The Top 10 Worst Songs to Play at a Funeral

When planning a funeral for someone, music choice is a critical component. You want to play some of that person’s favorite songs along with just some sad sorrowful tunes to get people in the mood for mourning. What you don’t want to do is play any of the following songs:

10. “Play That Funky Music” by Wild Cherry

While this is a fun song that gets people dancing, it just feels too out of place at a funeral. Also the line "Lay down the boogie and play that funky music til you die" might feel a little insensitive.

9. “Thriller” by Michael Jackson

Another great song, however the zombie theme is inappropriate for a funeral. You don’t want to even tease at the possibility that the dead person will rise out of the coffin and do the Thriller dance. The family doesn’t need that kind of stress.

8. “The Bad Touch” by Bloodhound Gang

This is just an odd song to use to honor someone’s life. Unless they worked at the Discovery Channel I would avoid this one.

7. “Shake it Off” by Taylor Swift

The average person hears this song by accident at least five times a day so to hear it at a funeral would create some seriously bad vibes. One of the last things you want at a funeral is irritated guests. Also this could be extra inappropriate if the person suffered from Parkinson's or Epilepsy.

6. “Livin’ La Vida Loca” by Ricky Martin

Here’s another song that gets people dancing. Because of the ironic lyrics about living, it’s best not to play this anywhere near a corpse. Unless they died skydiving or doing something else that could be considered part of “the crazy life” and had a great sense of humor, don’t play this.

5. “Fuck You” by Cee-Lo Green

This is a catchy tune, but again the lyrics are what make it inappropriate for a funeral. People might think that you’re saying “Fuck you” to the deceased and that’s not good.

4. “Bootylicious” by Destiny’s Child

Hearing this song at a funeral will lead to a lot of confused looks on people’s faces. People at a funeral know they’re not ready for this jelly. They don’t want the jelly. They want to mourn the dead.

3. “Who Let The Dogs Out?!” by Baha Men

Pretty much no one wants to hear this song in any context of reality so it’s that much worse at a funeral when people are severely depressed.

2. “Since U Been Gone” by Kelly Clarkson

Usually any songs about a breakup are bad to play at a funeral ceremony because they contain a lot of bitter lyrics about someone who has departed from their life.

And the number one worst song to play at a funeral is…

1. “Yakety Sax” by Spider Rich (The Benny Hill Theme)

Despite the fact there are no offensive or inappropriate lyrics, the instrumentation provides all the inappropriateness needed to make this the worst song to play at a funeral.