Each year, we debate about when we’re allowed to start playing Christmas music. Some believe you have to wait until after Thanksgiving, while others will crank up “All I Want For Christmas (Is You)” the second the temperature drops below 60 degrees. No disrespect to Mariah Carey, a.k.a. the Queen of Festive, but these heathens are skipping over a very important time of year and its corresponding music genre: Halloween.
What is a Halloween song, you might ask? Save for “Monster Mash” and the Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack, the genre doesn't technically exist. But thankfully, rap music has a plethora of spine-chilling songs that are perfect for any Halloween function, and actually bang. Whether it's via twisted lyrics or chilling production, some rap songs just sound like they could fit into a scary movie soundtrack.
While nowhere near as popular as Christmas songs, there are a number of spooky tracks out there perfect for any Halloween party playlist. So as you prepare to celebrate All Hallows’ Eve, check out our list of the best Halloween songs, which are sure to keep things both terrifying and trill.
Eminem, “3 a.m.”
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This first one should come as no surprise, since Eminem has stated that he “had to go into the mindset of a serial killer” to write it. He also said that doing so was “easy” for him, so that’s, uh, something. Over a relatively standard Dr. Dre beat, Em recounts tales of blacking out and committing mass murder. The video lives up to the song’s thrills, too—good on him for not acting out that Hannah Montana line, though.
Travis Scott, “5% TINT”
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Tragically, “5% TINT” has been outshined in the mainstream by other standout tracks from ASTROWORLD, but it’s an undeniably eerie song that belongs in any collection of Halloween rap songs (yes, I just made that genre up). It’s rowdy and mischievous from the get, immediately invoking a bone-rattling bass with the opening line, “Who’s that creepin’ in my window?” Goodie Mob homage couldn’t be more holiday-appropriate.
Whodini, “Freaks Come Out at Night”
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Though rap music and Halloween culture have very different definitions of the word “freak,” Whodini’s 1984 hit is applicable here. A synth-heavy, Larry Smith-produced dance track, “Freaks Come Out at Night” is, of course, about the New York City nightlife scene of the ‘80s, which was crawling with freaks (rap definition). The song gets bonus points for Jalil’s allusion to the werewolf lifestyle: “But then again, you could know someone all their life/ But might not know they're a freak unless you see them at night.” Representation matters!
Kanye West, “Freestyle 4”
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Present-day Kanye is scarier than just about anything the human brain could come up with, but the creepiness of Pablo’s “Freestyle 4” is more fun than fear-inducing. The tinny strings are reminiscent of a black and white horror film, sans dialogue, with only music to help the viewer empathize with the damsel in distress. Plus, you get to hear Kanye literally growl, even if it’s technically a horny growl. Still counts.
Tyler, The Creator, “IFHY”
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Much of Tyler, The Creator’s pre-Flower Boy catalogue technically qualifies for this list, but most of it for disturbing reasons (Goblin’s “She” and “Transylvania” immediately come to mind, among plenty of others). “IFHY” has all of the crazed intimidation of those days, with only a fraction of the misogyny (though it is still present here). It’s hard not to draw an immediate connection between “IFHY”’s opening organ and Count Dracula, and the manic synths perfectly encapsulate the dichotomy of “I fuckin’ hate you/ But I love you.”
Lil Yachty f/ Offset & Lil Baby, “MICKEY”
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Unsurprisingly, trap music, named for places where drug deals take place, contains a wealth of spooky elements, from haunting production to dark lyrics. On “MICKEY,” Yachty’s voice, at once deep and breathy, sounds like he’s just finished outrunning a monster—or maybe he is the monster. Offset, for his part, threatens the offending “rats” with pistols and an automatic, and Lil Baby sounds like rap game Vito Corleone. I know that’s not technically a horror reference, but it’s villainous nonetheless.
Geto Boys, “Mind Playing Tricks On Me”
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This song is particularly relatable to anyone who has seen 2016’s It Follows, or identifies as a certified gangster. Bushwick Bill even talks about Halloween, spitting bars about a particularly brutal assault on a cop, until he awakes from his hallucination and realizes, “It wasn't even close to Halloween/ It was dark as fuck on the streets/ My hands were all bloody from punchin' on the concrete/ Goddamn, homie!/ My mind is playin' tricks on me.” The paranoia jumped out.
Kanye West f/ JAY-Z, Nicki Minaj & Bon Iver, “Monster”
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Say what you will about JAY-Z verse-turned-meme, but maybe he just really loves Halloween and wanted to shout out as many of its most beloved figures as possible, okay? Kanye might be the ringleader, but Bon Iver and Nicki Minaj bring the most monstrous (pun intended) vibes here, from Justin Vernon’s, “Are you willing to sacrifice your life?” to Nicki threatening to get all Walking Dead on us, and of course that blood-curdling scream at the end of her verse.
Tierra Whack, “MUMBO JUMBO”
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Anyone who’s seen the “MUMBO JUMBO” video understands why the song is on this list (TW for the dentist), but the track is lowkey spine-chilling even without the visuals. The metronomic instrumental is a perfectly flat complement to Tierra’s hectic, mumbling flow, and once you find out that she actually went to the dentist the same week she recorded the freaky song, you’ll finally follow through on your promises to start flossing.
DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, "A Nightmare On My Street"
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Perhaps the only evidence that the "Halloween rap songs" genre actually does exist, "A Nightmare On My Street" is, to this day, the best sequel we've gotten to the original Freddy Krueger tale (all disrespect to Freddy vs. Jason). The Fresh Prince's recount of his run-in with the slasher, whom he refers to (fondly?) as "Fred," and his attempts to appeal to him with logic ("Look, I'll be honest, man, this team won't work/ The girls won't be on you, Fred, your face is all burnt!"), bring a light-hearted energy to the otherwise petrifying character. And who knew dream-demons loved Letterman so much?
Vince Staples, “Norf Norf”
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The first eight seconds of “Norf Norf” could just as easily open a horror movie. Picture it: a black screen slowly fades to reveal a rural village, a cabin in the woods, or some other equally conspicuous place. That Clams Casino production, stewing under Staples’ references to the Crips, AKs, and of course his menacing, “I ain’t never ran from nothin’ but the police,” makes for an unsettling affair.
DMX f/ Marilyn Manson, “The Omen”
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Rappers often spit about battling their own demons, but DMX’s “Damien” trilogy dives into his encounters with the actual devil, taking things to another level. The second song in the series, “The Omen” goes beyond spooky and is downright scary, thanks to X’s performances as both his own conflicted self and the (literally) Hell-bent Damien, and shock rock icon Marilyn Manson’s take on the chorus, which it shares with the first installment. Though the specific subject matter is (hopefully) not relatable to most, we’ve all leaned into the devil on our shoulder before, especially when there’s mischief in the air.
50 Cent f/ Eminem, “Psycho”
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Before there was “SICKO MODE” (cool, good), there was 50 Cent referring to himself as “a psycho, a sicko” (scary, bad). The first verse is a laundry list of threats from 50—not the least of which is the flagrant, “'Cause I come into ICU to see you off to Heaven”—while Em’s verses feature enough misogyny to get him welcomed into the GOP, and enough dead baby imagery to get him kicked out. He also throws in a Michael Myers reference for good measure.
ScHoolboy Q f/ Tyler, The Creator & Kurupt, “The Purge”
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A song that a) is presumably named after a movie about a society in which all crime is legal one day a year, and b) features Tyler-produced, siren-centered instrumentation is essentially ready-made for this list. ScHoolboy Q’s voice always tends to sound like that of a crazed serial killer calling in to taunt the detectives on his case, and shout out to Kurupt, because even though I know he doesn’t mean it this way, I literally can’t think of anything more uncomfortable than the concept of “squeezing pussies.”
Playboi Carti, “R.I.P.”
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I actually didn’t realize how creepy this beat is until Denzel Curry released his freestyle over it, along with the accompanying video, in which he cosplays as that one terrifying ghost from Courage, The Cowardly Dog—you know the one. Carti’s domestic violence references are, in a word, awful—especially in a song that calls a woman “Rihanna bad”—but aside from that (or in addition to it), the production and the layered vocals make this a true hair-raiser.
21 Savage f/ Metro Boomin, “Real N***a”
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What starts as a relatively innocuous Metro Boomin track, 21 Savage’s “Real N***a” becomes unnerving at the 37-second mark, when a lone horn comes in to break things up like a sudden gust of wind on an otherwise still evening. Meanwhile, 21, who in the last three years has used his platform to promote positive change in his community, remains a convincing supervillain—lyrically, at least.
Brockhampton, “SISTER/NATION”
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Saturation III’s “SISTER/NATION” opens with a frantic, synth-y beat and some signature yelling from Merlyn Wood, before a Joba verse about mental illness and antidepressants. Brags from Kevin Abstract and Dom take us into the second half, where the production calms down but the lyrics remain dark, as each rapper, along with former member Ameer Vann, reflects on their childhood trauma. Each member of the band sounds one step away from getting revenge on everyone who’s wronged them.
OG Maco, “U Guessed It”
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Not sure what’s scarier: the fact that “U Guessed It” was ruined by a number of God awful Vines that played off of the enthusiastic chorus, or the song itself. That piano sounds like something a ghost would start playing in the middle of the night when they know you’re home alone, and the ease with which OG Maco transitions from throaty shouting to the softer, “You was right” and back again is bone-chilling.
Tyler, The Creator f/ A$AP Rocky, “Who Dat Boy”
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Since day one, Tyler has been determined to intimidate us with his antics, pushing the envelope further and further. His shock tactics have evolved from standard horrorcore to something more complex, and it’s most apparent here. Lyrically, this song isn’t too spooky—save for Tyler’s sinister flow and Rocky’s never-ending flexes—but the production is petrifying. The opening notes, which Tyler has said are inspired by the woman in the foreground of Jonas Bendiksen’s photo “Sukhumi beach, 2015” (“she’s looking back like something is coming”), should officially replace the Jaws theme as our society’s token “ominous” music. The strings that come in at 28 seconds sound like the climax of any thriller—the protagonist confronting the serial killer, the poltergeist snatching the newborn baby, someone realizing that their loved one is dangerous, et cetera—and the bass drop feels like all of the action that follows.
