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Grammy Gossip

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Erin McCarley - Love, Save the Empty

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Billboard Breakdown

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Artists to Watch in 2009

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Not just another boy band.

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In This Issue » Music » Graduation Songs

Graduation Songs

End of the Year Anthems

Written by: Erin M., Senior Editor – Posted: Mon May 21st, 2007

Author

emagner

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Much like the 1950's was with television, the dawn of the new millennium was the golden age for alt-rock farewell anthems. Whether or not you loved the soul-bearing guitar riffs and the goatee-clad man-boys who played them, come spring they knew it was time to say goodbye to the good times--and hello to the real world.

Green Day
"Time of Your Life (Good Riddance)"

When Green Day went acoustic for this tear jerker, it shocked their fan base into submission. Used for most of the television finale send-offs that year (who remembers the last episode of Seinfeld?) and countless nostalgic mixtapes, "Good Riddance" managed to infiltrate all of our lives...just what a good graduation song is supposed to do.

Vitamin C
"Graduation (Friends Forever)"

I don't know about Vitamin C. She's undoubtedly talented, but she came and went with just a few strange little ditties about love, friends, and...graduation. Nevertheless, "Graduation (Friends Forever)" was a certified hit, reaching number 38 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. And yeah, the song is a little cheesy, but it should be! You're graduating!

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Hockeychic
k02

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Ours is "For Good" from the musical Wicked

Posted 05/29/07

emmie1214

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when i graduated in 2006 our class song was Photograph by
Nickelback

Posted 05/29/07

Briansgirl
05

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we had seasons of love for our gradutationing song and it was from
the movie rent

Posted 05/28/07

divachick8
7

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We had Kelly Clarkson's "Break Away"...It was ridiculously stupid
for graduation. It sounds like someone breaking out of an abusive
relationship.

Posted 05/28/07

spike5793

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We have "My Wish", which I don't understand, "Good Riddance",
"Here's to the Night", and "Graduation (Friends Forever)" They're
all for a slide show and to play as we're setting up and stuff.

This is so sad... I don't want to leave these people and these
songs make it so much worse.

Posted 05/28/07

Backstreet
_Girl

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We had Graduation (Friends Forever) and Turn Back the Hands of
Time

Posted 05/28/07

Julia9875

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I know here's to the night is typically used at graduation time,
but it was actually written about a one night stand, so not sure
how relevant it actually is to graduation.

Posted 05/28/07

finchfry

Friend Note

i forgot about the third eye blind one. even though i'm not
graduating, but hey, i'm in the graduating spirit! haha

Posted 05/27/07

frogbabe23

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our song is just used during a slideshow so its not like we walk
to it or anything. We walk in to Pomp and Circumstance obviously
and walk out to Olympic Spirit. actually we practically sprint out
haha

Posted 05/27/07

alibeth25

Friend Note

My class had "I Hope You Had the Time of Your Life" and You Raise
Me Up."

Posted 05/27/07

sweetchica
1988

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Margo1 our class/ graduation song was Dare you to move. I didn't
really like it, but I suppose the lyrics fit.

Posted 05/26/07

Search_For
_Self

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I love "Graduation" by Vitamin C. I'm going to put it on my
myspace if I can find it.

Posted 05/26/07

rejected_p
astry

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the song for our class was "the last song" by the all american
rejects. which i liked at the time, but now i'm not too crazy
about it. i wish that "swing life away" by rise against would have
won instead. at the time i didn't like the lyrics so much since it
talked about just sitting around & getting by doing nothing -- now
i realize that was much more fitting :] ha!

Posted 05/26/07

izzi_

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"I get by with a little help from my friends...
I get high with a little help from my friends..."

...appropriate for a senior class that was 40% stoners. I wasn't.
But it was still funny.

Posted 05/26/07

sethchicke
nsnme

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my class song is Soco Amaretto Lime by Brand New

it was between that, My Wish by Rascal Flatts and Send Me on my
Way, from Rusted Roots (its in Matilda)

i personally do not like the song 'we' picked, by oh well.. Im
graduating :)

Posted 05/26/07

HDzY2kBabe
822

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Good Riddance was my high school's graduation song...it beat out
"Another Brick in the Wall." Can you believe that? And it
would've been perfect because our school was huge and you really
did feel like a brick in the wall.

Posted 05/26/07

doc_jill_

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I graduated last year and our song was "When You Believe" by
Mariah Carey. I don't really think it has a lot to do with
graduating. Our song was going to be "Unwritten," but there was a
huge petition going around the school about how no one would march
if this was our song. I wish it had been "My Wish" by Rascal
Flatts.

Posted 05/25/07

frogbabe23

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ours is goodbye to you by michelle branch

Posted 05/25/07

cmsgirl123

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the song that i liked the mosy was vitamin C. it makes me so sad.
the other song is "Whenever you Remember" by carrie underwood. it
is so true for me and so sad. :) yea i am the CLASS OF
2007!!!!!!!

Posted 05/25/07

sunny_side
_up

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Alright, now all i have to say is Eve 6-Here's to the nights,
Vitamin C- Graduation, and Green Day- Time of your life, and
Switchfoot-Dar you to move... typical typical typical. I have been
to 4 proms and each of these songs was 'the song' for one of these
proms. so typical. so boring. I'll have to burn the images of the
all the idiotic girls singing along and getting teary-eyed to a
song that has been played at the prom of mnay different graduating
classes, at maaany different schools.

Posted 05/25/07

DaisyAnne1

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I think it's so interesting that Eve 6 created "Here's to the
Night" to be about a one night stand and it ended up being such a
famous graduation song. I sang it at my graduation and I'm happy
it's still alive now three years later even though the Eve 6 is
not.

Posted 05/25/07

dilutedtru
th

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Eve 6 "Here's to the Night" & Green Day "Time of Your Life" are
favorites at my school, seems like they repeat most often. My
graduation song was "I Go Back" by Kenny Chesney though. I hated
it, but what can ya do? A good piece of the minority was going for
"Free Bird" just to be different. Sadly, it didn't happen.

Posted 05/25/07

margo1

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My grad song was "Here's To The Night" by Eve 6.

I think "Dare You To Move" by Switchfoot would be a good one.

Posted 05/25/07

gpiglover

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"My Wish" by Rascal Flatts was my song.

Posted 05/25/07

differ_26

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my grad song last year was out of the ordinary.. we changed the
lyrics we turned in to get it on.. it is soco ameretto lime by
brand new.. but all of these song listed were past classes songs

Posted 05/24/07

Jawbreaker
Chic

Friend Note

what about the vervepipe...the freshman.

Posted 05/24/07

Blu_Daisy

Friend Note

I'm graduating in 6 days. Yay.

I will always remember Vitamin C's Graduation song.

Posted 05/24/07

Nathalie1

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"This is my Time" by Raven is also pretty good, especially for
those going to college!

Posted 05/24/07

Nathalie1

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Photograph by Nickelback!!!! GREAT SONG!!!

Posted 05/24/07

silver48dr
agon

Friend Note

Hee, I recognized all of these except for the one by Third Eye
Blind.

Looks like I'm not alone when I say that the girl who performed at
my friend's grad sang "Unwritten."

Posted 05/24/07

scienceofr
ock

Friend Note

i like that graduate song by third eye blind....

mine was some song by the foo fighters, i can't remember what it
was, but it was ok. I really wanted left and leaving by the
weakerthans, but it's a sad song. whatever, whatever.

Posted 05/24/07

blc94

Friend Note

graduation. i has always been a great song 4 remembering times at
school.

Posted 05/24/07

Cutie9865

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Our grad song last year was unwritten.

Posted 05/24/07

hunny07

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i think photograph by nickelback is a great graduation song

Posted 05/24/07

Blue_parro
t

Friend Note

These are pretty cliché, but they're all apprpriate for the
occasion, I guess.

I'm graduating from HS this year and our song is going to be
Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield.

Posted 05/24/07

cluz1babe

Friend Note

I voted for "Rock N Roll High School" - The Ramones, but it ended
up being "It's My Life" - Bon Jovi.
I'm okay with it now, but I was pissed at the time.

Posted 05/24/07