11 Songs Where You Should Shut Up & Listen | Playlist 🎧

1. Ariana Grande, “Shut up”

💿 Positions • 🏷 Republic • 🗓 2020

“All them demons helped me see shit differently / So don’t be sad for me.” 🎵 “Shut up” definitely sets the tone on 💿 Positions, the surprise sixth studio album by 🎙 Ariana Grande. Grande is assertive and profane, just like the title suggests.

“Love the game so I ain’t never miss
Keep opinions muted for the hell of it
‘Cause I like my shit.” 

Ari is definitely confident on that excerpt from the second verse.  You could totally say, she’s feeling herself – 🚫 🎩. While exuding confidence and urging the haters to SHUT UP, she’s backed by an ultra-classy, orchestral backdrop. Contradictory, right?

2. DaBaby, “SHUT UP”

🎵 “SHUT UP” • 🏷 Interscope • 🗓 2020

🎵 “SHUT UP” is a banger – that’s what 🎙 DaBaby does, right? Confirming its banger status is hot production, courtesy of 🎙 DJ Kid and 🎙 ForeignGotEm.  Both producers stitch up a chill yet potent backdrop for the rapper to ‘do his thing.’  As aforementioned, he thrives off his personality.  A prime example is the chorus, particular when he emulates farting on the chorus (I ‘shit’ you not).

“Lil nigga, shut up (Shut up, bitch)
I got a problem, bitches keep callin’ (Brrt)
I need a new number (Shut up, bitch)
They know I’m the shit (Prrt, ew)
I need a plunger (Mm, yeah)
Look at my bitch (Goddamn)
I think I love her (Okay, let’s go, yeah, let me go).”

Safe to say, DaBaby is cocky; there’s no shortage of confidence.  Does he say much beyond the hilarious chorus? Of course not, unless you find lines like “Kevin Gates’ hoes grabbin’ on my dick” (verse one) or “Fucked her ‘til her booty got bigger” (verse two) to be considered depth.  “SHUT UP” is no “Suge”, but DaBaby continues to thrive on what made him a breakout star in 2019.  Who’s not going to at least chuckle a bit hearing him make fart sounds after proclaiming himself ‘the shit?’

3. Walk the Moon, “Shut Up and Dance”

💿 TALKING IS HARD • 🏷 RCA • 🗓 2014

“Oh, don’t you dare look back / Just keep your eyes on me / I said, ‘You’re holding back’ / She said, ‘Shut up and dance with me’.” Yeah, that chorus was one of the most memorable of 2014, hands down.  Ohio alternative collective 🎙 Walk the Moon earned a breakout pop hit with their hella infectious single, 🎵 “Shut Up and Dance.”  Take one listen to the song and it’s easy to understand why it totally blew up.

“Shut Up and Dance” is bright and energetic, set in a major key, and simply makes you feel good while listening.  🎙 Nicholas Petricca is on fire vocally, infusing his personality perfectly.  What more can you say? “Oooooh, shut up and dance with me!”

Also appears on 🔽:

🔗 🎧 11 Songs Fueled by ‘Dance’

4. Baby Keem, “Orange Soda”

💿 Die for My Bitch • 🏷 Baby Keem • 🗓 2019

This list is all about the phrase, “shut up,” right? Right. So, why in the world is a song entitled 🎙 🎵 “Orange Soda” included? Good question.  Honestly, I arrived at the song by rapper 🎙 Baby Keem in a roundabout way.  In a search for SHUT UP songs, I came to the 🎙 Lil Deela song, 🎵 “Lil Bitch Shut the Fuck Up”. While searching for the lyrics for this explicitly titled number, it led me to the original, successful single, “Orange Soda” (💿 Die for My Bitch, 🗓 2019), the successful single which features the explicit line in the chorus.

“Orange Soda” is a total banger, produced by 🎙 Keanu Beats and Baby Keem.  While Keem mentions orange soda, this song has little to do with it (“Messy, you my orange soda shorty”).  “Orange Soda” is about sex and drip.  On the chorus, Keem also manages to reference “smokin’ cat piss” (weed).  Still, it’s the totally inappropriate lyric that earns “Orange Soda” a spot here.

“Bitch sit on my face, I attack that
Choose up, lil’ junt, I’m finna pack him
When it comes to my bitch, I’m straight active
Dirtball in the coupe smokin’ cat piss
Lil’ bitch, shut the fuck up
Tell your best friend, shut the fuck up, ayy.”

5. Rihanna, “Shut Up and Drive”

💿 Good Girl Gone Bad • 🏷 Def Jam • 🗓 2007

Cars and car metaphors are a great way to deliver S-E-X in pop music.  Rihanna definitely had a gem 💎 on her hands in 2007 with “Shut Up and Drive.” “Shut Up and Drive” was one of many hits on one the Barbadian singer’s best and most important albums.

Honestly, it doesn’t take long to catch Rihanna’s drift. How about the first line: “I’ve been lookin’ for a driver who is qualified / So, if you think that you’re the one, step into my ride.” A driver, huh? Step into her ride, huh? Move on to the pre-chorus, and she asserts, “My engine’s ready to explode, explode, explode / Start me up and watch me go, go, go, go.” Hmm – she must’ve really revved up… The second verse, as well as the bridge keeps the innuendo going strong, with the chorus being the centerpiece:

“Get you where you wanna go, if you know what I mean
Got a ride that’s smoother than a limousine
Can you handle the curves? Can you run all the lights?
If you can, baby boy, then we can go all night
‘Cause I’m 0 to 60 in three point five
Baby, you got the keys
Now shut up and drive (Drive, drive, drive)
Shut up and drive (Drive, drive, drive).” 

What more can you say but, VROOM, VROOM?

6. Greyson Chance, “Shut Up”

💿 portraits • 🏷 GCM / AWAL • 🗓 2019

“I cannot hold my tongue, you give me much to say / I’m sweating bullets, nervous that you’ll push away.” 🎵 “Shut Up” begins 💿 portraits with a heaping dose of buttery smooth falsetto, as 🎙 Greyson Chance sings the memorable, aforementioned chorus.  It continues as follows: “And when your eyes catch mine, I know I talk too much / So give me your two lips and baby, I’ll shut up.”

It’s not all buttery smooth falsetto from Chance though. He shows off a much ‘bassier’ chest voice on the verses.  Here, his voice is far removed from the boyish pipes that graced his 2011 debut album, 💿 Hold On ‘Til The Night. Vibe goes a long way on “Shut Up,” which is sexy to the nth degree as Greyson sings about a familiar, favorite topic: LOVE.

7. Rina Sawayama, “STFU”

💿 SAWAYAMA • 🏷 Dirty Hit • 🗓 2020

“How come you don’t expect me / To get mad when I’m angry? / … How come you don’t respect me? / Expecting fantasies to be my reality / Why don’t you just sit down and…” More folks need to be buzzing about 🎙 Rina Sawayama – she’s absolutely amazing! Best described as an alternative musician, her music encompasses a variety of different styles including pop, R&B and even metal 🤘 (hold that thought 💭). Her debut album, 💿 SAWAYAMA, has received universal critical acclaim, a feat few albums can tout.  The LGBTQ+ musician truly is a force to be reckoned with, something the showcases to the nth degree on “STFU” (aka “shut the fuck up”) the third track from SAWAYAMA.

Remember how I mentioned that Rina Sawayama dips her toes into metal 🤘 sometimes? Well, “STFU” is a prime example.  No, she doesn’t wail like a metal singer, but she does bring the attitude and the heat over an aggressive, guitar-driven backdrop. She doesn’t need to belt or strain her voice in the least – she packs a mean punch being true to self and bringing her own distinct style.  Who exactly does Rina tell to shut the fuck up? Haters, judgmental folks, homophobes, etc. She’s over the BS essentially; she’s not afraid to “Tell It Like It Is”, Aaron Neville!

“Shut the fuck up (Shh)
Have you ever thought about taping your big mouth shut?
‘Cause I have, many times, many times
Have you ever thought about taping your big mouth shut?
‘Cause I have, many times, many times.”

8. Mansionz, “STFU”

💿 Mansionz • 🏷 Island • 🗓 2017

🎵 “STFU” featuring 🎙 Spark Master Tape served as the promo single for 💿 Mansionz, the self-titled, debut album by 🎙 Mansionz (🎙 blackbear and 🎙 Mike Posner) back in 2016. Just like the aforementioned 🎙 Rina Sawayama track of the same name, the acronym means just what you think – shut the fuck up.  Charming.  As blunt as it is, “STFU” fits the modern R&B vibe where being profane is what’s trending.

Blackbear takes on the more chill role, singing in relaxed fashion.  As for Mike Posner, he embraces his inner hip-hop, pop-rapping in maddening, rhythmic fashion.  Spark Master Tape provides a lift on the fourth and final verse, with pitch shifted. The centerpiece is the profane chorus, of course.

9. Ninja Sex Party, “Everybody Shut Up (I Have an Erection)”

💿 Strawberries and Cream • 🏷 Ninja Sex Party • 🗓 2015

“Everybody shut up, I have an erection! / It only happens 87 times a day / Stop what you’re doing and witness penis perfection / This is more important than what you have to say.” Damn – how can you even respond to that? Of course, with 🎙 Ninja Sex Party being the ‘musicians’ writing and performing 🎵 “Everybody Shut Up (I Have an Erection),” well, you have to take what they serve up with a grain of salt.  This absurd, raunchy, and hilarious number appears on the comedy group’s 2015 album, 💿 Strawberries and Cream.  Adding to the hilarity is an animated video, courtesy of Gregzilla.

As you can gather from the lyrics above, Ninja Sex Party spend the majority of “Everybody Shut Up (I Have an Erection)” singing about the D. Safe to say, this song exemplifies Big Dick Energy.  Just explore any number of lyrics, as well as the energy and expression by the performers, and there’s definitely some BDE in play.  A personal favorite moment where NSP adore the dong?

“Judge, don’t give me that robe, ‘cause then nobody could see
This pillar of awesome that's sticking straight out of me
Who could argue a case
With so much dick in your face?
Please hold your applause.”

Oh brother!

10. Walker Hayes, “Shut Up Kenny”

💿 boom. • 🏷 Monument • 🗓 2017

🎵 “Shut Up Kenny” is a great, ‘left of center’ title for a song, particularly a country song. In the case of this standout from 💿 boom., 🎙 Walker Hayes has his musical idol, Kenny Chesney in mind.  It would seem, given the title, that Hayes is anti-Chesney.  No sir! He’s onboard with country music vet through and through, and it makes for an interesting listen.

“Shut Up Kenny” has its share of country music cues, yet it also has some pop sensibilities. Overall, the production work is tasty. Hayes ‘talks’ (spoken word) during the verses. Initially, it’s somewhat odd. Ultimately, this approach is somewhat off-putting, off-kilter, yet rhythmic and unique.

The chorus is incredibly catchy and irresistible.

“Shut up, Kenny
Leave me alone
Keep your songs to yourself
Why you gotta sound just like she felt
When your stuff was the shit we drove around to
And even your sad songs were fun to make out to
C’mon, Kenny
Man, you know I like your music
But I hate the way I love the way it hurts when I listen to it
I know I need to rip the radio out the dash but I can't
Damn
Shut up, Kenny.”

11. The Black Eyed Peas, “Shut Up”

💿 Elephunk • 🏷 Interscope • 🗓 2003

“Shut up, just shut up, shut up!” Ah, rewind ⏪ back to 🗓 2003.  Back then, when I was senior in high school, 🎙 The Black Eyed Peas released their breakthrough album, 💿 Elephunk. Elephunk definitely started a big run for the quartet, then comprised of 🎙 Fergie, 🎙 will.i.am, 🎙 apl.de.ap, and 🎙 Taboo. Amazingly, Gen-Z likely hasn’t experienced ‘the gift’ that is BEP, particularly Elephunk gems 💎 like 🎵 “Hands Up”, 🎵 “Let’s Get It Started”, 🎵 “Where is the Love”, and the song at hand, 🎵 “Shut Up.”

“Shut Up” is infectious, even approaching two decades later.  The production is sleek, funky, and groovy to the nth degree. Some samples (interpolations) definitely up the ante. Furthermore, Fergie brings ample attitude and feistiness, singing incredibly well.

“We try to take it slow
But we're still losin’ control
And we try to make it work
But it still ends up the worst and I'm crazy
For tryna be your lady
I think I’m goin’ crazy.”

Honestly, she’s a key piece to the most successful, pop-oriented edition of BEP. Her and will.i.am play off each other particularly well.  Taboo also gets into the mix with an enjoyable verse.  What are they saying shut up about? A budding relationship.  Yeah, it’s always matters of the heart, isn’t it?