11 songs about BPD and NPD #5

My song lists about NPD and BPD are among my most popular posts (and are so much fun to put together), so I think it’s time to post another set. There are so many great songs about Cluster B disorders!

Since it’s sometimes so hard to distinguish lyrics about people with BPD from people with NPD, I’m going to just combine 10 songs I haven’t reviewed before in one new post, and specify which disorder I think is being described in the narrative, and where I’m not sure, I’ll say so.
Wherever possible, I tried to post the lyric videos.

1. The Cars: Dangerous Type

Thanks to Mary Pranzatelli for suggesting this one! This is a great, catchy song, the Cars were one of my favorite bands back in the day. I think this describes a girl with BPD.

2. Three Days’ Grace: Animal I Have Become

Three Days’ Grace (along with Alanis Morrisette) seems to have a lot of songs about personality disordered individuals. This rocker from the early 2000s seems to be sung by a guy with severe or malignant BPD (edging toward sociopathy) who is all too aware of how sick he’s become.

3. Smashing Pumpkins: To Forgive

A dark and poignant lament from a man with either BPD or NPD about the child he was whose soul was destroyed.

4. Of Monsters and Men: Little Talks

Duet where the female singer appears to be suffering from BPD and is having a dialogue about it with her worried lover.

5. The Beatles: Run for Your Life

There are few songs from the 60s about BPD or NPD and The Beatles weren’t a band you expected to write about such dark material anyway, but this lesser known of their songs seems to be about a really jealous guy with malignant NPD or psychopathy.

6. John Lennon: Jealous Guy

Well, related to the above, maybe John Lennon had issues, because he wrote this very pretty ballad about a guy lamenting the way he hurt his lover and he seems to have BPD.

7. Halsey: Gasoline

This woman describes what could be a bad case of self destructive BPD, even though Halsey’s Wikipedia entry says she actually suffers from Bipolar Disorder.

8. Shawn Colvin: Sunny Came Home

A pretty murder ballad about a woman who suffered a BPD psychotic break and snapped. She may have been a psychopath too since the murder was premeditated.

9. Limp Bizkit: Behind Blue Eyes

The singer is clearly a self-aware narcissist.  Thanks to Akram for this suggestion!

10. Sia: Breathe Me

Poignant ballad about a young woman suffering with BPD.(Like Halsey above, Sia Furler’s Wikipedia entry states she actually suffers from Bipolar Disorder)

11. Kelly Clarkson: Because of You

Emotional ballad that portrays Clarkson as a young woman who suffers from emotional problems, possibly BPD.   I’ve included the regular video because of the story it tells. She meets her child (true) self, who helps her to remember her narcissistic parents who caused her to develop severe self esteem problems.   The video is also interesting in that Clarkson is shown periodically in what appears to be a house of mirrors.  Clarkson appears to be in tears at the end.

If you enjoyed this post, please check out my other BPD/NPD song lists:

20 Songs About Narcissists (#s 1 — 10)

20 Songs About Narcissists (#s 11 — 20)

12 More Songs About Narcissists, Part one

12 More Songs About Narcissists, Part two

11 Songs About Borderline Personality Disorder

If you have a song suggestion that you don’t see on my lists, please suggest it in the comments and I might include it in a future list.

12 more songs about narcissists–part 2!

Due to the enormous popularity of my previous articles about this topic (both of which now appear at the top of page one of Google–thanks everyone for making these so popular!), I’m adding 12 more songs about narcissism. Music and narcissism go together well– that’s one good thing narcissism has going for it, I guess. 🙂

The Songs.

1. “The Backstabbers” — The O’Jays

It’s very difficult to find songs about narcissists/psychopaths prior to the 1980s, but here’s an excellent one from the early 1970s.

2. “Ain’t It Fun” — Paramore

Catchy pop offering a badass challenge to a narcissist’s gameplaying.

3. “You Don’t Own Me” — Lesley Gore

Here’s another oldie (from the early ’60s) about a young woman involved with a narcissistic man.

4. “Mr. Know It All” — Kelly Clarkson

A modern take on Lesley Gore’s lament.

5. “Shadowboxer” — Fiona Apple

Apple’s musical poetry eloquently describes the way narcissistic mind games make you feel. Thanks to Amanda for suggesting this.

6. “Trouble” — Taylor Swift

The intro is pretentious and badly written, but Taylor does seem to have a way of attracting abusive and narcissistic men, at least in her songs, and this one is catchy as anything else she’s done.

7. “Black Sun” — Death Cab for Cutie

Alternative rock song about divorcing a narcissist. Thanks to Sachi for suggesting this one.

8. “Words as Weapons” — Seether

A man’s view on trying to deal with a narcissistic woman.

9. Disney’s “Tangled (Rapunzel)–Mother Knows Best”

Song from the Disney movie sung by Rapunzel’s narcissistic mother, who has made Rapunzel her “golden child.”

10. “Out of the Blue” — Julian Casablancas

Good indie rock about a narcissistic relationship.

11. “Mirrors” — Justin Timberlake

Thanks to Quixie for suggesting this one to me. Seems like a nice love song, doesn’t it? Oh, but it’s not. Listen to the lyrics.

12. “Hard to Love” — Lee Brice

A warning to his lady that he’s hard to love. Listen to the lyrics–sounds like a narcissist to me. At least he’s nice enough to warn her in advance.

I hope you enjoyed these.

For more songs about narcissists, see my previous articles:
1. 20 Songs About Narcissists (#11-20): https://luckyottershaven.com/2014/12/12/20-songs-about-narcissists-part-two-of-two/
2. 20 Songs About Narcissists (#1-10): https://luckyottershaven.com/2014/12/12/ten-songs-about-narcissists-part-one/
3. 12 More Songs About Narcissists, part 1: https://luckyottershaven.com/2015/01/05/10-more-songs-about-narcissism/