15 Best Country Music Lyrics That Double as Relationship Therapy

These country songs about relationships are as good as a trip to the therapist.

There’s no argument here — country music does romance right. Over the last few decades, country music artists have poured their hearts out, leaving behind beautiful sentiments, catchy melodies and breathtaking lyrics. These tracks have connected to millions of people, healing them through breakups or setting the scene for the first dance at their weddings.

And, these romance-filled songs wouldn’t be complete without life lessons. Stuck in a love triangle? There’s a song for that. Building a life and growing old with a soulmate? Lots of tracks to choose from. Healing from a fresh breakup? Better sit down for that one. Almost everybody can relate to heartbreak, and if any genre can communicate that pain, and do it well, it’s country.

From breakup ballads to upbeat love anthems, these country music lyrics explore the joy, heartbreak and life lessons learned from relationships.

“Hey Pretty Girl” — Kip Moore

Kip Moore performs at Aaron’s Amphitheatre at Lakewood on Apr. 11, 2014, in Atlanta. Robb D. Cohen / Invision / AP

This hit track from Moore is packed full of dreamy lyrics every girl wants to hear: “Hey pretty girl, it feels so right. Just like it’s meant to be, all wrapped up in my arms so tight.” Moore’s love letter travels through three big stages of a relationship: falling in love, starting a family and growing old together.

This song instantly puts people into a mushy, weepy mess, and it’s no wonder why: It’s all about love. If there’s anything to learn from this fairytale-like song, it’s that life can be a lonely, winding ride, but having the right person through it all makes it worth it — cheesy, but true.

“Need You Now” — Lady Antebellum

Hillary Scott, from left, Charles Kelley, and Dave Haywood, of Lady Antebellum, perform at the 52nd annual Academy of Country Music Awards at the T-Mobile Arena on April 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. Chris Pizzello / Invision / AP

If anyone’s reeling from a breakup, they need to listen to this song. “Need You Now” is Lady Antebellum’s biggest hit to date, and for good reason. This track explores the intense, raw heartbreak experienced during a breakup, and it shows that, sometimes, it’s OK to just miss an ex.

“Need You Now” reminisces about the good times in a former relationship, and it’s painfully relatable: “Another shot of whiskey, can’t stop looking at the door. Wishing you’d come sweepin’ in the way you did before. And I wonder if I ever cross your mind, for me it happens all the time.”

“From This Moment On” — Shania Twain

Shania Twain performs on NBC’s “Today” show at Rockefeller Plaza on June 16, 2017, in New York. Charles Sykes / Invision / AP

A classic, “From This Moment On” explores the endless devotion that is shared between relationships, through weakness and strength, and happiness and sorrow. This emotional track is a wedding favorite, with its beautiful orchestral buildup and Bryan White’s accompanying harmonies. The first lines of this song alone are enough to make someone dream of their perfect wedding: “I just swear that I’ll always be there. I give anything and everything, and I will always care.”

Shania dives right into the sacrifices that make love worth the fight, and she absolutely nails it with this moving track.

“Wanted” — Hunter Hayes

Hunter Hayes performs at ACM Presents an All-Star Salute to the Troops on April 7, 2014, in Las Vegas. Chris Pizzello / Invision / AP

No one can resist grabbing the tissue box for Hayes’ “Wanted.” This track gives all the feels, digging into the meaning behind real relationships. Everyone just wants to feel wanted, and Hayes expresses that sentiment perfectly in this song: “Anyone can tell you you’re pretty, and you get that all the time, I know you do. But your beauty’s deeper than the makeup, and I want to show you what I see tonight.”

Hayes’ lyrics reflect everyday relationships, going beneath the surface and revealing what truly matters: honesty and a lasting connection.

“I Need You” — Tim McGraw and Faith Hill

Faith Hill, left, and Tim McGraw perform “The Rest of Our Life” at the 51st annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena on Nov. 8, 2017, in Nashville, Tenn. Chris Pizzello / Invision / AP

Nothing says love like Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. This country superstar duo was meant to be, and it’s reflected in the vows sung back and forth to each other in this ballad: “And I need you, like a lighthouse on the coast. Like the father and the son need the Holy Ghost, I need you.”

The best part is that these words are all true; after almost 23 years of marriage, their love seems like it could last a lifetime. This track paints an idyllic picture of love, demonstrating that the only thing two people need is each other, and everything else will work itself out.

“Bless the Broken Road” — Rascal Flatts

Rascal Flatts band members, from left, Joe Don Rooney, Gary LeVox and Jay DeMarcus perform on NBC’s “Today” show on May 30, 2014, in New York. Charles Sykes / Invision / AP

Relationships aren’t always what people see in the movies; they require work, communication, patience, compromise, dedication and trust, and they sure don’t come easy. “Bless the Broken Road” gives those searching for love the hope to continue, and to not give up despite the bumps and bruises along the way.

“Every long lost dream led me to where you are, and others who broke my heart, they were like northern stars pointing me on my way into your loving arms. This much I know it’s true, that God blessed the broken road that led me straight to you.”

This cooing track from Rascal Flatts shows that although the journey to love may be a long, winding (and confusing) one, it’s — hopefully! — worth it in the end.

“Your Side of the Bed” — Little Big Town

Phillip Sweet, from left, Karen Fairchild, Jimi Westbrook and Kimberly Schlapman, of Little Big Town, accept the award for vocal group of the year at the 52nd annual Academy of Country Music Awards at the T-Mobile Arena on April 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. Chris Pizzello / Invision / AP

This heartbreaking ballad is about a couple that has drifted apart over time. Because this storyline is so real, nearly everyone who listens can relate: “Tell me how, how’d you get so far away? All we have left are the memories of the love we made.”

This deeper song from Little Big Town explores the vulnerability people may feel during a breakup, and it shows that although that former love is now a memory, people can learn and grow from its heartache.

“You’ll Think of Me” — Keith Urban

Keith Urban performs “Never Comin’ Down” at the 52nd annual CMA Awards at Bridgestone Arena on Nov. 14, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. Charles Sykes / Invision / AP

The king of creating the ultimate country song, Urban lets his heart out in one of his hottest, most recognizable tracks, “You’ll Think of Me.” In this song, Urban is open and honest, admitting to how much he thinks about his ex, and that he’s trying to move on, but he just doesn’t know how.

The lyrics are so emotional and full of little details: “Take your records, take your freedom. Take your memories, I don’t need ’em. Take your space and take your reasons, but you’ll think of me. And take your cap and leave my sweater, ’cause we have nothing left to weather. In fact, I’ll feel a whole lot better, but you’ll think of me.”

“Came Here to Forget” — Blake Shelton

Taylor Swift, right, presents the award for male vocalist of the year to Blake Shelton at the 47th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards on April 1, 2012, in Las Vegas. Mark J. Terrill / AP Photo

Not too long after his divorce from country music star Miranda Lambert, Shelton opens up and sings about a post-breakup hookup in “Came Here to Forget.” The crushing heartbreak one feels after a breakup, and its late-night rebound, is relatable for a lot of people.

The song dives into the story of two people who are both getting over their exes and finding comfort in one another: “First of all, we came here to forget. Looks like it’s just me and you, falling in love just enough to get us through, while we’re getting through.”

“Die a Happy Man” — Thomas Rhett

Thomas Rhett opens for Jason Aldean at Madison Square Garden on March 2, 2013, in New York. Charles Sykes / Invision / AP

If there’s one song that gives a complete unrealistic expectation for love, it’s “Die a Happy Man.” Rhett unapologetically swoons over his wife in this track, setting the bar high for all relationships out there. “Die a Happy Man” reveals that even if someone can’t travel the world and cross everything off a bucket list, they’d still be happy as ever, because they have everything they need — the love of their life.

“And I know that I can’t ever tell you enough, that all I need in this life is your crazy love. If I never get to see the Northern Lights, or if I never get to see the Eiffel Tower at night. Oh, if all I got is your hand in my hand, baby, I could die a happy man.”

Talk about #RelationshipGoals.

“Lessons Learned” — Carrie Underwood

Singer Carrie Underwood performs at the 2012 CMT Music Awards on June 6, 2012, in Nashville, Tenn. John Shearer / Invision / AP

In “Lessons Learned,” Underwood reflects on her hard times and past relationships, but she doesn’t let it take her down. She sings about learning from those relationships and how they changed her as a person: “And every tear that had to fall from my eyes, every day I wonder how I get through the night. Every change life has thrown me; I’m thankful for every break in my heart. I’m grateful for every time.”

The lesson here is that, although heartbreak sucks, it can help shape lives for the better, and every relationship can help people grow in a positive way.

“Haunted” — Taylor Swift

Singer Taylor Swift performs during her “1989” world tour at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford on July 10, 2015, in New Jersey. Evan Agostini / Invision / AP

“Haunted” from Swift’s third album, “Speak Now,” is all about a relationship fading and drifting away fast. It goes through the motions of heartbreak, beginning with denial and then trying to move on with someone else: “Stood there and watched you walk away from everything we had, but I still mean every word I said to you. He will try to take away my pain, and he just might make me smile, but the whole time I’m wishing he was you instead.”

Here, the lesson is that sometimes people are left confused at the end of the relationship, wondering where it went wrong, and although it’s tragic, moving on is the only way to experience personal growth, confidence building and independence.

“Stay” — Sugarland

Jennifer Nettles, left, and Kristian Bush, of Sugarland, perform on stage at the New Year’s Eve celebration in Times Square on Dec. 31, 2017, in New York. Brent N. Clarke / Invision / AP

Cheating, lying, betrayal — these are things that, unfortunately, many people go through. Countless songs cover cheating, mainly from the viewpoint of the person being cheated on. “Stay” shifts the perspective though — it’s from the other woman’s point of view. “You keep tellin’ me, baby, there will come a time, when you will leave her arms and forever be in mine, but I don’t think that’s the truth. And I don’t like bein’ used, and I’m tired of waitin’. It’s too much pain to have to bear, to love a man you have to share.”

Here, Sugarland makes their audience feel for the other woman — something pretty uncommon. What’s the lesson? Cheaters hurt three people: their partner, lover and themselves. It’s better to be in an open, honest and loving relationship, instead of getting caught up in a triangle, waiting for commitment that may never come.

“I Cross My Heart” — George Strait

George Strait performs “You Wreck Me” at the MusiCares Person of the Year tribute honoring Tom Petty at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Feb. 10, 2017. Chris Pizzello / Invision / AP

All his exes may live in Texas, but George Strait is still a winner in the romance department. “I Cross My Heart” is all about unconditional love, loyalty and going to the ends of the Earth to keep it alive. This 1992 classic teaches people that love is a promise, and that it should always come first.

“I cross my heart and promise to give all I’ve got to give to make all your dreams come true. In all the world, you’ll never find a love as true as mine. And if along the way we find a day it starts to storm, you’ve got the promise of my love to keep you warm.”

“From the Ground Up” — Dan + Shay

Dan Smyers, left, and Shay Mooney of musical group Dan + Shay, perform “Tequila” at the CMT Music Awards at the Bridgestone Arena on June 6, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. Mark Humphrey / AP Photo

This modern-day country ballad sings about a timeless romance, and it sure pulls at the heartstrings. All people want is an everlasting love, and this track makes its listeners instantly feel it. “And we’ll build this love from the ground up, for worse or for better. And I will be all you need, beside you I’ll stand through the good and the bad. We’ll give all that we have, and we’ll build this love from the ground up.”

If anything can be learned from this song, it’s that relationships worth having require patience, love, hard work and growth — something we can all strive to achieve.