Imagine a song you can’t stand–now imagine having to perform it over and over, because it’s the song that helped you make it big. Sounds like a small nightmare, right?
Whether it’s burn-out from performing too many times, or perhaps a hatred from the beginning, a surprising number of musicians have songs in their own repertoires that they definitely regret.
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Selena Gomez
Can you believe that Selena isn’t too fond of “Come & Get It”? Well, it’s true. She told Entertainment Weekly that the song doesn’t feel like her, and is more of a “Rihanna reject.”
Katy Perry
Katy’s beef is with her first smash hit, “I Kissed A Girl,” which is now stuck in my head. Her reason? It plays into stereotypes. “Bisexuality wasn’t as talked about back then, or any type of fluidity.” Katy said to Glamour . She says she would rewrite it now.
Miley Cyrus
Y’all, this one makes sense. Miley isn’t a fan of “Party In The U.S.A.” She says she didn’t write it, and in fact picked it to go with her clothing line. She also said she’s never heard a Jay-Z song, which is literally unbelievable.
Led Zeppelin
I cannot believe this. They don’t like “Stairway to Heaven.” In fact, the band donated to a Portland radio station who agreed to ban the song from ever airing. Wow.
Taylor Swift
Taylor’s dislike of “Better Than Revenge” makes a lot of sense: the song, which talks about a girl stealing a boy from a young Taylor, doesn’t age well. She told The Guardian: “[…] you grow up and realize no one take someone from you if they don’t want to leave.”
Lady Gaga
I AM UPSET AT THIS ONE. Lady Gaga regrets “Telephone,” featuring Queen Beyoncé. Not because of the song itself, but because of the stress behind making it, she said. Okay, I get that.
Oasis
Ever heard “Wonderwall” and thought, “if I hear this song one more time, I may scream?” Well, Oasis can relate. “I can’t f—ing stand that f—ing song!” Singer Liam Gallagher told MTV.
Madonna
Unsurprisingly, Madonna isn’t the biggest fan of “Like A Virgin.” While she hasn’t given a reason, she’s stated that she can’t even stand to listen to it. And to perform it again? She told Z100 Radio, “I just can’t, unless somebody paid me, like, $30 million or something.”
Radiohead
Radiohead’s hit, “Creep,” is better known to writer Thom Yorke as “crap.” In fact, guitarist Johnny Greenwood hated recording the song so much that he distorted his own notes in the song to mess it up. Naturally, those became iconic.
Aerosmith
If you find yourself blasting “Walk This Way,” be aware that Aerosmith doesn’t care too much for it. Apparently, Run DMC didn’t learn the lyrics to the song prior to recording it. Awkward.
Lorde
It’s not that Lorde hates “Royals,” it’s that she doesn’t like how it sounds when it’s covered. “It sounds like a ringtone from a 2006 Nokia!” She told The Daily Record.
Nirvana
Kurt Cobain grew tired of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” primarily because MTV played the music video so much. He told Rolling Stone, “I can barely, especially on a bad night, get through ‘Teen Spirit.’”
Miley Cyrus (Part 2)
Miley has a second regret: “Wrecking Ball.” It’s not the song that haunts her–it’s the music video. She told The Zach Sang Show: “I’m never living that down. I will always be the naked girl on a wrecking ball.”
Kanye West
Kanye isn’t a fan of “Gold Digger.” The rapper told BBC Radio , “I never really liked that song, but I always knew I would get paid for doing ‘Gold Digger.'” Well, I ain’t saying’ he’s a gold digger…
James Blunt
You hate it, he hates it, we all hate it. “You’re Beautiful” became one of the most overplayed songs ever, and James Blunt knows it. He said it was “[…] force-fed down people’s throats[…]” and that it was annoying.
The Who
Of all their greatest hits, singer Pete Townshend hated “Pinball Wizard” the most. He only wrote it to please a critic who liked–you guessed it–pinball. He wrote it in one night and regretted the song forever after.
Beastie Boys
The band hated “Fight For Your Right (To Party)” so much that they wrote in the notes of their next album that it “sucked.” The hatred came from the gross misinterpretation of it–the song is meant to make fun of partying, not celebrate it.
Simple Minds
For Simple Minds, the iconic track used in The Breakfast Club was one of their biggest regrets. A couple bands had passed on the track before it made it to them.
Queen
Band member Roger Taylor hated “Another One Bites The Dust.” Instead of playing the song, he recorded a loop of his part and then told the band to play it. Yikes.
Frank Sinatra
The real question is, what song of his didn’t he hate? Included in his list of grievances are “New York, New York,” “My Way,” and “Strangers In The Night.” Oh boy.
TLC
Singer Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes [hated the message] ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74DWS-rVzCg&feature=youtu.be&t=34m6s ) “Creep” sent to women. Instead of telling her to cheat on her own cheating boyfriend, she believed the woman in their song should just leave him.
Tina Turner
Tina Turner reportedly absolutely hated “What’s Love Got To Do With It” after hearing the demo track for the song. It was her manager that persuaded her to give it a shot–and the rest is history.
Mandy Moore
The This Is Us star dabbled in music early in her career. Her regrets? The entirety of her first two albums. She told the Chicago Tribune, “If I had the money, I would give a [refund to everyone who bought my first two albums].”
John Lennon
It’s shorter to tell you that John Lennon basically hated most Beatles songs, tbh. In particular, he saved a biting comment for “Good Morning, Good Morning”, calling it “[…]a piece of garbage.” Ouch.
