Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. We have different standards of beauty, but with what the media projects of what beauty is, it is not easy for us to feel conscious with how we look. Beauty does not only concern women because anyone can be beautiful. It is not the outside that we should consider in determining what is beautiful. What is more important is the beauty deep within us. Let us not be affected by these so-called beauty standards.
May our list of songs about beauty empower and boost your confidence to be you and be beautiful you.
Table of Contents
- 21. You Don’t Know You’re Beautiful – One Direction
- 20. The Way You Look Tonight – Frank Sinatra
- 19. Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton
- 18. Pretty Hurts – Beyonce
- 17. Unpretty – TLC
- 16. Who You Are – Jessie J
- 15. Beautiful – Bazzi featuring Camila Cabello
- 14. The Most Beautiful Girl In The World – Prince
- 13. Fuckin’ Perfect – Pink
- 12. You and I (Nobody in the World) – John Legend
- 11. Oh, Pretty Woman – Roy Orbison
- 10. Beautiful Soul – Jesse McCartney
- 9. True Colors – Cyndi Lauper
- 8. I’m Every Woman – Whitney Houston
- 7. Born This Way – Lady Gaga
- 6. What Makes You Beautiful – One Direction
- 5. You’re Beautiful – James Blunt
- 4. Beautiful Girls – Sean Kingston
- 3. Just the Way You Are – Bruno Mars
- 2. Scars to Your Beautiful – Alessia Cara
- 1. Beautiful – Christina Aguilera
21. You Don’t Know You’re Beautiful – One Direction
A lot of girls are not conscious or confident about how they look–sometimes their beauty from within radiates and that actually makes them beautiful. English-Irish pop boy band One Direction, also known as 1D, recorded You Don’t Know You’re Beautiful as their debut single and the lead single of their Up All Night Album in 2011. This is an award-winning and chart-topper song.
20. The Way You Look Tonight – Frank Sinatra
This feel-good song is from one of the world’s best-selling music artists of all time, Frank Sinatra. The Way You Look Tonight is actually a Fred Astaire original. It has a lot of versions, covers and renditions from different famous singers. It was featured in Frank Sinatra’s 1964 album Sinatra Sings Days of Wine and Roses, Moon River and Other Academy Award Winners.
19. Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton
This wonderful ballad was written by Eric Clapton for his wife Pattie Boyd (who was then his girlfriend when he wrote the song). Eric was waiting for Pattie to get dressed for a party they are to attend. While waiting, he was able to come up with this song which he just polished later on. Wonderful Tonight was released as a part of Eric’s fifth full-length studio album Slowhand on November 25, 1977.
18. Pretty Hurts – Beyonce
Being pretty or beautiful comes with sacrifices, and to those whose job or career depends on their beauty, they need to take care of their body and face. This music video of Pretty Hurts by Beyonce shows us what it entails to be beautiful in the beauty pageant world. The world demands a lot of perfection for a girl to be considered beautiful. This song is from her self titled album released in 2013.
17. Unpretty – TLC
Unpretty is a story of a girl who is trying to live up to the expectations of the boy she lives with. The boy wants her to become sexy just like what beauty magazines and commercials project of a sexy girl. What we see outside is not really important, it is what’s within that we should look into someone. Unpretty is from the third studio album of the American girl group TLC which became famous in the 90s.
16. Who You Are – Jessie J
Sometimes we try to fit into what our surroundings require. And because we want to fit in, we try to change ourselves. By changing ourselves, we set aside our dreams and who we really are. Little did we know that we are already setting aside even those beautiful things within us. Don’t let your surroundings change you. Don’t try to fit into the mold; instead, mold yourself and stand out in the crowd.
15. Beautiful – Bazzi featuring Camila Cabello
Beautiful is the thirteenth track in Bazzi’s debut album, Cosmic which was released on April 12, 2018. A reimagined version of this track featuring Cuban-American singer-songwriter Camila Cabello, was released on August 2, 2018. (This is the version you are going to see in the video below.) The persona in the song refers to the woman he likes as a beautiful angel. Unlike the previous songs above, this song sees all the imperfections of the woman as “beautiful in every angle”.
14. The Most Beautiful Girl In The World – Prince
Prince was able to justify the message of this song with his heartfelt rendition. Originally released as a slow ballad in his 1994 The Beautiful Experience Album. With some revisions done, it was again released as a part of his Golden Experience Album in 1995. The Most Beautiful Girl in the World had been used as a promotional song for the Miss USA Pageant in 1994 and was also used during the pageant itself.
13. Fuckin’ Perfect – Pink
This is one of Pink’s greatest hits. As a matter of fact, it is included in her Greatest Hits…So Far Album which is a compilation of her best hits for her 10 year anniversary in the industry. This song talks about knowing your self worth. You don’t need to change a thing; just be who you are and you’ll be perfect.
12. You and I (Nobody in the World) – John Legend
This song was written for the then fiancee of John Legend Chrissy Teigen. It shows how girls can sometimes be too conscious about their looks, especially when they are going to a party or an event. But if your guy really loves you, what and how you look doesn’t really matter. It’s who you really are that matters.
11. Oh, Pretty Woman – Roy Orbison
Just like other songs in this list, Oh, Pretty Woman is a song that is dedicated to the singer’s (Roy Orbison) wife. The song was first released as a single in 1964. It was then used / featured in various movies. It was part of the original motion picture soundtrack of the movie Pretty Woman, starring Julia Roberts and Richard Gere in 1994.
10. Beautiful Soul – Jesse McCartney
Talk about inner beauty. Beautiful Soul, by American singer/ songwriter Jesse McCartney, talks about ‘beautiful soul’ and he doesn’t want any pretty face. It shows that inner beauty is more important than what we see outside. This song was released as his debut single and the lead single of his debut album Beautiful Soul in 2004.
9. True Colors – Cyndi Lauper
Show your true colors; show who you really are. True Colors by Cyndi Lauper was a part of her True Colors Album released in 1986. It was the theme song of the 1988 Summer Olympics, 2003 Rugby World Cup and for Kodak Films and Cameras commercials. It has also been used as a soundtrack for the movie Trolls which was released in 2016 and in Disney series Amphibia.
8. I’m Every Woman – Whitney Houston
I’m Every Woman was originally a Chaka Khan’s song, which became her first hit as a solo artist. Whitney Houston recorded a remake of this song in 1992 for her movie The Bodyguard. This song shows women empowerment, confidence and power. Did you know that Whitney Houston was part of the background singers of Chaka Khan when she recorded this song? Whitney was just 14 that time.
7. Born This Way – Lady Gaga
The works of Carl Bean, a gay, black, religious activist, inspired this song by Lady Gaga. Born This Way is called the Equality Anthem–whatever gender, religion, race you are from we are all equal. Born This way is a part of Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Album which was released on February 11, 2011.
6. What Makes You Beautiful – One Direction
This is the second song of One Direction that is in our list. Still part of their album Up All Night which was released in 2011, this song talks about what makes a woman beautiful. The persona in this song is telling her girl that she is beautiful whatever she does–actually, the fact that the girl doesn’t know that she is beautiful makes her beautiful. It’s a beauty that is not pretentious, just natural beauty
5. You’re Beautiful – James Blunt
This is a sad love song about seeing someone who has a big impact in your life but you know that you will never see each other again because you belong to different worlds. British singer, songwriter and musician James Blunt recorded this song as part of his Back to Bediam Album. This is a chart topper both in the US and UK charts.
4. Beautiful Girls – Sean Kingston
This US and UK chart topper song tells about the young love experience of Sean Kingston. It tells that some boys can do bad things to themselves if they are dumped by these beautiful girls. This song is a part of the American-Jamaican singer-rapper’s self titled album released in 2007. The song became controversial because of the repeated use of the word suicidal; the word was later on changed to denial.
3. Just the Way You Are – Bruno Mars
Another song of just being yourself. When a boy loves a girl, he will accept the girls just the way she is. Just the Way You Are is the lead single of Bruno Mars’ debut album Doo-wops and Hooligans which was released on October 4, 2010. This song by the Hawaiian-born singer-songwriter gained the number spot both in the US and UK music charts.
2. Scars to Your Beautiful – Alessia Cara
Slim, flawless, proportionate body, long lashes, red plump lips, big boobs and well-rounded butt–perfect according to the standards of our society. This song is very empowering and inspirational, including its music video. The traumatic experience of Alessia Cara made her sing the song with very expressive emotions. This song is a part of her debut album Know-It-All.
1. Beautiful – Christina Aguilera
Don’t you know that this song somewhat reflects a past in Christina Aguilera’s life? She said that she also suffered physical abuse at the hands of her father which made her insecure. Beautiful is about accepting who you are, whatever you look like, no matter who you are. It’s about being brave against all those insecurities, bullying and bashing. This song is a part of her Stripped Album which was released in 2002 and brought her Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
So, it’s time to set your own standards of beauty. Go on, be yourself!