"Earl Had to Die: The 20 Greatest Country Songs about Murdering Your Partner"
Murder ballads have always been an important element of traditional country music. Although they are not as common nowadays, there is still a collection of exceptional songs that depict men killing their female romantic partners. However, it is less frequent to come across songs that portray women committing such acts. But don't worry, country music also offers a substantial number of songs about women who take the life of their partners, and we have compiled a list to showcase them.
We eliminated certain contenders from this list based on specific criteria. Our main focus was to include only one song per artist, which resulted in Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert, both well-known country stars with several songs about murder, only getting one slot each. Even though songs like "Before He Cheats," "Church Bells," "White Liar," and "Kerosene" are fantastic revenge anthems, they were ultimately excluded from the final selection due to the presence of even more popular songs.
The theme was sufficiently specific to further limit the selection. In order for a murder to be included in this list, it had to involve at least one male victim. Therefore, despite being a remarkable modern murder song in the genre, "Martha Divine" by Ashley McBryde was excluded. Other notable mentions include "Red Headed Stranger" by Willie Nelson and "If It Hadn't Been for Love" by The SteelDrivers, but they also did not make it onto this list.
We have compiled a collection of the most incredible and wicked country songs that revolve around killing someone. Take a look at the gallery below to find our top choices for revenge songs and lesser-known tracks that deal with the topic of murder, particularly when it involves getting rid of a man in your life (or persuading someone else to do it for you). Keep reading and don't forget to share in the comments if we overlooked your favorite song about eliminating your man.
Earl Had to Die: A Collection of the Top 20 Country Songs Depicting the Act of Killing Your Partner
Credit for Gallery: Carena Liptak
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