Brothers are dearly loved amongst all siblings. They are the ones that lead and guide us when we grow up.
At times, you have a good relationship with them. At times, it can be a bit complicated. Inspiration from the nature of these relationships prompted artists to make music for their brothers.
In this article, we shall look at the 22 songs to dedicate to your brother.
The order does not matter.
22 Songs to Dedicate to Your Brother
1. “Brothers under the sun” by Bryan Adams.
The song was written by Bryan Adams, Gretchen Peters and Steve Jablonsky. It was released in 2002 on the album ‘Spirit, l`etalon des plaines’.
It originally featured in the animated movie “Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron”. Later on, the song featured in the 2005 movie “The Great raid”.
In both scenarios, the song makes claim for how important it is for someone following their dreams and not forgetting who their brothers are.
This song brings out the true nature of brotherhood by leaning on the fact there is no way you can be separated from a person with the same blood running through your veins.
It also speaks to the nature of support one should expect from a brother that is always encouraging you to speak through your heart.
2. “He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother” by The Hollies
Released in 1969, this is the second oldest song on the list. It was part of the album Hollies Sing Hollies.
With over 25 million views on YouTube, the song is still much appreciated by people to this day. There have been several ways the song has been interpreted.
Some say that the song can be used to bring people together. However, the most obvious explanation is what the song actually says in the lyrics.
When you listen closely to the song, it is clearly about how effortless it must be to help out brother.
Even when the burden might seem too heavy for this person, you should play it off like it’s nothing. After all, you are doing it for you brother.
3. “Hey brother” by Avicii
The song was release in 2013 as part of the debut studio album “True” by the now deceased Swedish DJ Avicii.
The song has gained a lot of recognition which led to multiple award nominations like World Music Award for world’s best song 2014, MTV video music award for best video 2014 and World music award for World’s best video 2014.
The song also has over 280 million views on YouTube. In the song, the artist speaks of how important the relationship between siblings really is.
He speaks of how there is nothing in the world that he would not do for his siblings. You can dedicate this song to brothers, sisters and friends.
4. “Brother” by Kodaline
Released in 2018 as part of the album “Politics of living”, the song was written by Jason Boland, Vincent May, Corey Sanders, Jon Maguire, Mark Prendergast, Alex Davies and Stephen Garrigan.
With over 70 million views, the song was well received by listeners. The song describes the different paths usually taken by two brothers and how they shall always revert back to one path together.
The song brings out the true meaning of having someone to lean on in the very end of it all.
The message is so deep that people often refer to it as a motivator for fighting depression.
5. “Brother mine” by Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Vega released “Brother mine” on the album titled “Close-up Vol 4, songs of Family” in 2012.
She wrote up the song in the frame of an older sibling singing for a little brother. The song was typically Suzanne asking her brother to be a little bit more sensible despite his age.
In the song, you can tell that she speaks from a good place as she advises her little brother. At the end of all the trouble that he causes, she tries to correct his mistakes and cover up all the wrongdoings of her menacing little brother.
The song describes how an older sibling should support their younger siblings despite the amount of trouble they cause.
6. “Little brother” by Ella Vos
The song was released by Ella Vos in 2017 along with the album titled “Words I never said”. Owing to the effects of adolescence, the relationship between siblings can get complicated.
This song describes such a situation where a sister and a brother are affected by adolescence.
In light of these effects, the older of the two siblings is trying to find a way to communicate one again with the siblings so they can patch things up.
Despite the challenges in their relationship, Ella shows her little brother that he can rely on her. I think it’s important for siblings to make up even after they have had a big fight.
Because blood is thicker than water.
7. “Brotherly love” by Earl Thomas Conley and Keith Whitley.
This song is a gem. Written by Tim Nichols and Jimmy Alan Stewart, it describes the formative stage of a relationship between two brothers.
The song was released in 1991 as a duet between the two artists. The song then appeared on two albums concurrently released in 1991; Keith Whitley’s Kentucky Bluebird and Earl Thomas Conley’s Yours Truly.
The song has stood the test of time. It perfectly describes how important a brother bond grows with time.
In the song, you understand that the bond is not only about sharing the same name and having a wonderful pair of eyes; it’s about the special connection between two brothers.
8. “He was my brother” Simon and Garfunkel
The song was written by Paul Kane. Released in 1964, it is the oldest song on the list. “He was my brother” is part of the studio album “Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M”.
The song was written to commemorate a friend that had been killed in 1964. It is alleged that the person the song is written about was killed when he tried to correct the wrongs he witnessed at the time.
The song can be used as a tribute to fallen brothers who make sacrifices for their fellow brothers.
9. “Daniel” by Elton John
Released in 1973, the song “Daniel” featured on the album “Don’t shoot me I’m only the piano player” by renown musician Elton John.
It got a warm reception with about 6 million views on YouTube and was nominated for the Grammy award for Best male Pop Vocal performance.
The song was written by Bernie Taupin and Elton John. It is alleged that Bernie got inspiration when he read about a Veitnam war veteran that wanted to get away from the attention he was receiving after being wounded at war.
In the song, Elton sings about how much he misses a brother that is always travelling away to Spain. The song also describes how wonderful it is to have a brother like that.
10. “The greatest discovery” by Elton John.
Another song from Elton John is “The greatest discovery”. It was released in 1970 on the album titled “Elton John”. Just like in the song “Daniel”, “The greatest discovery” is written by Bernie Taupin and Elton John.
With just under a million views, the song describes the moment a young boy realizes that they have a brand new baby brother.
The English singer describes how life changing this moment is. In the song, he describes how your parents have made you a friend by getting you a brand new brother.
11. “Big brother” by Kanye West
On the album “Graduation”, Kanye West released the song “Big brother” to speak about the influence they can have over your life.
Released in 2007, the song describes the relationship between Kanye and Jay Z.
He talks about how Jay Z influenced him at such a young age to move out of his mother’s life and eventually helped him start a music career.
As the song goes on, he talks about how he admired Jay Z just like you would a big brother. The song shows how important it is for young brothers to be supported by their elder brothers.
It also speaks about how important it is for young siblings to appreciate the help from their older brothers.
12. “Brother’s Keeper” by DaBaby
In an album titled “My Brother’s keeper”, DaBaby describes his role in the life of his older brother.
Released in 2020, the song is one of the best rap songs to dedicate to your brother. It has been well received all over the world with over 3.9 million views on YouTube.
In the song, you get to learn about the early life of DaBaby and his older brother. He describes how hard life was with the older brother being hit way more than he was.
Despite the limited time together when they got older, DaBaby still recognizes how important the brotherly bond was to him; so much so that he got depressed when Glenn shot and killed himself. The song shows the importance of proper communication with your sibling.
13. “Brothers of a bottle” by George Jones.
The song was originally performed by Leon Payne. However, the song only gained recognition when George Jones performed it on the album “George Jones sings the great songs of Leon Payne”.
In the song, George Jones talks about buying beer as he has a good time with his brothers.
He continues to say how disappointed he was in himself for betraying a brotherly bond because of a woman.
As he winds up, he points out that women are the only beings that could severe a bond between two brothers.
14. “Brothers” by Dean Brody
From the country music genre comes a song “Brothers” by Dean Brody. It featured on the album “Dean Brody”.
With over 1.5 million views on YouTube, it is one of the most viewed songs on this list. The song is about a young brother watching his older brother go out to fight a war.
War is never a beautiful thing and is usually met by sad faces especially on the faces of the families that send out their heroes to go and fight.
At the end of the song, the older brother returns in a wheel chair after sustaining injuries. Despite the disability, the younger brother proceeds to push his older brother home.
This shows how close brothers are.
15. “My brother” by Justin Hayward
Another oldie on the list from Justin Hayward and John Lodge. The song was released in 1975 as part of the album “Blue Jays”.
In the song, Justin describes a brother that has left home and is currently travelling overseas. In the lyrics, you can tell that Justin misses his brother and would like to know when he could possibly return.
16. “Blood brothers” by Papa Roach
The song is a mixture of metal, pop and rock. It was released in 2000 by Papa Roach on the studio album “Infest”.
The song describes a violent environment in which you can only feel safe when you have a blood brother.
Despite the human nature of destruction, one could always feel somewhat safe in this family of brothers.
17. “Sister to a brother” by Rob Finlay
From the studio album “These words aren’t meant for me” comes the song “sister to a brother”. Released in 2011, it has over 500k views on YouTube.
In the song, Rob speaks of how important it is to show love to each other before you head out every single day.
The song calls for support and respect alongside love within a family for the best life.
18. “Two little boys” by Rolf Harris
Rolf Harris release this song on his album titled “Rolf Harris” in 1991. In the song, Rolf Harris describes the incredible relationship between two brothers from when they were young to when they grew up.
In the lyrics, you can tell that these two little boys supported themselves even in the bad situations.
It goes on to describe how the two brothers still fought to preserve each other’s lives when it was the only option they had to make.
The song brings out how far brothers are willing to support each other even in the toughest of times.
19. “Alfie” by Lily Allen
The song was released in 2006 as part of the album “Alright, Still. Written by Gregory Kurstin and Lilly Allen, the song talks of how it is living with an irresponsible little brother.
Throughout the song, Alfie is ridiculed for always being high and failing to get a job.
Lily goes on to say that this situation has caused the little brother despair yet he does nothing to get out of it. If you have an irresponsible brother, this is the song for them.
20. “The Bewlay Brothers” by David Bowie
From legendary artist David Bowie comes this classic brother song. Released in 1971, the song became a favorite in the 1970s.
It was part of the album Hunky Dory released in the same year. In the song, David Bowie describes the relationship between the two brothers.
From the song itself, you can tell that the song brothers were very different in stature singling them out as ‘stone’ and ‘wax’.
The raw energy as they grew up brought on a great relationship between the two. This is a song that makes you remember the old days especially when growing up with a brother.
21. “Baby Brother” by Mattiel
Released as part of the album titled “Mattiel”, “Baby Brother” was released in 2017. It got a good reception with over 500k views on YouTube.
In the song, a sibling is yearning for the return of their baby brother from their place for work. The sibling recognizes the fact that the brother has to earn money for them to survive though he should balance it up by taking good care of himself.
In the song, you get an insight into the relationship between two siblings.
22. “You’re never over” by Eminem
As part of the 2010 album ‘Recovery’, Eminem gave us one of the best songs to dedicate to a fallen brother.
This song from Eminem was made to honor the memory of the most influential figure he had growing up, his best friend ‘Proof’.
According to the legendary artist, Proof is the reason as to why things where a little bit easy during his early years as a rapper.
In the song, Eminem says that he recognizes how important it is to have someone that can believe in something deep down just like an older brother would.
He goes on to say that the rapper had so much influence over his life that he would rather celebrate his life instead of grieving his death. Who would not want to have a brother like that?!!
Final Thoughts
The songs above describe how amazing it is to have a brother. It does not matter whether your brother is dead or alive.
You can still listen to these songs with or without them and just let the wonderful memories flood in.
Related Posts
Would you like to see more posts on Music?
If so, check out these posts below:
