Top Motivational Songs for Men

by Harsh Kushwah

Have you ever needed to pull yourself out of a funk? Or maybe tackle that task you have been avoiding?

Well, there’s good news – we have a solution. Music! Find your own motivational song that speaks to you. Don’t underestimate the power of music as the key to helping you make that final move to action. 

Both lyrics and beat can be motivational in their own ways.

If you have exhausted Eye of the Tiger and need an update from good old Rocky, here are a few tunes to motivate any guy in his hour of need.

1. Lose Yourself (Eminem/8 Miles)

This song is for those times when you’ve done all the talking – it’s time to act!

Perhaps you need to summon the courage to take on that one thing that’s been back of your mind, and you have not had the strength to face it.

It’s an anthem for those willing to take their best shot and give their all against the odds. I’m sure you’ve all had times like this somewhere along life’s journey.

It’s also for those who have staked their lives and success on a single moment or isolated event. This song can charge you up for the final ‘showdown.’

You might need to crank it up to take out the garbage or for something a little more serious. 

Whenever you are feeling down, experiencing loneliness, yet need to perform that day, give this a listen. 

Someone I know who lost his father early in his life (and later lost his girlfriend) kept his motivation by listening to Eminem all the way to completing his PhD and securing a dream job. 

We all need someone to push us when things are not going our way when life becomes meaner than the cranky next-door neighbour. 

2. Remember the Name – (Fort Minor/The Rising Tied)

Feel like you don’t owe anyone any explanation and want to get on and focus on your work?

This track will fortify your mindset.

It will help sharpen your focus on what you need to get done. 

I consider this a modern-day prayer to the divine, an ode to the mighty power that keeps doing its work. 

There’s no demand for recognition, greed, or search for fame – and no care for the detractors. 

To have your name taken with reverence is one form of a self-indulgent ego trip. And to make your work as an ambassador of who you are is the perfect way to tame this human ego.

3. Survivor – (2WEI)

Growing up, Tomb Raider was the symbol for me of forging into the unknown. 

Explore my compilation of motivational films here.

To brace yourself for danger and to explore the uncharted.

However, in the quest to follow this path, you might end up feeling wired and depleted instead. It’s not an easy road. 

Perhaps it becomes too much. Your soul may break into a million pieces, your body may start to betray you, and your mind will throw reality to you as delusions. 

When it all gets too much, you need songs like this. 

Nature is unforgiving, and it’s the human’s survival skill – surviving against the odds – that keeps us moving forward.  

Your survival instinct. Your DNA coding to adapt. To overcome, to conquer your fear. To be persistent.

4. It’s My Life – (Bon Jovi/Crush)

Here’s an oldie but a goodie.

It is challenging to break the mould set by families, societies, nations, and time. To make your idea come to fruition and stand for something meaningful, you have to “make your own breaks”.

If this sounds like the kind of inspiration you need, this classic Bon Jovi song may do the trick. 

After all, it is about your life.

5. Take A Look Around – (Limp Bizkit/ Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water) 

When the world seems to be drowning in hatred and nihilism everywhere is taking you down, you have to engage your mind to fight back. 

The cynicism on TV, the manipulation on social media, and the lies on the news might take a toll on your psyche. 

One way to handle this is to stand up for yourself and your beliefs.

You might want to test your limit. You might wish to say – I am not going down that easily.

So, look around, find a reason to survive, look for a symbol of hope and keep living- that’s the life lesson.

6. Don’t You Worry Child – (Swedish House Mafia/Until Now)

I challenge you to stay still when you hear these beats. This track is motivational in both lyrics and melody. 

Losing faith amid struggle is something many of us have faced. 

It is an abstract notion- faith. No measure of this exists.

It can’t be quantified; It can’t be injected; It can’t be bought (even though people try to sell it). 

So, when your faith is in question, when you are losing your belief in humanity or any deity you believe in (or not), see if this tune will inspire you to greater understanding.

To have a paternal figure and a maternal teacher is a blessing many people don’t have. 

This song will make you feel that you have one. 

So, if you are looking for a modern-beatsy-lullaby to re-centre yourself, get up, and try again- I recommend you give this song a go.

7. Numb/Encore – (Linkin Park ft. Jay Z/Collision Course)

The brilliance of Chester Bennington has inspired millions, and his voice is that of internal screams of distressed millennials. 

However, JayZ with LP has created something in this song that relieves the pain of those individuals, sounding back as a battle cry to take things in their control. 

So, after the end of the day (or the beginning of your grind), you need a big “let-out” and get your mindset ready to take on the next day- listen to this.

8. Not Afraid – (Eminem/Recovery)

This song is where Eminem turned his focus from the violent and drug-related lyrics to a ‘recovery’ phase with a more positive outlook on life.

Sometimes, you will get defeated by the entire mob.

The stale ideas, the old structural chains, and the demeaning taunts of the crowd surrounding you will deteriorate your enthusiasm, erode your motivation and break your will. 

And it will become a routine. Maybe it already is.

Do you need an inspiration? Do you want an ideal to strive for?

Hit this song. 

Channelise your anger, frustration and despair into a feedback loop to propel yourself forward. 

Make your decisions. 

Take action. (Try Our Action Plan)

Own up to your responsibility (i.e. You).  

Why run when you are supposed to fly?

9. Seven Nation Army – (the White Stripes/Elephant)

As soon as I think about this song, my head starts bopping, and my feet soon follow. It’s a motivational beat with lyrics to match.

Are the odds against you?

Almost impossible project to complete?

Run out of time?

Have no support and are on the verge of a breakdown?

You might need the cavalry.

But they ain’t coming. 

So you need to summon the “Seven Nation Army;” and use your five senses with your mind and ego.

 (It sounds like math!).

Let your soul lead the battle that you are fighting.

10. The Radiance – (Linkin Park/A Thousand Suns)

When it comes to motivation, some famous texts have stood the test of time for thousands of years. 

I remember listening to this song by Linkin Park, quoting Oppenheimer, who quoted a verse from Bhagavad-Gita –

🎵“Now I am become death, the Destroyer of the World.”

Sometimes to redefine yourself, you might have to destroy the old and become radiant like a morning sun.

If you find yourself lost in infinity, defeated by the ‘nothingness’, and looking for a sense of unity, this track might start to help make sense of it all.

Music is personal. What constitutes a ‘motivational’ song depends on you and your circumstances.

Start creating a playlist of your own songs. Chart what you want to listen to and when it helps.

And if you have time, leave your song suggestions in the comment section.

It might motivate the next guy.