70 Songs With Stay in the Title

FlourishAnyway believes there is a playlist for just about any situation and is on a mission to unite and entertain the world through song.

Stay Calm in the Chaos of Daily Life

I've often told my husband that he's the vanilla to my rocky road. That's the secret of how we have stayed together so long. Not that vanilla doesn't sometimes go sideways. After all, someone has to be the one who anchors the relationship while the other of us plans the adventures, fires off ideas, and tries to save the world one cat at a time. He adds a sense of calm to the chaos of the world.

Having stayed together through sickness, sadness, and change makes our personal triumphs even sweeter. I hope you find that same happiness, if you haven't already and hope that person stays in your life for the long haul. Celebrate staying with a playlist of pop, rock, country, and R&B songs with stay in the title.

1. "Stay with Me" by Sam Smith

The morning after a one-night stand, the fragile narrator in this 2014 Grammy Award-winning pop ballad finds himself wanting to linger in the morning light and hold hands with his lover. Although he understands this was just a hook-up, he feels lonely and in need of human companionship. As a result, he asks his partner to stay with him a bit longer.

2. "Stay" by The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber

This contagious 2020 pop rock collaboration is about two relationships. One man hopes that his lover will stay in their relationship while another man is giving a shout out of gratitude that his partner has stayed with him.

The Kid LAROI is completely candid that he can't find anyone as good as his current girlfriend. Although it's not a healthy relationship, The Kid yearns for his honey because he can't live without her. Sadly, he's his own worst enemy in that he continually messes up their relationship with uncontrollable drinking and lying:

I do the same thing I told you that I never would
I told you I'd change, even when I knew I never could.

In contrast, Justin Bieber reveals that he has trust issues and is concerned that he will mess up his relationship with his partner. He gushes "you're the reason I believe in love." The Biebs also cannot live without his lover, misses her when they are away from one another, and wants her to continue to stay.

3. "Stay" by Sugarland

This emotionally-wrought country crossover hit from 2006 is a ballad about marital infidelity, told from the perspective of the other woman. "Stay" was inspired by Reba McEntire's 1986 tune, "Whoever's in New England."

The mistress is holed up in her love nest with their shared man as she hopes that his wife won't call to beckon him home, a situation that has repeated itself over and over again. The woman hates playing second fiddle, being left lonesome every time his wife calls. The narrator describes a scenario that has probably happened many times in which the wife calls and she begs him to stay. The man strings the narrator along with promises that he will leave his wife and one day they will be together.

The mistress decides that she is tired of being used and lied to, tired of waiting, and she's done with the relationship. The next time he wants to leave his wife's bed for hers, just stay. Bam! This was finally what he needed to hear! Now she needs to call his wife and tell her everything.

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4. "Stayin' Alive" by Bee Gees

Who doesn't love this 1977 chart-topper in all its heart-thumping, high falsetto glory? From the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, this Grammy-winning song epitomises the disco genre.

This number is about trying to make it on the tough, competitive streets of New York City in the 1970s. Rolling Stone magazine recognized "Stayin' Alive" by adding it to list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time," while the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame named it one of their "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll."

The song is often used in CPR training because it is 103 beats per minute, within the ideal range of chest compressions (100-120) for saving a life, according to The American Heart Association. First responders are more likely to recall CPR correctly to the tune of this quick-paced familiar disco song!

5. "Stay the Night" by Zedd (Featuring Hayley Williams)

Like fire and gasoline, the toxic couple at the center of this danceable pop number is combustible. But that doesn't mean they can't enjoy one more tryst before parting ways forever. The woman in this 2013 international hit invites her partner, "Are you gonna stay the night?"

6. "Stay" by Maurice Williams & The Zodiacs

This iconic 1960 doo-wop ditty is remembered for several things: its soaring falsetto, for being the shortest #1 hit ever at one minute and 36 seconds, and for making its singers a one-hit-wonder. The autobiographical song is about a teenage boy who begs his sweetheart to ignore her strict curfew and "stay just a little bit longer" for one more dance or kiss. Even though this was their only song to make the US Billboard Hot 100, Mauice Williams & The Zodiacs were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.

7. "Should I Stay or Should I Go" by The Clash

Just make a decision already! The Clash's most famous song is this 1982 punk rock number, hailed by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time."

The tune is about an indecisive guy who weighs the pros and cons of staying or leaving a personal relationship. He doesn't know what to do, and there is an echo of non-verbatim Spanish halfway through the song that sounds like his inner self is turning up the pressure. Make a choice fella!

8. "Stay" by Zedd and Alessia Cara

The young woman in this worldwide 2017 EDM hit begs her sweetheart to take his time in saying goodbye because she doesn't want to grow up. She understands that their relationship is soon ending, however she wishes he wouldn't go so quickly. Letting go is hard for her. Although the narrator knows she could supply a long list of reasons for him to stay, she understands that this is something her love interest needs to do. At least he could go slowly and give her time to adjust.

9. "Stay" by Rihanna (Featuring Mikki Ekko)

There's a raw, pained vulnerability in this 2013 R&B pop tune concerning a dysfunctional couple that is broken together. The partners cannot live without the other person. They crave each other in spite of disagreeing relentlessly. Although the narrator begs her significant lover to stay, these two don't need to be together.

10. "Stay the Night" by Chicago

Creeper alert. Don't call this 1984 rock ditty a "love" song because all the guy wants to do is get his sexy on with a woman he's recently met. Unfortunately, the narrator needs to reconsider his plainspoken approach.

Professing that he loves her company and friendly conversation, this guy simply wants to bump uglies. Then he literally says he doesn't have time for her attitude and "won't take no if that's your answer." Whoa, now! This feels neither safe nor friendly. Run, sister!

11. "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green

This 1971 tune is sheer soul perfection. Al Green was inspired from somewhere down deep when he wrote its lyrics. Penning this song required only 5 minutes or so, but then it took him more than 100 takes before he felt he got the recording right. Even then, he didn't think it was a hit.

Green was wrong. The R&B/mainstream crossover song topped the charts and was named to Rolling Stone's list of "500 Greatest Songs of All Time." The romantic track describes a man reflecting on the committed relationship that he has with his partner. He thinks what they have is worth keeping, thus he pitches the idea of staying together in the future through good times and bad. The narrator knows there may be a time when they may break up in the future, but this is the gal he wants by his side if she feels the same.

Green became an ordained preacher in Memphis the mid-1970s after a traumatic incident in which his married girlfriend threw a pot of boiling grits on him before dying by suicide. For years he focused exclusively on gospel music, fully dedicating himself to his faith, but he later returned to secular music.

The R&B artist was recognized with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and was lauded by Rolling Stone as one of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time and 100 Greatest Singers. He was inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Gospel Music Hall of Fame.

12. "I Think I'll Just Stay Here and Drink" by Merle Haggard

As he sits at a bar trying to kick back and clear his head, mighty Merle Haggard channels the misery of anyone stuck in an unhappy marriage in this 1980 country ditty. He's cheated on his wife in the recent past, and after a fight at home the fella has escaped to the bar to drown his troubles in alcohol.

Don't you love the art of the Southern rhyme below? Gotta love the Hag:

Hurtin' me know don't mean a thang
Since love ain't here, don't feel no pain
My mind ain't nothing but a total blank
I think I'll just stay here and drank (yeah).

13. "Stay Awake" by Dean Lewis

While his ladyfriend has made a decision to dump him, the guy in this chirpy 2019 pop tune is still trying to stave off their breakup. She has her belongings packed, but he's unable to accept that she already has one foot out of the door. He beseeches his fading sweetheart not to abandon their relationship, but it's probably a bit too late:

If the feeling's gone
Stay awake, stay awake, stay awake with me
Just keep on holding on.

Seriously. Where was he when she was packing all of her stuff?

14. "Stays in Mexico" by Toby Keith

There's no telling what will happen when you combine tequila, a sunny location, and anonymity. In this hot mess of a country song, a ministered salesman from South Dakota finds himself in Mexico away from his wife and kids and meets a vacationing first grade school teacher from Phoenix in a bar.

Too much tequila and dancing spill over to a memorable one night stand that lasts into the next day. Nobody has to know:

Don't bite off more than you can chew,
There's things down here the devil himself wouldn't do,
Just remember when you let it all go,
What happens down in Mexico,
Stays in Mexico.

15. "Stay" by Florida Georgia Line

If you love someone, tell them. That's what the guy in this 2012 country song has learned, although perhaps too late.

This cold fish didn't verbally articulate his love to his girlfriend, and she walked away. Following their breakup he finds himself remorseful and alone, seeking to rekindle their romance. He wonders if finally expressing his feelings in a love song and singing it to her daily would make her come home to stay.

16. "Don't Stay" by Linkin Park

Now here's how to show someone the door. This 2003 rock song features a narrator who is exasperated with a faithless lover. He's in disbelief and orders her to take their memories, possibilities, and what she was changing him into and just give him himself back. Upset at himself for trusting her, he needs her to get away from him. Don't stay. Get away. Buh-bye.

17. "Habits (Stay High)" by Tove Lo

When her boyfriend ditched her to join a Buddhist movement, Swedish singer Tove Lo was crestfallen, so she acted out her loss by numbing the pain with substance abuse and a hedonic lifestyle. (That'll show him.) Her experience inspired this catchy 2014 pop and electropop tune.

The song documents the depressed narrator's attempts to forget her ex. As she takes drugs, gets the munchies, goes to sex clubs, vomits in the bathtub, and picks up dads on the playground the narrator stays high to try to forget her loneliness.

18. "Stay Together for the Kids" by Blink-182

Inspired by band members' youthful experiences, this 2002 rock song is about divorce from the kids' viewpoint. The angst-filled tune describes parental fighting leading up to divorce. The children react to the grownups' inability to work their relationship out with feelings of helplessness, anger, and confusion:

Rather than fix the problems
They never solve them, it makes no sense at all
I see them everyday
We get along so why can't they?

19. "Stay With You" by John Legend

This sexy, soulful R&B 2004 number lays the lovin' on thick, as the narrator pledges to stay the distance with his partner no matter what. They are an established couple, and he reiterates his commitment, promising to stay with her through the ups and downs, heartaches and triumphs of life. Although other relationships may wax and wane, he assures her that this one will continue to be a stable, lifelong partnership. What a relationship goal!

20. "Stay (I Missed You)" by Lisa Loeb and Nine Stories

This easy going pop song was everywhere back in 1994 and captured Gen X's youthful apprehension and anxiety. The female narrator gives an account of her emotional relationship argument with her significant other who complains about her selective listening, fleeting attention, and naivete. Since she only hears what she wants to, when he mentions "stay," she interprets the outcome of their conversation to be reconciliation.

Although Lisa Loeb wasn't signed to a label, she and her band hit the top spot on the charts with this single. It appeared on the soundtrack of the movie, Reality Bites.

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