wedding music ones are no exception! I’ve designed plenty over the years especially for our newlyweds and nowadays I get a lot of couples making up their own. They go down really well, complimenting any wedding theme so I’ve highlighted a few good ones here and here. You’re sure to find some musical inspiration in them.
I thought I would end this guide with a bit of fun. I’d like to point out that the couples from these tales were the first ones to admit they had maybe picked a first dance dud!
One couple once picked Gangnam style for their first dance and although not the worst choice ever, asking their whole wedding party as a surprise to bust out the dance moves from the video whilst we blasted the song over the PA just led to mass confusion and a few people falling over! At the time it was a bit mad but we all saw the funny side later.
Another lovely couple admitted to us that they loved the Kaiser Chiefs so much that they picked this song as their first dance without really thinking about it. We did suggest that “Every Day I Love You Less and Less” might not be the greatest song to strut your first dance stuff too but they did it with great style anyway. There were some confused looks on the faces of their guests though…
I hope you enjoyed my wedding music list! Hopefully, one of our bands tickles your fancy and will be seen performing some of these songs for you in the future. If you have any top wedding song suggestions let me know, I’d love to hear about your wedding ideas, inspirations and the wedding music you chose for your big day. If you are planning on having your wedding in 2021 or 2022 why not take advantage of our great offer below too?
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Thanks,
Oana and the Seventh Second family
