Top 10 Great Graduation Songs of All Time With Full Lyrics

Though much of graduation season is soundtracked by the Pomp and Circumstance Marches, the stuffy layer of tradition is occasionally punctured by pop hits that strike the right emotional chord. Over the past few decades, a select number of songs have captured the proper feelings of pride, nostalgia, excitement and sadness that accompany such a rite of passage.

Even getting outside of explicitly graduation-themed music, artists like Paul McCartney and Britney Spears have recorded sentimental songs that tackle topics like the hope for brighter days ahead or the difficulty of life's transitional phases that would fit well into a graduation-themed playlist.

Take a look at these 10+ best graduation songs of all time.

List of top 10+ great graduation songs of all time with full lyrics

1. Miley Cyrus, "The Climb"

2. "Look What You've Done" by Drake

3. "Burn This City" by Cartel

4. Nickelback, "Photograph"

5. My Chemical Romance, "Sing"

6. LCD Soundsystem, "All My Friends"

7. "Future" by Paramore

8. "Long Live" by Taylor Swift

9. "Something Big" by Shawn Mendes

10. "I'll Be There For You" by The Rembrandts

What are the great graduation songs of all time with full lyrics?

1. Miley Cyrus, "The Climb"

"The Climb" is a song recorded by American singer Miley Cyrus, for the 2009 film Hannah Montana: The Movie. The song was written by Jessi Alexander and Jon Mabe, and produced by John Shanks. It was released on March 5, 2009, as the lead single from the film's soundtrack by Walt Disney Records, and is also included as a bonus track on the international release of The Time of Our Lives. The song is a power ballad with lyrics that describe life as a difficult but rewarding journey. It is styled as a country pop ballad, and was Cyrus' first solo song to be released to country radio. The instrumentation includes piano, guitar, and violins. The song is considered both a modern classic and a signature song for Cyrus.

The song was nominated for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television, or Other Visual Media at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards; however, the song was withdrawn from consideration by Walt Disney Records because it had not been written specifically for a film as the category's eligibility rules required. The song became a top-ten single on charts in Australia, Canada, Norway, and the United States. In the United States, it peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and became the eighth-best selling digital single of 2009. Five months after its release, the single was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.

I can almost see it

That dream I'm dreaming

But, there's a voice inside my head saying

You'll never reach it

Every step I'm taking

Every move I make feels

Lost with no direction

My faith is shaking

But I, I gotta keep trying

Gotta keep my head held high

There's always gonna be another mountain

I'm always gonna wanna make it move

Always gonna be an uphill battle

Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there

Ain't about what's waiting on the other side

It's the climb

The struggles I'm facing

The chances I'm taking

Sometimes might knock me down, but

No, I'm not breaking

I may not know it

But these are the moments, that

I'm gonna remember most, yeah

Just gotta keep going

And I, I gotta be strong

Just keep pushing on, 'cause

There's always gonna be another mountain

I'm always gonna wanna make it move

Always gonna be an uphill battle

Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there

Ain't about what's waiting on the other side

It's the climb

Yeah

There's always gonna be another mountain

I'm always gonna wanna make it move

Always gonna be an uphill battle

Sometimes you're gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there

Ain't about what's waiting on the other side

It's the climb

Yeah, yeah

Keep on moving, keep climbing

Keep the faith, baby

It's all about, it's all about the climb

Keep your faith, keep your faith

Whoa

2. "Look What You've Done" by Drake

Drake gives a legitimately touching tribute to his mother, Sandi, his grandmother Evelyn, and his Uncle Steve in this Take Care highlight.

The low-key vibe set the song apart from most of the tracks on “Take Care”

Portions of this track were later sampled by the Michigan-based producer Sango on “When I Need You the Most”

[Intro]

Yeah

Yeah

Man

[Verse 1]

It's like '09 in your basement and I'm in love with Nebby

And I still love her, but it fell through because I wasn't ready

And your back hurt, and your neck hurt and you smokin' heavy

And I sit next to you, and I lecture you because those are deadly

And then you ash it, and we argue about spendin' money on bullshit

And you tell me I'm just like my father, my one button, you push it

Now it's fuck you, I hate you, I'll move out in a heartbeat

And I leave out and you call me and you tell me that you sorry

And you love me and I love you and your heart hurts, mine does too

And it's just words and they cut deep, but it's our world, it's just us two

I see painkillers on the kitchen counter, I hate to see it all hurt so bad

But maybe I wouldn't have worked this hard if you were healthy and it weren't so bad, uh

Maybe I should walk up the street

And try and get a job at the bank

'Cause leave it up to me, J, and Neeks

We'll probably end up robbin' a bank

Then Wayne calls up my phone

Conversation wasn't that long

Gets me a flight to Houston in the morning

Oh, it's my time, yeah, it's on

He's thinkin' of signin' me, I come home

We make a mixtape with seventeen songs

And almost get a Grammy off of that thing

They love your son, man, that boy gone

You get the operation you dreamed of

And I finally send you to Rome

And get to make good on my promise

It all worked out, girl, we should've known

'Cause you deserve it

[Chorus]

Is this shit real? Should I pinch you?

After all the things that we been through, I got you, yeah

Look what you've done, look what you've done

Look what you've done for me now, yeah

You knew that I was gon' be somethin'

When you're stressed out and you need somethin', I got you, yeah

Look what you've done, look what you've done

Look what you've, look what you've

[Verse 2]

It's like '06 in your backyard, I'm in love with Jade

And I'm still in love 'cause when it's that real is when it doesn't fade

And my father living in Memphis now, he can't come this way

Over some minor charges and child support that just wasn't paid, damn

Boohoo, sad story, Black American dad story

Know that I'm your sister's kid, but it still don't explain the love that you have for me

I remember sneaking in your pool after school dances

Damn, your house felt like the Hamptons

For all of my summer romances

I never really had no one like you, man, this all new shit

Made the world I know bigger

Changed the way that I viewed it

Had all this fightin' going on at the crib

You would calm me down when I lose it

Told you I think I'm done acting

Now I'm more in touch with the music

You said, either way, I'd be a star, I could go so far

Talked to me, then you got to me

Then you'd toss the keys and loan me your car, yeah

Just a young kid in a drop-top Lexus hopin' that I don't get arrested

Just another kid that's going through life so worried that I won't be accepted

But I could do anything

You said that, and you meant that

You took me places, you spent that

They said no, we went back

Checks bounced, but we bounced back

I put all the money in your accounts back

And I thank you, I don't know where I'd really be without that

It worked out, man, you deserve it

[Chorus]

Is this shit real? Should I pinch you?

After all the things that we been through, I got you, yeah

Look what you've done, look what you've done

Look what you've done for me now, yeah

You knew that I was gon' be somethin'

When you're stressed out and you need somethin', I got you, yeah

Look what you've done, look what you've done

Look what you've, look what you've

[Outro: Drake's Grandmother]

Hi Aubrey

I'm here sitting with my son having a little talk

And he knew, knows how to get in touch with you now

To let you know how grateful I am for your help in keeping me in this

In this comfortable place

All I can say, Aubrey, is I remember the good times we had together

And the times I used to look after you

And I still have wonderful feeling about that

So God bless you

And I hope I'll see you

3. "Burn This City" by Cartel

For some, graduation means saying goodbye to almost everything you've ever known. From living on your own for the first time to meeting completely new people in college, everything is completely different than at home. However, that doesn't mean you and your hometown friends can't go out with a major bang that will leave you with lasting memories as you all head on some new adventures.

The Most Relatable Lyrics: "Cause our days were numbered by nights on too many rooftops / They said we're wasting our lives / Oh at least we know, that if we die, we lived with passion / They said we'd burn so bright / We burn this city, and go"

Stay up all night and sleep all day,

We were smart kids with too much to say,

And so, so sure that they were missing out.

They're the ones who are missing out

We were elemental. Talked down to bear essentials.

Who knew we'd get so far?

Cause our days were numbered by nights on too many rooftops.

They said we'd burn so bright.

We burn this city and go.

Play it again, (our games of love and lust.)

There's no such thing (no there's never too much).

And we were so, so sure, oh we never had a doubt.

Now were counting days to getting out.

We were elemental, took down to bear essentials.

Who knew we'd get so far?

Cause our days were numbered by nights on too many rooftops.

They said we're wasting our lives,

Oh at least we know, that if we die - we lived with passion.

They said we'd burn so bright.

We burn this city and go.

Pack our bags and get away - they're catching on to us.

So pack our bags and get away - they're catching on to us.

Pack our bags and get away - they're catching on to us.

Pack our bags and get away - they're catching on to us.

Cause our days were numbered by nights on too many rooftops.

They said we're wasting our lives,

Oh at least we know, that if we die - we lived with passion.

They said we'd burn so bright.

We burn this city, and go.

4. Nickelback, "Photograph"

"Photograph" is a song by Canadian rock band Nickelback. It was released on August 8, 2005, as the first single from their fifth studio album, All the Right Reasons. The song reached the top ten in Australia, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and the United States.

The song is mostly autobiographical. Singer Chad Kroeger said, "It's just nostalgia, growing up in a small town, and you can't go back to your childhood. Saying goodbye to friends that you've drifted away from, where you grew up, where you went to school, who you hung out with and the dumb stuff you used to do as a kid, the first love — all of those things. Everyone has one or two of those memories that they are fond of, so this song is really just the bridge for all that."

Kroeger said the photograph he holds up in the music video of himself and his friend Joey Moi with a champagne chiller on Joey's head is the same one he referred to in the lyrics. He also admitted he had broken into his high school to steal money from the office safe eleven times, but "half a dozen" flowed better for the lyrics.

Look at this photograph

Every time I do, it makes me laugh

How did our eyes get so red?

And what the hell is on Joey's head?

And this is where I grew up

I think the present owner fixed it up

I never knew we'd ever went without

The second floor is hard for sneaking out

And this is where I went to school

Most of the time had better things to do

Criminal record says I broke in twice

I must have done it half a dozen times

I wonder if it's too late

Should I go back and try to graduate?

Life's better now than it was back then

If I was them, I wouldn't let me in

Oh, whoa, whoa

Oh, God, I...

Every memory of looking out the back door

I had the photo album spread out on my bedroom floor

It's hard to say it, time to say it

Goodbye, goodbye

Every memory of walking out the front door

I found the photo of the friend that I was looking for

It's hard to say it, time to say it

Goodbye, goodbye

Goodbye

Remember the old arcade

Blew every dollar that we ever made

The cops hated us hangin' out

They say, "Somebody went and burned it down"

We used to listen to the radio

And sing along with every song we know

We said, "Someday we'd find out how it feels

To sing to more than just the steering wheel"

Kim's the first girl I kissed

I was so nervous that I nearly missed

She's had a couple of kids since then

I haven't seen her since God knows when

Oh, whoa, whoa

Oh, God, I...

Every memory of looking out the back door

I had the photo album spread out on my bedroom floor

It's hard to say it, time to say it

Goodbye, goodbye

Every memory of walking out the front door

I found the photo of the friend that I was looking for

It's hard to say it, time to say it

Goodbye, goodbye

I miss that town, I miss the faces

You can't erase, you can't replace it

I miss it now, I can't believe it

So hard to stay, too hard to leave it

If I could relive those days

I know the one thing that would never change

Every memory of looking out the back door

I had the photo album spread out on my bedroom floor

It's hard to say it, time to say it

Goodbye, goodbye

Every memory of walking out the front door

I found the photo of the friend that I was looking for

It's hard to say it, time to say it

Goodbye, goodbye

Look at this photograph

Every time I do, it makes me laugh

Every time I do, it makes me...

5. My Chemical Romance, "Sing"

"Sing" (often stylized as "SING") is My Chemical Romance's fourth track and third single from their fourth studio album, Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys. The official single artwork was posted on the band's website on October 2010. "Sing" marks the first time a song of the band has reached adult contemporary stations; it began airplay through Chicago radio station WCFS-FM by March 2011.

The song was the second-best selling rock song of 2011 in the UK, ahead of Paramore's "Monster" and behind Foo Fighters' "Rope".

The song debuted on BBC Radio 1 and subsequently on the band's MySpace and several other radio stations on November 3, 2010. The song was released on iTunes the same day. The song has been described as "poppy" and with a "surprising different sound than previous MCR tracks" by Wendy Rollins of Philadelphia's Radio 104.5. Dan Martin from NME reviewed the album and said the following of the song: "Starting off synthy, slinky and just a little bit funky, 'Sing' then erupts into another euphoric call to mass doing-stuff-together as waves of filthy bass cascade around Gerard as he sings, "You've got to be what tomorrow needs" as he dodges elephant-stomp drums." Trash Hits said of the song: "This is a slower, smouldering effort which jangles in a Depeche Mode style while Gerard Way murmurs his way through."

Sing it out

Boy, you've got to see what tomorrow brings

Sing it out

Girl, you've got to be what tomorrow needs

For every time, that they want to count you out

Use your voice every single time you open up your mouth

Sing it for the boys

Sing it for the girls

Every time that you lose it, sing it for the world

Sing it from the heart

Sing it 'til you're nuts

Sing it out for the ones that'll hate your guts

Sing it for the deaf

Sing it for the blind

Sing about everyone that you left behind

Sing it for the world

Sing it for the world

Sing it out

Boy, they're gonna sell what tomorrow means

Sing it out

Girl, before they kill what tomorrow brings

You've got to, make a choice

If the music drowns you out

And raise your voice

Every single time, they try and shut your mouth

Sing it for the boys

Sing it for the girls

Every time that you lose it, sing it for the world

Sing it from the heart

Sing it 'til you're nuts

Sing it out, for the ones that'll hate your guts

Sing it for the deaf

Sing it for the blind

Sing about everyone that you left behind

Sing it for the world

Sing it for the world

Cleaned up, corporation progress

Dying in the process

Children that can talk about it

Living on the web ways

People moving sideways

Tell it 'til your last days

Buy yourself a motivation

Generation Nothing

Nothing but a dead scene

Product of a white dream

I am not the singer that you wanted

But a dancer

I refuse to answer

Talk about the past sir

Wrote it for the ones who want to get away

Keep running!

Sing it for the boys

Sing it for the girls

Every time that you lose it, sing it for the world

Sing it from the heart

Sing it 'til you're nuts

Sing it out for the ones that'll hate your guts

Sing it for the deaf

Sing it for the blind

Sing about everyone that you left behind

Sing it for the world

Sing it for the world

You got to see what tomorrow brings

Sing it for the world

Sing it for the world

Girl, you've got to be what tomorrow needs

Sing it for the world

Sing it for the world

6. LCD Soundsystem, "All My Friends"

"All My Friends" is a song by American rock band LCD Soundsystem. It was released as the second single from their second studio album Sound of Silver on May 28, 2007 and was written by Pat Mahoney, James Murphy, and Tyler Pope. The song received acclaim from critics and was on many year-end lists. It peaked at #41 on the UK Singles Chart. B-sides for the single include covers of the song by Scottish indie rock band Franz Ferdinand and former Velvet Underground member John Cale.

That's how it starts

We go back to your house

We check the charts

And start to figure it out

And if it's crowded, all the better

Because we know we're gonna be up late

But if you're worried about the weather

Then you picked the wrong place to stay

That's how it starts

And so it starts

You switch the engine on

We set controls for the heart of the sun

One of the ways we show our age

And if the sun comes up, if the sun comes up, if the sun comes up

And I still don't wanna stagger home

Then it's the memory of our betters

That are keeping us on our feet

You spent the first five years trying to get with the plan

And the next five years trying to be with your friends again

You're talking 45 turns just as fast as you can

Yeah, I know it gets tired, but it's better when we pretend

It comes apart

The way it does in bad films

Except in parts

When the moral kicks in

Though when we're running out of the drugs

And the conversation's winding away

I wouldn't trade one stupid decision

For another five years of life

You drop the first ten years just as fast as you can

And the next ten people who are trying to be polite

When you're blowing eighty-five days in the middle of France

Yeah, I know it gets tired only where are your friends tonight?

And to tell the truth

Oh, this could be the last time

So here we go

Like a sail's force into the night

And if I made a fool, if I made a fool, if I made a fool

On the road, there's always this

And if I'm sewn into submission

I can still come home to this

And with a face like a dad and a laughable stand

You can sleep on the plane or review what you said

When you're drunk and the kids leave impossible tasks

You think over and over, "hey, I'm finally dead"

Oh, if the trip and the plan come apart in your hand

You look contorted on yourself your ridiculous prop

You forgot what you meant when you read what you said

And you always knew you were tired, but then

Where are your friends tonight?

Where are your friends tonight?

Where are your friends tonight?

If I could see all my friends tonight

If I could see all my friends tonight

If I could see all my friends tonight

If I could see all my friends tonight

7. "Future" by Paramore

"Future" is a song written by Hayley Williams and Taylor York. The song is the closer of Paramore's self-titled record. This is the band's longest and most instrumental-based song and was #1 in a weekly playlist by Alternative Press for very long songs.

This song had received generally positive reviews by Billboard, Pop Dust, and Alternative Press. Billboard had reviewed this track along with the others from the album and had said, "This nearly eight-minute cut begin quietly, encouraging listeners to keep looking ahead and following their dreams as light guitar riffs pluck along -- but then morphs into a furious hard rock session, free of lyrics. It's a proper end to the set—gentle and aggressive all at once." Pop Dust, giving the song an overall 4.5/5 stars, had said, "Paramore packs itself tightly with emotional highs and lows, so it makes sense that its final track would start off as something of a breather, with Hayley Williams’ declarations of “riding the future” barely uttered over a dorm-room guitar strum.

I'm writing the future,

I'm writing it out, loud.

We don't talk about the past,

We don't talk about the past now.

So, I'm writing the future.

I'm leaving a key here.

Something won't always be missing.

You won't always feel emptier.

Just think of the future.

And think of your dreams.

You'll get away from here.

You'll get away eventually.

So, just think of the future.

Think of a new life.

And don't get lost in the memories.

Keep your eyes on a new prize.

8. "Long Live" by Taylor Swift

"Long Live" is a song written and recorded by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift for her third studio album, Speak Now (2010). Produced by Swift and Nathan Chapman, "Long Live" is the closing track of the 14-track standard Speak Now edition. It is a heartland rock song featuring girl group harmonies and chiming rock guitars, with lyrics about Swift's gratitude for her fans and bandmates, using high school imagery to describe the accomplishments in life.

After Speak Now was released, "Long Live" entered and peaked at number 85 on the US Billboard Hot 100. A remix featuring Brazilian singer Paula Fernandes was released as a digital single in Brazil in March 2012. Swift included the song on the regular set lists of two of her world tours, the Speak Now World Tour (2011–2012) and Reputation Stadium Tour (2018), and performed it on select dates of two of her world tours, the Red Tour (2013–2014) and the 1989 World Tour (2015).

[Verse 1]

I said, remember this moment, in the back of my mind

The time we stood with our shaking hands

The crowds in stands went wild

We were the kings and the queens

And they read off our names

The night you danced like you knew our lives

Would never be the same

You held your head like a hero

On a history book page

It was the end of a decade

But the start of an age

[Chorus]

Long live the walls we crashed through

All the kingdom lights shined just for me and you

I was screaming, long live all the magic we made

And bring on all the pretenders

One day, we will be remembered

[Verse 2]

I said, remember this feeling

I passed the pictures around

Of all the years that we stood there

On the side-lines wishing for right now

We are the kings and the queens

You traded your baseball cap for a crown

When they gave us our trophies

And we held them up for our town

And the cynics were outraged

Screaming, "This is absurd"

'Cause for a moment, a band of thieves

In ripped up jeans got to rule the world

[Chorus]

Long live the walls we crashed through

All the kingdom lights shined just for me and you

I was screaming, long live all the magic we made

And bring on all the pretenders

I'm not afraid

Long live all the mountains we moved

I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you

I was screaming, long live that look on your face

And bring on all the pretenders

One day, we will be remembered

[Bridge]

Hold on to spinning around

Confetti falls to the ground

May these memories break our fall

[Breakdown]

Will you take a moment?

Promise me this

That you'll stand by me forever

But if, God forbid, fate should step in

And force us into a goodbye

If you have children some day

When they point to the pictures

Please tell them my name

Tell them how the crowds went wild

Tell them how I hope they shine

Long live the walls we crashed through

I had the time of my life, with you

[Chorus]

Long, long live the walls we crashed through

All the kingdom lights shined just for me and you

I was screaming, long live all the magic we made

And bring on all the pretenders

I'm not afraid

Singing, long live all the mountains we moved

I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you

And long, long live that look on your face

And bring on all the pretenders

One day, we will be remembered

9. "Something Big" by Shawn Mendes

"Something Big" is a pop song by Canadian singer Shawn Mendes from his debut studio album Handwritten (2015). It was released on 7 November 2014 as the second official single from the album. The song peaked at number 80 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

[Intro]

One, two, three, four...

Oh, woah, woah, oh, woah

Oh, woah, woah, oh, woah

[Verse 1]

Play the lotto, you might win it

It's like 25 For life so you bust outta prison

Something's in the air, something's in the air

It's like that feeling when you're just about to kill it

Take your last shot, you know you're gonna hit it

Something's in the air, something's in the air, woah

[Chorus]

Something big, I feel it happening

Out of my control

Pushing, pulling and it's grabbing me

Feel it in my bones

Like oh, woah, woah, oh, woah

Something big, I feel it happening

Oh, woah, woah, oh, woah

Something big

[Verse 2]

It's like that feeling when you're about to win the medal

And you worked so hard, that you knew you wouldn't settle

Hands are in the air, hands are in the air

When they hear you when you thought they wouldn't listen

It's like an anthem that the whole world's singing

Hands are in the air, hands are in the air, woah

[Chorus]

Something big, I feel it happening

Out of my control

Pushing, pulling and it's grabbing me

Feel it in my bones

Like oh, woah, woah, oh, woah

Something big, I feel it happening

Oh, woah, woah, oh, woah

Something big

[Bridge]

Woah, yeah, yeah

If we stomp our feet, the ground will shake

If we clap our hands, the walls will break

Yell so loud, won't forget our names

'Cause something big is happening

Take this spark and start a fire

Raise this up, we're feeling higher

They can't tell us anything

Something big is happening

[Chorus]

Something big, I feel it happening

Out of my control

Pushing, pulling and it's grabbing me

Feel it in my bones

Like oh, woah, woah, oh, woah

Something big is happening, oh

Oh, woah, woah, oh, woah

Something big, I feel it happening, oh

10. "I'll Be There For You" by The Rembrandts

"I'll Be There for You" is a song by American pop rock duo the Rembrandts. The song was written by David Crane, Marta Kauffman, Michael Skloff, and Allee Willis as the main theme song to the NBC sitcom Friends, which was broadcast from 1994 to 2004. American rock band R.E.M. were originally asked to allow one of their songs to be used for the Friends theme, but they turned the opportunity down. "I'll Be There for You" was subsequently written and Warner Bros. Television selected the only available band on Warner Bros. Records to record it: the Rembrandts. In 1995, after a Nashville radio station brought the song to mainstream popularity, Rembrandts members Danny Wilde and Phil Sōlem expanded the theme song with two new verses and included this version on their third studio album, L.P. (1995).

So no one told you life was gonna be this way

Your job's a joke, you're broke

Your love life's DOA

It's like you're always stuck in second gear

When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month

Or even your year, but

I'll be there for you

(When the rain starts to pour)

I'll be there for you

(Like I've been there before)

I'll be there for you

('Cause you're there for me too)

You're still in bed at ten

And work began at eight

You've burned your breakfast

So far, things are going great

Your mother warned you there'd be days like these

But she didn't tell you when the world has brought

You down to your knees that

I'll be there for you

(When the rain starts to pour)

I'll be there for you

(Like I've been there before)

I'll be there for you

('Cause you're there for me too)

No one could ever know me

No one could ever see me

Seems you're the only one who knows

What it's like to be me

Someone to face the day with

Make it through all the rest with

Someone I'll always laugh with

Even at my worst, I'm best with you, yeah

It's like you're always stuck in second gear

When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month

Or even your year

I'll be there for you

(When the rain starts to pour)

I'll be there for you

(Like I've been there before)

I'll be there for you

('Cause you're there for me too)

I'll be there for you

I'll be there for you

I'll be there for you

('Cause you're there for me too)

Listen to other great graduation songs of all time

11. "We Are Young" by Fun. and Janelle Monáe

"We Are Young" is a song recorded by American band Fun, featuring American singer Janelle Monáe. It is the third track on the group's second studio album, Some Nights (2012). The song was released on September 20, 2011 as the lead single from the album. The song quickly received acclaim from music critics, with many noting the song as a breakthrough for the indie genre and praising the song's catchiness. "We Are Young" attained commercial success worldwide, reaching number one in several countries.

12. "Graduation (Friends Forever)," by Vitamin C

"Graduation (Friends Forever)" (also titled "Friends Forever (Graduation)") is a song by American pop singer Vitamin C, released as the third single from her self-titled debut studio album (1999). Vitamin C wrote the song as a response to how many friends drift apart soon after graduation from high school. Josh Deutsch co-wrote the song with her and also produced the track alongside Garry Hughes. The song is partly orchestrated, featuring a string arrangement based on Pachelbel's Canon in D and a vocal appearance from the NYC All-City Chorus. One version of the song contains student interviews from the Class of 2000 of Lyndhurst High School in New Jersey.

13. "I Was Here," by Beyoncé

"I Was Here" is a song recorded by American R&B recording artist Beyoncé from her fourth studio album, 4 (2011). It was written by Diane Warren, while production was handled by OneRepublic members Ryan Tedder and Brent Kutzle, alongside Kuk Harrell; while Beyoncé is credited on the vocal production. "I Was Here" is a reflective R&B ballad, in which Beyoncé vulnerably reviews her past, wanting to leave an impact on the world before her life comes to an end. Described as a "career song" by Warren, its development was motivated by the September 11 attacks in the United States.

14. "Time After Time," by Cyndi Lauper

"Time After Time" is a 1983 song by American singer-songwriter Cyndi Lauper, co-written with Rob Hyman, who also provided backing vocals. It was the second single released from her debut studio album, She's So Unusual (1983). The track was produced by Rick Chertoff and released as a single on January 27, 1984. The song became Lauper's first number 1 hit in the U.S. The song was written in the album's final stages, after "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun", "She Bop" and "All Through the Night" had been written. The writing began with the title, which Lauper had seen in TV Guide magazine, referring to the science fiction film Time After Time (1979).

15. "Goodbye," by Spice Girls

"Goodbye" is a song recorded by British girl group Spice Girls. It was written by the group, Richard Stannard, and Matt Rowe, while it was produced by the latter two. The song became the group's first song without the vocals of Geri Halliwell. It was released by Virgin Records on 8 December 1998 and was later included on their third studio album Forever (2000). "Goodbye" is a pop ballad that lyrically consists of the group's farewell to a friend, specifically Halliwell. The lyrics were also seen, by the media and fans alike, as the group's end, although the idea was dismissed by the members.

16. Matchbox 20, "How Far We've Come"

A choice for the more apocalypse-minded graduates out there, this chugging track from 2007’s Exile on Mainstream offers a driving order to look back at the past on its chorus. It’s such an effective trigger for reflection that the New York Mets used it in video packages commemorating their final season at Shea Stadium.

17. Lee Ann Womack, "I Hope You Dance"

Lee Ann Womack thought of her daughters when singing her 2000 crossover smash “I Hope You Dance,” a feel-good ballad full of advice for someone heading out into the world. The song featured backing vocals from Drew and Tim Womack of the Texas group Sons of the Desert, who, surprisingly, are not related to Lee Ann and were merely her labelmates at the time.

18. The Wonder Years, "My Last Semester"

“I’m not sad anymore/I’m just tired of this place,” Wonder Years singer Dan “Soupy” Campbell sings at the opening of this 2010 track about wanting to get as far from his school daze as humanly possible. The flip side of the graduation songs that promise eternal friendship (“No one wants to hear your sappy bullshit”), “My Last Semester” is a prideful kiss-off to a school’s wider populace, from the “fake-tan girls” to the “kids outside with guitars hoping for someone to notice.”

19. Nico & Vinz, "Am I Wrong"

Nico & Vinz, a pair of Norway-based singers who bonded over shared West African roots, had a worldwide hit last year with the Afrobeat-influenced pop of “Am I Wrong.” And while it’s clear what lyrics about thinking outside the box and reaching unseen summits mean to the group’s story, they also connected with a generation of ambitious graduates.

20. Nas, "I Can"

This kid-assisted track from Nas’s 2002 album God’s Son is half uplifting chant, half cautionary tale, with Nas instructing “ghetto children [to] do your thing” while outlining African history. “A song like that helped me because I have a daughter,” Nas told Rolling Stone in 2007, “and because I make so much music that, when she was younger, I didn’t want her to listen to, I owed her and other kids something, something real, something real that’s up their alley, to show that I cared, that I’m a human being, that I’m not just about giving you a tune about what happens in the ‘hood and all that every day.”

21. Natasha Bedingfield, "Unwritten"

A year after Natasha Bedingfield broke through in her native England, the title track from her debut album, Unwritten, became her first Top 10 hit in the United States, with an inspiring gospel-choir refrain about the wide-open potential of the future. Bedingfield co-wrote “Unwritten” with Danielle Brisebois, who’d already contributed another song to the commencement canon as a member of the New Radicals, the band behind “You Get What You Give.”

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