Friendship is one of hip-hop's oldest subjects. Rappers write about the crew that was there before the money, the friends they lost too early, and the ones who turned out to be fake. Some of the biggest songs in rap history are about exactly that.
Below are 12 rap songs about friends, grouped by the kind of friendship they describe. Each entry has the artist, the year and one line on why it belongs here. We don't reprint lyrics; look the songs up and listen.
At a glance
| # | Song | Artist | Year | Theme |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | One Love | Nas | 1994 | Loyalty |
| 2 | Started from the Bottom | Drake | 2013 | Loyalty |
| 3 | No New Friends | DJ Khaled ft. Drake, Rick Ross & Lil Wayne | 2013 | Loyalty |
| 4 | They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.) | Pete Rock & CL Smooth | 1992 | Tribute |
| 5 | Tha Crossroads | Bone Thugs-n-Harmony | 1996 | Tribute |
| 6 | Life Goes On | 2Pac | 1996 | Tribute |
| 7 | I'll Be Missing You | Puff Daddy & Faith Evans ft. 112 | 1997 | Tribute |
| 8 | See You Again | Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth | 2015 | Tribute |
| 9 | Friends | Whodini | 1984 | Fake friends |
| 10 | Real Friends | Kanye West ft. Ty Dolla Sign | 2016 | Fake friends |
| 11 | Fake Love | Drake | 2016 | Fake friends |
| 12 | Same Drugs | Chance the Rapper | 2016 | Growing apart |
Loyal crew anthems
Songs about the friends who were there from the start.
1. "One Love" – Nas (1994)
Written as a series of letters to friends in prison, it is one of the most personal friendship songs in rap. It closed out the singles from his debut album Illmatic, with a hook sung by Q-Tip.
2. "Started from the Bottom" – Drake (2013)
The lead single from Nothing Was the Same is a victory lap for Drake and the team that came up with him. It peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100.
3. "No New Friends" – DJ Khaled ft. Drake, Rick Ross & Lil Wayne (2013)
The title became a catchphrase for sticking with the friends you had before you made it. It was the lead single from Khaled's album Suffering from Success.
Tributes to friends
Songs written for friends and mentors who passed away.
4. "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" – Pete Rock & CL Smooth (1992)
Inspired by the 1990 death of their close friend Trouble T. Roy of Heavy D & the Boyz, it is often ranked among the greatest hip-hop songs ever. Pete Rock & CL Smooth also appear in our list of the best rap duos of all time.
5. "Tha Crossroads" – Bone Thugs-n-Harmony (1996)
A tribute to the group's late mentor Eazy-E and to family members they lost. It spent eight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won a Grammy.
6. "Life Goes On" – 2Pac (1996)
From All Eyez on Me, it is dedicated to friends of his who had died, and reflects on how the living carry on without them.
7. "I'll Be Missing You" – Puff Daddy & Faith Evans ft. 112 (1997)
Written for The Notorious B.I.G., Puff Daddy's labelmate and Faith Evans's husband, after his murder in March 1997. It held No. 1 on the Hot 100 for eleven straight weeks.
8. "See You Again" – Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth (2015)
Made for Furious 7 as a tribute to actor Paul Walker, it became the go-to song for saying goodbye to a friend. It spent 12 weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100.
Fake friends and growing apart
Songs about friendships that didn't hold up.
9. "Friends" – Whodini (1984)
One of the earliest rap songs about friendship, it asks how many true friends anyone really has. It reached No. 4 on Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop chart, and later songs, including Kanye's, still nod to it.
10. "Real Friends" – Kanye West ft. Ty Dolla Sign (2016)
A song about trust issues with friends and family, released before The Life of Pablo. It directly calls back to Whodini's "Friends."
11. "Fake Love" – Drake (2016)
About people who only show love because of his success. It was the lead single from his 2017 project More Life.
12. "Same Drugs" – Chance the Rapper (2016)
From Coloring Book, it uses Peter Pan as a way to talk about growing up and growing apart from someone you were close to.
Make a rap song about your best friend
Listening is one thing. If you want a rap song about your friend, RapVideo AI can make one as a duo rap video, with both of you in the booth.
- Upload two photos (one of you, one of your friend) or one photo of you both.
- Pick a stage: the orange Hotel Lobby booth, Luxury Lobby or Studio Booth.
- Write a topic of up to 120 characters. The rap follows the topic's language.
- Generate and wait about 2 to 3 minutes.
Topic ideas you can paste:
- "Best friends since seventh grade, still splitting one dessert"
- "Ten years of friendship, and he still owes me twenty bucks"
- "Happy birthday Sam, the only friend who answers at 3 a.m."
- "College roommates, now living in different cities, still on the group chat"
- "She moved across the country and we still FaceTime every Sunday"
Specific beats generic: a real name, a real habit or an inside joke lands better than "friends forever." For more pairing ideas, see our Hotel Lobby trend ideas.
Your topic is used by the New song style. Original remake uses the real "Hotel Lobby" recording instead, so it ignores the topic and needs two people.
The voices are AI voices, and there is no voice cloning. A standard video costs 10 credits (the single pack is $9.99 for 12 credits), and failed renders are refunded.
Ask your friend before you post it. RapVideo AI is independent and not affiliated with any of the artists listed here.
FAQ
What is the best rap song about friendship?
Nas's "One Love" and Pete Rock & CL Smooth's "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" are the classic picks. Whodini's "Friends" (1984) is one of the earliest.
What are good rap songs about losing a friend?
"They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)," "Tha Crossroads," 2Pac's "Life Goes On," "I'll Be Missing You" and "See You Again" are all tributes to people the artists lost.
What are good rap songs about fake friends?
Drake's "Fake Love," Kanye West's "Real Friends" and Whodini's "Friends."
What rap song says "no new friends"?
"No New Friends" by DJ Khaled featuring Drake, Rick Ross and Lil Wayne, released in 2013.
Can I make a rap song about my best friend?
Yes. On RapVideo AI, upload photos of you and your friend, write a topic about them, and you get a duo rap video in about 2 to 3 minutes. A standard video costs 10 credits.
Can the song be in another language?
Yes. Write the topic in the language you want and the rap follows it.