Like the wedding gown, the tradition of the first dance dates back centuries to the kings and queens of Europe past. Though more of something to tick off the list these days, some couples still opt to make their first dance a staple of their reception celebrations to remember for years to come.
The main part of a first dance is the song and picking the right one, representing your first steps as a married couple, makes all the difference.
Recently, WedMatch, a free online tool to help couples find a wedding photographer (yes, a little random to include data on first dances), released a report on the top 20 most popular dance songs in accordance with research they gained from Spotify.
For its report, WedMatch noted that it analyzed 10,363 Spotify wedding and first dance playlists containing a combined total of 856,586 songs. The findings concluded that Haley Reinhard’s version of the Elvis song “Can’t Help Falling in Love” was the most popular wedding song, featured on 26% of the playlists. The Elvis classic was followed by “Better Together,” Jack Johnson’s 2006 hit, which was featured in 15% of the playlists, and then “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran, found on 14% of playlists.
WedMatch also noted that Ed Sheeran was the only artist to have more than one hit in the top 20 songs, the second being “Thinking Out Loud,” and he appeared five total times in the top 100 songs, which was the most of any other artist.
The top 20 most popular first dance songs for 2022 (so far) are:
1. “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” Haley Reinhart
2. “Better Together,” Jack Johnson
3. “Perfect,” Ed Sheeran
4. “Stand by Me,” Ben E. King
5. “All of Me,” John Legend
6. Marry Me, Train
7. “Thinking out Loud,” Ed Sheeran
8. “Your Song,” Elton John
9. “A Thousand Years,” Christina Perri
10. “You Are The Reason,” Calum Scott
11. “At Last,” Etta James
12. “Say You Won’t Let Go,” James Arthur
13. “Everything,” Michael Bublé
14. “You Are the Best Thing,” Ray LaMontagne
15. “Can’t Take My Eyes off You,” Frankie Valli
16. “Make You Feel My Love,” Adele
17. “I Get to Love You,” Ruelle
18. “From the Ground Up,” Dan + Shay
19. “The Way You Look Tonight,” Frank Sinatra
20. “Speechless,” Lady Gaga
“Further findings from all the data (combining all playlist categories) showed that the TikTok hit ‘About Damn Time’ by Lizzo was the only new song to be in the top 50 for 2022 at 29 overall and 14 for Wedding Prep,” continued the company in a press release about their findings. “Shania Twain’s ‘Man! I feel like a Woman!’ went from being in position 82 in 2020 to 31 in 2021 and eight in 2022 — meaning it has increased drastically in popularity despite being released 23 years ago. ‘Wannabe’ by the Spice Girls has also increased over time, moving from position 37 in 2020, 14 in 2021 and five in 2022.”
With the note of those two last songs, it’s probably no surprise that ‘90s songs have been growing in popularity. The company notes that they believe the growth in popularity comes along with the demographic of those likely to be getting married. (Kelly here: where my Millennials at?!)
No matter what any list may say, whatever you choose for a first dance song is the right song for you as a couple. So, say, “I Do,” put on your dancing shoes and have them turn up your song. The full research and methodology of the findings from WedMatch can be found here.
