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13 Songs that should absolutely be on your Halloween party playlist

Halloween parties are either very lame or super fun. There’s just no in between. But one thing that can sway your shindig in the right direction? A playlist with the best Halloween songs. If you have good music—i.e., “Monster Mash” is nowhere in sight—then there’s a pretty high chance the night’s going to be lit. If you’re scratching your head now thinking, Well, what songs are Halloween-y but not cheesy? then look no further than the playlist below. We handpicked 13 popular songs—all by women—that are catchy and fun as hell but also have a dark, spooky factor perfect for your Halloween playlist. Get ready to mash, monsters, because these are the best Halloween songs.

“Toxic” – Britney Spears

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Spears’ magnum opus is an amalgamation of heavy synths, creepy violin sounds, and vocals so icy they’ll send a shiver down your spine. In other words, excellent for an October 31 get-together.

“Ghost” – Halsey

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The title of this 2014 Halsey track is pretty on-the-nose for a Halloween playlist, as is the vacant, despondent way she delivers the chorus. “Ghost, where’d you go?” Halsey sings as a frigid beat lingers in the background. Just don’t look behind you.

“Haunted” – Beyoncé

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Arguably one of the best songs on Beyoncé’s eponymous 2013 album, “Haunted” is a sonic roller coaster, starting slow and eerie before morphing into a full-on club banger with lots of atmospheric echoes. It’s, well, haunting.

“E.T.” – Katy Perry

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“You’re an alien,” Perry wails at the top of her lungs on this punchy pop tune, which was at one point ubiquitous on the radio. With its incessant, calculated beeps and robotic chorus, “E.T.” is the darkest offering on Perry’s otherwise-bright  Teenage Dream album.

“Bad Romance” – Lady Gaga

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Gaga’s booming, industrial smash from 2009 lists several horror movies in the lyrics. “I want your  Psycho, your  Vertigo shtick; want you in my  Rear Window—back your sick,” she sings. It’s a play on words: Gaga’s citing these Alfred Hitchcock films to tell her partners that she wants  all parts of them—even the parts they don’t like. And let’s be honest: What’s scarier than love?

“Gods & Monsters” – Lana Del Rey

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“Gods & Monsters” is so scary that Jessica Lange covered it during an episode of  American Horror Story: Freak Show. A quick listen demonstrates why: The track stays at a spooky midtempo for its entire duration, only switching up for Del Rey’s otherworldly vocals—which, at times, sound like she’s casting a spell.

“Black Magic” – Little Mix

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There’s nothing scary about “Black Magic,” a euphoric slice of bubblegum pop from Little Mix. That being said, all Halloween parties need a break from the macabre, and what’s better than this song, which also stays on trend with its title? “Take a sip from my secret potion,” the four women sing during the buoyant chorus—and you won’t regret doing it.

“Disturbia” – Rihanna

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“Disturbia” is perhaps the most on-the-money horror pop song to come out in the past 15 years. “Am I scaring you tonight?” Rihanna asks during its chilly chorus, which is filled with enough smoky bells and whistles to light up a haunted house. Contrary to the song’s bridge, this isn’t a curse we need released from.

“Cannibal” – Kesha

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“I eat boys up: breakfast and lunch. Then when I’m thirsty, I drink their blood,” Kesha exclaims on this admittedly graphic banger, released in 2010 from an EP of the same name. It’s one part childish, two parts tongue-in-cheek, and all parts ideal for a Halloween playlist.

“Black Widow” – Rita Ora and Iggy Azalea

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The eerie clapping in the background of “Black Widow”‘s chorus would also work well for a seance. This isn’t a suggestion to host a seance—just a (scary) observation. Well, scary and catchy.

“Look What You Made Do” – Taylor Swift

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The pulsating synths on “Look What You Made Me Do” were already ominous, but then Swift dropped the music video, in which she dresses up like a literal zombie. Consider us officially scared—and consider this song officially a bop.

“She Wolf” – Shakira

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Shakira’s electro-pop experimentation in 2009 resulted in “She Wolf,” a slinky, understated smash with a chorus that features actual howling. Perfect for a full moon, eh?

“Homemade Dynamite” – Lorde

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With a title like “Homemade Dynamite,” do you need another reason to add this to your Halloween playlist? If so, give the song’s gritty chorus a listen. “We’re blind / Blowing shit up with homemade dynamite.” Wow. That sounds…dangerous.

Taken from GLAMOUR US. Read the original here.

Want to see what else we’re listening to and watching? Click  here!

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