If you’re anything like me, music is an absolute necessity at any life event, and by music, I obviously mean songs about lesbian love. As a queer Tennessee elopement photographer living in Music City, I basically score my life from the moment I wake up to the moment I go to sleep, so believe me when I say I’ve been curating your WLW elopement or wedding playlist so you don’t have to.

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Sapphic Songs About Lesbian Love

1. Queen - G Flip, mxmtoon

Genre: R&B

Tempo: Midtempo

As we well know, no one worships women quite like other women (or nonbinary lesbians), and the simp levels in this song are off the charts. This groovy R&B song is a complete vibe, from the tone of the electric guitar riff to the lyrics - “who the fuck made you so strong?” It’s exactly as danceable as you’d expect from drummer/singer/songwriter/nobinary icon G Flip, and it’s sure to be a perfect tone-setting song for getting ready to marry your own queen.

2. Cherry (feat. Hayley Kiyoko) - FLETCHER, Hayley Kiyoko

Genre: Pop

Tempo: Upbeat

Sometimes, as lesbians, we are subtle. Other times, we are really, really not. In this sexy pop banger FLETCHER and Hayley Kiyoko combine their mutual lesbian power into an explosion of what it feels like to crush on a girl. With the tease of “you’re such a dream, and I’m dying to see, if it’s real, if it’s right, if it tastes just like a cherry”, this might be the perfect song for your first make-out as WIVES!

3. Lola - Maude Latour

Genre: Lofi pop

Tempo: Midtempo

It’s no secret that a large part of the wlw experience is the sometimes-blurry lines between friendship and more. In her vulnerable mid-tempo bop, Maude Latour has us dancing on this familiar line. Her hypnotizing voice sings “I’m turned on when I’m respected” as the beat lulls you into the bigness of loving the most amazing person you’ve ever met. It’s made for that sweet after-ceremony bliss.

4. Touching Yourself - The Japanese House

Genre: Pop

Tempo: Midtempo

Amber Bain exactly captures the flustered, shallow breathing mess we become when the hottest girl in the world sends you a sexy message while you’re in public. The very first line, “I had to go into the other room”, sets a tone of dumb-founded attraction that we maintain throughout this banger. For the perfect combo of sweet and hot, this is your song.

5. God Is A Woman - Rett Madison

Genre: Folk

Tempo: Slow

The quieter moments on your special day call for the slightly dark acoustic vibe of this song. Madison’s crazy vocal runs and lyrical poetry communicate the resolve it takes to love in the face of oppression. She sings “I bet God’s a woman, and she made rainbows to give us a sign”, to remind us that queerness is right and natural. It’s the perfect message for your day celebrating your beautiful love!

6. Pynk (feat. Grimes) - Janelle Monáe

Genre: Pop R&B

Tempo: Midtempo

The name of the game in this song is innuendo. The incredible Janelle Monáe found four minutes’ worth of ways to celebrate femininity, female sexuality, and graphic physicality, all through metaphor and imagery. Imagine singing along to “pynk where it’s deepest inside, pynk beyond forest and thighs” while you revel in the joy of each other! This is a perfect early-dancefloor song to lighten and loosen the vibe.

7. Holy - King Princess

Genre: Alt pop

Tempo: Slow

As if you needed reminding of the incredible power of women, King Princess uses this R&B track to sing “I rule with a velvet tongue, and my dress undone”. This song dances between desire and aloofness with an ascending piano chord progression and halting percussion, definitively earning its spot on your joyful day.

8. 1950 - King Princess

Genre: Alt pop

Tempo: Midtempo

This breakout hit earns its spot on your wedding or elopement playlist by paying to homage to gay relationships of yesteryear. Whatever level of oppression we face, lesbian love has always been brave. Not to mention the romance and sexiness of these melodies! 1950 is a perfect slow dance song.

Now that you’ve found the perfect soundtrack, are you ready to find a queer photographer to capture your queer elopement or wedding? Click here to learn more about my elopement experience!

9. Breathless - IMUR

Genre: R&B

Tempo: Midtempo

Full disclosure - in my mind this song is about lesbian love because it was used during a long-awaited Nicole Haught + Waverly Earp sex scene in the feminist western Wynonna Earp. Whether it was written about lesbian love is one of the universe’s mysteries, but it complemented the fruition of these characters’ delayed desires with a level of yearning I personally find conclusively lesbian. This dragging, synth-heavy number is definitely tailor-made for alone time with your partner on the day you join your lives.

10. Ivy - Taylor Swift

Genre: Folk

Tempo: Slow

Similar to Breathless - this song earns its spot by dint of its use during a lesbian sex scene in Dickinson. Lesbian love can so often feel transcendental, and the lyric “I’d meet you where the spirit meets the bones” certainly hits a chord. This chill vibe is great for those quiet moments when you steal away together from the busyness of your day.

11. Lovin’ Is Bible - The Aces

Genre: Pop

Tempo: Upbeat

Okay, so this is the crowning glory of the dancefloor. This straightforward bop is everything you could want to dance to - whether you relate to the religious references or take it at face value for its uptempo beat and happy energy. The Aces bring their signature syncopation and skillful guitar performances for this high-energy smash, singing “feel the heat when you’re around, got the seats laying down”. It’ll bring all the blissful energy to the deep joy of your love!

12. Solid - MUNA

Genre: Pop

Tempo: Midtempo

This song was written to celebrate loving a strong woman - “she made herself all by herself, she’s so solid”. The gang vocal chants in the chorus are impossible not to yell along to. MUNA’s signature production style is all over this shimmering mid-tempo celebration, and it’s sure to have you and any guests singing with your hands in the air.

13. Close Isn’t Enough - Daena

Genre: Pop

Tempo: Slow

Marriage is a joining - bringing you legally as close as two people can get. But we all know that, sometimes, close isn’t enough. In my experience, it is a signature of lesbian love to want to open up your partner’s skin and crawl inside forever. Daena’s production evokes a cosmic desire, bigger than the sky, deeper than the ocean, and her lyrics take it even further, “it feels so far, free-falling to the bottom of your heart”. She has written the perfect song for gazing into your new spouse’s eyes and trying to fall in.

14. Red Wine Supernova - Chappell Roan

Genre: Pop

Tempo: Upbeat

Obviously no wlw playlist would be complete without the moment’s it girl, Chappell Roan. Red Wine Supernova swings between spacious and searching and angsty and impatient, on a queer ride we’re all familiar with. Its popularity makes this number a dancefloor or dressing-room necessity, sure to kick-start the party vibes on your special day.

15. 10x Better - Marielle Kraft

Genre: Pop

Tempo: Upbeat

This viral smash by pop artist Marielle Kraft is THE number to get your blood pumping. An up-tempo, pop-perfection bop, everyone will be singing along by the bridge, “he didn’t exist, ‘cause SHE DID, and she’s ten times better”. Talk about queer joy.

16. 10X Better (Acoustic Version) - Marielle Kraft

Genre: Pop

Tempo: Slow

Wait a minute - did I just say this song? Well the acoustic version is honestly so good it’s worth its own spot. This vulnerable, stripped arrangement was made for your walk down the aisle to your person. It’s especially poignant if your story involves having grown up tight in the grips of heteronormativity and thinking you’d marry a man one day.

17. Woman - Avenue Beat

Genre: Pop

Tempo: Midtempo

Honestly, this song’s lyrics speak for themselves “what’s more beautiful than a woman? Nothing.” Period, Avenue Beat.

Bonus Songs About Lesbian Love (that didn’t know they were songs about lesbian love)

Just The Girl - Daena (The Click Five cover)

Genre: Pop

Tempo: Slow

We all know that sometimes straight people write songs that are just BEGGING to be gay, as in the classic case of Just The Girl by The Click Five. I mean, “the more she ignores me, the more I adore her. What can I do? I’d do anything for her”?? Queer artist Daena sets things right with her gorgeous, yearning cover of the pop smash.

I Wanna Hold Your Hand - From “Across The Universe” Soundtrack - T.V. Carpio

Genre: Folk

Tempo: Slow

I watched Across The Universe on a portable DVD player in the back of an F250 driving through the sweltering Arizona desert in July of 2008. The sheer longing in this rendition of the Beatles classic was enough to give me chills. The playful bass line and driving acoustic guitar root us as T.V. 's voice cries “I can’t hide” and we all collectively ugly-sream-cry along. It was made for your day.

It’s Your Love - Tim McGraw and Faith Hill

Genre: Country

Tempo: Slow

So this song DOES know it’s a song about lesbian love, as it was written by songwriter Stephony Smith about her love, who was a woman. It was brought to the masses by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, so packaged as a straight love song, but IYKYK. And now you know!

Obviously, as long as queer people have existed, queer music has existed, and this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to my favorite songs about lesbian love. Please comment with the songs you can’t imagine your special day without - I’d love to discover some new wlw music!