Get out the boombox and serenade your girlfriend with these sapphic songs
BY YASMIN VINCE, IMAGES BY ALBUM COVER AND WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
As we barrel towards Valentine’s Day and the heart balloons and chocolate boxes come out in full force, we’ve got love on the brain. And in our ears, as every speaker blasts love songs.
Some of the best love songs out there are written by and for sapphics. From Brandi Carlile to Kehlani, we’ve compiled a list of 10 songs to add to your Valentine’s playlist. These songs work for everyone, regardless of where they sit on the relationship spectrum. If you’re happily coupled up, what could be a better soundtrack to your romantic dinner? If you’re single, these songs are so good, you’re going to want to put them on anyway.
Brandi Carlile – I Belong To You
“If I had all my yesterdays, I’d give them to you” And if we had all ours, we’d give them to Brandi. 10 years ago, she released this song, which details just how deeply someone can love another person. In it, Brandi sings to her love about all the ways in which they quietly devote themselves to each other. In the decade that followed the song’s release, it quickly became a popular WLW first dance song.
Melissa Etheridge – Come To My Window
This was the first song Melissa released after coming out as a lesbian and it is, rightfully so, a queer anthem. The song is about the intense feelings you can have for someone and the various things you’re willing to do to make them happy.
Arlo Parks – Pegasus (ft. Phoebe Bridgers)
As Arlo told Pitchfork: “This song is about the purity and rarity of true love.” In this ballad, she and Phoebe sing about the special moments shared between two people who are utterly in love. It’s warm and intimate, just like the best Valentine’s Day plans.
MUNA – Silk Chiffon (ft. Phoebe Bridgers)
When MUNA and Phoebe Bridgers released this song, it was designed to be one of complete queer joy. Over the course of Silk Chiffon, they sing about how good it feels to find someone you connect with. And as if you thought singing about how your girlfriend feels like “silk chiffon” when she’s on you was the most sapphic it got, wait until you see the music video, which is all based on the ultra queer film But I’m A Cheerleader!
Dodie – She
This song was first released on Dodie’s YouTube in 2014 and feels like re-reading an old diary. Singing about an unnamed girl, Dodie starts in the midst of a panic, wondering if the feelings she’s experiencing are okay. But as soon as she starts to sing more about everything she notices about her crush – like the way she smells like lemongrass and tastes like a story – the song morphs into an ode to first loves.
girl in red – I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend
Have you ever felt a desire for someone so strong, you can’t think of anything else? girl in red certainly has. “I wanna kiss you until I lose my breath, I don’t wanna be your friend,” the lyrics go. They’re repeated over and over again, so if this is the message you want to send to a special someone this holiday, you couldn’t pick a clearer method.
Tegan And Sara – Closer
This one from the Canadian pop-duo can almost serve as a sequel to girl in red’s I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend. While girl in red sings about how hard it is not to think about your crush, Tegan And Sara move on to how hard it is not to think about your partner. Even in dreams, they’re just trying to get a little bit closer.
Kehlani – Honey
This R&B ballad serves as both a way to figure out what Kehlani likes in women – She likes them “sweet” like honey – and a promise that of “all the pretty girls in the world” she’s always going to pick the one she loves. Set over acoustic guitars, it’s incredibly easy to dance around the kitchen to.
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