Artwork is a type of expression, and for some musicians, meaning expressing some fantasies or wishes that may even get them arrested in actual life.

For instance, Carrie Underwood‘s rampage in opposition to her dishonest ex in “Earlier than He Cheats” has been a cathartic anthem for followers since 2005.

Sadly, you possibly can’t really key somebody’s automotive, carve your identify into their leather-based seats or smash their headlights with a baseball bat with out authorized consequence—however it’s enjoyable to fake!

Elsewhere, some pop songs inform fictional tales of homicide, equivalent to Rihanna‘s “Man Down” or Natalia Kills‘ aptly titled “Kill My Boyfriend.”

READ MORE: The 20 Finest Nation Songs About Killing Your Man

And you’ll’t go mistaken with an excellent ol’ nation homicide ballad with a sprinkle of female rage.

That is why “Goodbye Earl” by The Chicks is a basic, even discovering success with individuals who could not hearken to nation music.

Beneath, discover out extra about these songs and extra, in addition to their IRL legal implications.

“Earlier than He Cheats,” Carrie Underwood

Carrie Underwood goes all out within the identify of revenge on her most iconic single, 2005’s “Earlier than He Cheats.” The nation star teaches her untrue boyfriend a lesson by vandalizing his “fairly little souped up four-wheel drive” truck. She acts out the fantasy of each one that has ever been cheated on by keying the perimeters of the truck, carving her identify into the leather-based seats and taking “a Louisville Slugger to each headlights.” Whereas satisfying, if somebody tried to copy this cathartic lyrical takedown IRL, they’d in all probability find yourself in some significantly scorching water for property harm.

“Kill Invoice,” SZA

Grammy-nominated “Kill Invoice” is a standout monitor off SZA’s 2022 album SOS. The poetic, darkish lyrics paint a hypnotizing homicide ballad as SZA sings she “may kill my ex.” She goes on to indicate that she’s going to kill his new girlfriend, too, singing, “Not the most effective concept / His new girlfriend’s subsequent, how’d I get right here? / I’d kill my ex, I nonetheless love him although / Fairly be in jail than alone.” Elsewhere within the tune she sings about planning a “dwelling invasion” and threatens, “I’m gon’ kill your ass tonight,” earlier than doing the deed within the final refrain of the monitor, when the lyrics turn into “I simply killed my ex.” One other homicide immortalized in tune, however fortunately not IRL.

“Goodbye Earl,” The Chicks

As the top instance of the female rage nation homicide tune, 1999’s “Goodbye Earl” by The Chicks is a campy nation basic. Issues appear to start out out cheery with small city besties Mary Anne and Wanda, however rapidly the tune arrives at homicide as the 2 plan to take out Wanda’s abusive ex-husband, Earl, with the catchy, screamable lyric “Earl needed to die!” The women poison his black-eyed peas and roll him up in tarp within the refrain earlier than dumping the physique within the lake within the music video. The duo then start promoting jam at a roadside stand, and so they reside fortunately ever after, avoiding homicide costs.

“Kill My Boyfriend,” Natalia Kills

On this 2011 Natalia Kills monitor, the singer wrestles between her present boyfriend and her ex-lover, who needs her again. As a substitute of dumping her new man, she plans to commit homicide to reunite together with her ex. “I’m rolling the cube, received the wind in my hair / I’m gonna kill my boyfriend, yeah,” she sings. She continues to plan out the crime because the tune goes on, singing, “Kill, kill, kill, I am gonna, kill, kill, kill / So we are able to run away identical to we stated / Kill, kill, kill, I am gonna, kill, kill, kill / So we could be collectively like we deliberate.”

“Gang Bang,” Madonna

Madonna’s 2012 MDNA tune is a darkish pop banger that bluntly describes the singer killing her lover. “Bang bang, shot you useless, shot my lover within the head,” she sings, including that she has “no regrets.” And, if you happen to didn’t get the purpose the primary time, she reiterates on the bridge, “If I see the b—h in hell / I’m gonna shoot him within the head once more.” The tune was fittingly impressed by director Quentin Tarantino. It’s an excellent factor it’s all faux, as a result of the lyrics are a blatant homicide confession.

“Candy however Psycho,” Ava Max

Ava Max’s 2020 earworm describes plenty of issues that make the protagonist of the tune “candy however a psycho,” however one lyric particularly can be completely unlawful in actual life when she sings that she’s “grab-a-cop-gun kinda loopy.” Later within the refrain, Max repeatedly sings that individuals say “run, don’t stroll away” from her as a result of she’s so “psycho.” If somebody actually did seize a cop’s gun, they may stand up to twenty years in jail for disarming a police officer.

“Man Down,” Rihanna

On the reggae-inspired “Man Down,” Rihanna expresses her anguish over killing a person (not actually, in fact). “I did not imply to finish his life, I do know it wasn’t proper / I can not even sleep at night time, cannot get it off my thoughts,” she sings. She goes on to disclose that she pulled out a gun and shot him in the course of Central Station. “Oh, mama, mama, mama, I simply shot a person down,” she sings. All through the tune, Rihanna sings from the angle of a fugitive working from homicide costs. The tune was impressed by Bob Marley’s “I Shot the Sheriff.”

“If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too),” Kelsea Ballerini

Kelsea Ballerini’s 2022 tune “If You Go Down” takes inspiration from earlier murderous nation bops with campy music movies, equivalent to “Goodbye Earl.” The tune alludes to a lot of criminal activity within the identify of defending your greatest pal, equivalent to offering an alibi after committing a criminal offense, eliminating proof and displaying up with a getaway automotive simply in case you rob a financial institution. And naturally, if Kelsea’s bestie “hypothetically” killed their husband, she’d be “lyin’ by way of her tooth.” If any of this occurred in actual life, you’d in all probability rack up a bunch of costs starting from tampering with proof to aiding and abetting.