We’ve all been there. We’ve fallen in love, only to have our hearts broken into a million pieces. We swore we would never allow ourselves to be hurt like that again.
Love is a beautiful thing and one of the most important things in life. But sometimes, love doesn’t work out as planned. What can go wrong (how long have we got here lol)? Was it unrequited love from a distance, or feelings that you developed for a friend that was not reciprocated? Did you give your all in a relationship and received little in return?
You may have once been head-over-heels, but life somehow got in the way and dampened your ardor. You may even have been someone’s idea of perfection (weird, I know!) but treated their heart carelessly?
A multitude of reasons for a broken heart and yet sometimes we have the desire to try again (suckers for punishment, some would say!). It is no coincidence that songs about second chances are continually popular and pull at our heartstrings.
Which of us hasn’t, at least once, wanted to turn the clock back and do things differently, if only to ease the pain of heartache?
But love is always a risk and we are reminded that sometimes second chances allow us to compromise and grow as a couple, at other times they just prolong our agony of being in the wrong relationship. Many times the second chances don’t even happen in reality, only in our tortured thoughts.
Here are 11 of our favourite songs about second chances.
1. “Back to you” by Selena Gomez
This dance-pop anthem is about a girl wanting to get back together with her bad boy’ ex-boyfriend. They have unfinished business and thoughts of him prevent her from moving on to other relationships. Ah yes! closure, what we all need and want. But sometimes, we just gotta accept that a relationship wasn’t meant to be.
2. “Make You Feel My Love” by Adele
A beautiful ballad with a simple, yet profound message. The lyrics express the deep desire for us all to be loved and to have a lasting, meaningful connection with another person. Adele’s raw and emotive vocal performance perfectly conveys the longing and yearning of the lyrics, making the song all the more powerful.
Expert Tip: This song resonates with so many of us because it captures the universal pain of having loved and lost.
3. “Hate That I Love You” by Rihanna feat Neyo
In classic R&B style with folk influences. Rihanna’s love duet reminisces on the good times and the emotional hold previous lovers can have on us even after we’ve parted ways. And it’s never the well-behaved ones.
4. “Never Really Over” by Katy Perry
This electro-pop track highlights how the pain of letting go can cause couples to replay the same dramas over and over. We sometimes find it easier to leave a relationship open-ended than to cut the final cords just coz it’s over, doesn’t mean it’s really over. But sometimes over’ really should mean over.
5. “The One” by Ed Sheeran
Another very relatable acoustic rendition. We’ve all had that one person in our life that we just can’t forget no matter how hard we try. And that’s what this song is all about. It’s about the bittersweet feeling of knowing that you’ll never forget that person, even though things didn’t work out between you. The other person has moved on and (for a while at least) we secretly plead for them to return.
6. “The Scientist” by Coldplay
A beautiful piano ballad about starting over, going back in time, and doing it all again. A song is full of melancholic regret about how things could have been. As Chris Martin’s lyrics state nobody said love was easy, we are in full agreement!
7. “Picture” by Kid Rock (feat Sheryl Crow)
This country duet refers to the grass sometimes looking greener elsewhere, a couple can move on but find they can’t replace the feelings they had with their ex. Constant reminders draw them back together We can relate.
8. “Hard to Say I’m Sorry” by Chicago
A power ballad was full of remorse and promises of change. Sometimes a little time apart can be the very thing that lets us see the value of the relationship we had. We all make mistakes, the secret is to recognize when we’re wrong and try to make amends.
9. “Whatever it takes” by Lighthouse
More promises of change to turn things around! In this slow pop-rock ballad, the guilty party recognizes the hurt he has caused and tries to convince his ex to give things another try. Yep been there, done that.
10. “Just give me a reason” by Pink
This pop-rock duet highlights how we don’t even have to reach the break-up stage before second chances can be considered. At low points in our relationships, we can all learn to love again.
11. “(Just Like) Starting Over” by John Lennon
And just when you were feeling that second chances are all doom and gloom, misery and heartache. Lennon’s up-tempo love anthem reminds us that sometimes they really do work! People can change, rekindle old feelings and ignite a flame from the burning embers.
Should we always give love a second chance? Well yes and no.
Yes, because love is a drug and it’s hard to break the addiction to what was once an all-consuming passion and our very reason for being. Yes, because we all strive for the Disney-happy-ever-after-ending.
Yes, because (sometimes) we do have the ability to communicate as adults, take a long hard look at what wasn’t working and do our level best to fix the issues.
No, because in some instances, we are just basically incompatible and no matter how much effort we put in to change, we are just too different to live in perpetual bliss.
OK so we might eventually accept each other’s annoying habits but if the reasons are something more serious like infidelity of abuse, there may be too much damage already done to create a healthy connection.
It’s also important to be honest with ourselves, are we really ready to forgive and forget? If not, it might be better to move on.
Taking the leap forward and giving love a second chance with a new person can be just as scary. But it can also be one of the most rewarding things we’ll ever do.
Making ourselves vulnerable to love requires courage whether we go backward or forward. In the end, it comes down to how much we desire a deep and true connection with another human being.