21 Halloween Songs That Still Go Hard After All This Time

"Jump in the Line" is a Halloween song and I don't care who says otherwise.

Howdy spookettes! HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

NBC

The other day I was minding my own spooky business when I saw this tweet, which reminded me of THE most overlooked music genre: Halloween music.

HOOD VOGUE is tired of poverty @itskeyon

I know China Anne McClain sleep well at night knowing calling all the monsters has yet to be topped since 2011

03:23 PM - 01 Oct 2020

"Calling All the Monsters" is an absolute bop. Don't worry, it'll get its due in this list.

In honor of the BEST holiday (I will not be taking criticisms at this time, thanks), I have decided to compile a list of the most iconic Halloween songs. We may be stuck at home this year, but we can still get spooky!

21. "Jump in the Line" by Harry Belafonte

Warner Bros.

THIS IS A HALLOWEEN SONG AND NO ONE CAN TELL ME OTHERWISE. It's in an iconic moment of Beetlejuice and therefore an iconic Halloween moment.

Watch the scene here.

20. "Rush" by Aly and AJ

Disney Channel

I love Halloweentown, but part of me thinks Twitches is the superior Disney Channel Halloween film. This song played during a super dramatic moment of the film, and 10-year-old me used to blast it on my MP3 player.

I can't find the exact scene, so watch the music video here!

19. "Disturbia" by Rihanna

UMG (on behalf of Def Jam Recordings)

I don't know what this song is about (is it a theme song for the Shia LaBeouf movie??), but Rihanna wears creepy white contacts in the music video, so I'm counting this one as spooky.

Watch the music video here.

18. "I Want Candy" by Bow Wow Wow

SME (on behalf of Sony Music Entertainment)

This is pretty self-explanatory...Halloween=candy.

Watch the music video here.

17. "She Wolf" by Shakira

SME (on behalf of Epic)

AKA, the sexiest Halloween song.

Watch the music video here.

16. "Black Magic" by Little Mix

SME; Kobalt Music Publishing

This one gets extra points for the music video, which is very ~spooky~.

Watch the music video here.

15. "Zombie" by the Cranberries

The Island Def Jam Music Group

The first time I heard this song was when my middle school chorus teacher performed it with her emo band at our talent show. It was intense.

Watch the music video here.

14. "Psycho Killer" by the Talking Heads

Flashback Saturday / Youtube / Via youtube.com

The first time I heard THIS song was when Damon killed someone on The Vampire Diaries. This was a better memory than the talent show one.

Watch the band perform the song here.

13. "The Monster" by Eminem and Rihanna

Interscope

Rihanna is on this list again because, well, she's Rihanna. Plus, the song's called "The Monster." What more could you want?

Watch the music video here.

12. "Bury a Friend" by Billie Eilish

UMG (on behalf of Darkroom)

Billie's music is PERFECT for Halloween, and this one's the creepiest. The music video itself is like a horror film.

Watch the haunting music video here.

11. "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder

Manki030776 / Youtube / Via youtube.com

This is the best Stevie Wonder song and you can't tell me otherwise.

You can watch a performance of the song here.

10. "Ghostbusters" by Ray Parker Jr.

SME (on behalf of Arista)

When I was little, I used to sing "Who you gonna call...BLOCKBUSTERS!", which is a real throwback.

Watch the music video here.

9. "Monster Mash" by Bobby Pickett

UMG, Believe Music (on behalf of A&R Music) / Via youtube.com

Listen, you need to watch Pickett performing this song — it's worth it for his facial expressions alone.

You can also listen to the song here.

8. "Bad Moon Rising" by Creedence Clearwater Revival

UMG (on behalf of Fantasy Records)

Yeah, the Creedence Clearwater Revival version is fun. But for Halloween, I actually prefer this creepy cover by Mourning Ritual.

Listen to the original song here.

7. "Dead Man's Party" by Oingo Boingo

UMG (on behalf of Geffen) / Via youtube.com

"ALL DRESSED UP WITH NOWHERE TO GO!" is a 2020 Halloween mood.

Watch the above performance here.

6. "Werewolf Bar Mizvah" by Donald Glover

NBC

Fun fact: this song is actually sung by Donald Glover/Childish Gambino doing his best Tracy Morgan impression. I wish this had played at my bat mitzvah.

Listen to the whole song here.

5. "I Put a Spell on You" by Nina Simone (as sung in Hocus Pocus)

Buena Vista Pictures

Say what you will about the Sanderson sisters, but they really can bring down the house. Their performance is pretty iconic, but the original by Nina Simone is downright beautiful.

Listen to the original version here, and watch the Hocus Pocus scene here.

4. "Time Warp" by the Rocky Horror Picture Show Cast

20th Century Fox

I HAD to include something from Rocky Horror Picture Show. I wanted to do "Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch Me," but I think this one is more classic.

Watch the scene here.

3. "This Is Halloween" by the Citizens of Halloween

Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

The Nightmare Before Christmas is THE Halloween film, so of course I had to include a song from it. "This is Halloween" is one of the most iconic Halloween songs of all time — I mean, come on. It's got "Halloween" in the title.

Watch the whole scene here.

2. "Calling All the Monsters" by China Anne McClain

UMG (on behalf of Walt Disney Records)

Sorry, China, but exactly one (1) song beat yours. STILL, the tweet from the beginning of this post is true — this is the best modern Halloween song, hands down. I want to dance just thinking about it.

Watch the music video here.

1. And finally, for the ultimate Halloween song: "Thriller" by Michael Jackson

SME (on behalf of Epic)

I feel like it would be sacrilegious to put anything else first. Nothing will ever live up to this. (Fun fact: I used to know this entire dance!)

Watch the whole music video here.

Listen to the playlist below!

embed.spotify.com

Are there any spooky songs that remind you of Halloween? Let me know in the comments!