Few artists have left a mark on electronic dance music as indelible as Avicii. The Swedish DJ and producer, born Tim Bergling, rose from a bedroom producer to a globally celebrated artist whose music transcended genre boundaries and touched millions of lives around the world. His signature blend of melodic house, progressive EDM, and folk-infused pop gave the world some of the most emotionally resonant dance tracks ever recorded. Whether you are new to his catalog or a lifelong fan, exploring the best Avicii songs of all time is a journey through some of the most iconic moments in modern music history.
From the thumping bass lines of his early club bangers to the heartfelt, lyric-driven anthems that defined his later career, Avicii’s discography remains a towering achievement. His ability to craft melodies that felt both euphoric and bittersweet set him apart from his contemporaries. If you want to pair your listening experience with quality audio gear, check out our recommendations on the best headphones for music to get the most out of every track. This list celebrates 20 of his greatest works, including some of his most beloved classics and newer posthumous releases.
Wake Me Up
“Wake Me Up” is arguably the song that introduced Avicii to a mainstream global audience and remains one of the defining tracks of the 2010s. Released as the lead single from his debut album True, the track uniquely fused EDM with bluegrass and folk elements, featuring the powerful vocals of Aloe Blacc. The song reached number one in over twenty countries and became one of the best-selling singles of all time, cementing Avicii’s place in pop culture history. Its themes of self-discovery and finding one’s path in life resonated deeply with a generation of listeners who felt lost in the noise of the modern world.
Levels
“Levels” is the track that truly launched Avicii into the stratosphere of international DJ stardom. Built around a sample from Etta James’s “Something’s Got a Hold on Me,” the song’s euphoric piano riff and driving beat became a staple of dance floors and festival stages worldwide. Released in 2011 under the Levels EP, the track demonstrated Avicii’s extraordinary ability to distill raw emotional energy into a four-minute electronic workout. It remains one of the most recognizable EDM drops in history and is widely studied by producers as a masterclass in melodic house construction.
The Nights
“The Nights” from the album Stories is one of Avicii’s most emotionally charged anthems, built on a simple but deeply moving premise: live a life worth telling stories about. The track features vocalist Nicholas Furlong and builds from an intimate acoustic intro to a massive festival-ready crescendo that feels both personal and universally uplifting. Lyrically, the song draws from a conversation Avicii had with his father, making it one of his most autobiographical works. It has since become an anthem played at sporting events, graduation ceremonies, and moments of personal triumph around the globe.
Hey Brother
“Hey Brother” stands as one of the most distinctive tracks on True, blending country and bluegrass influences with a pounding EDM backbone in a way that felt genuinely revolutionary at the time. Featuring vocals by Dan Tyminski, whose voice carries a rich, rustic warmth, the song explores themes of family bonds and unwavering loyalty. It became a massive commercial and critical success, charting in multiple countries and receiving extensive festival play throughout 2013 and 2014. The song’s emotional weight was amplified by its association with tributes following Avicii’s passing, giving it a deeper resonance that continues to this day.
Waiting for Love
“Waiting for Love” was released as the lead single from Stories and marked a shift toward a more polished pop-EDM crossover sound for Avicii. Featuring vocalist Simon Aldred, the track builds beautifully from a reflective verse into a soaring chorus that feels tailor-made for summer festivals. It reached the top ten in numerous European markets and demonstrated Avicii’s consistent commercial instincts alongside his artistic ambitions. The song’s hopeful message about holding on through hardship until love arrives remains timeless and continues to attract new listeners years after its release.
I Could Be the One
Originally released as a collaboration with Nicky Romero under the alias Nicktim, “I Could Be the One” is a progressive house masterpiece that showcases both artists at their electrifying best. The song’s dramatic build and explosive drop became a defining moment of the early 2010s EDM wave, filling arenas and causing near-riots on festival main stages. The track features emotionally resonant vocals from Noonie Bao, whose delivery adds a vulnerability that contrasts beautifully with the track’s thunderous production. It remains a fan favorite and a staple of sets revisiting the golden age of EDM anthems.
Lonely Together ft. Rita Ora
“Lonely Together” was released posthumously as part of a planned collaboration and featured British pop star Rita Ora delivering one of her most emotionally nuanced vocal performances. The song explores the bittersweet notion of finding connection in shared loneliness, a theme that took on new dimensions following Avicii’s passing. Released from the AVICI (01) EP, it represented a continuation of his mature, song-driven approach to electronic music. The track reached the top ten in several countries and reminded the world of the incredible artistic potential that was lost far too soon.
Without You ft. Sandro Cavazza
“Without You” is a tender, introspective track that highlights Avicii’s growing confidence as a songwriter and his increasing interest in vulnerability over bombast. Featuring Sandro Cavazza, whose voice carries a gentle ache perfectly suited to the material, the song is a meditation on love, absence, and the weight of missing someone. It was included on the AVICI (01) EP and showed that Avicii was moving toward an even more emotionally direct musical language in the final stages of his career. The stripped-back production allows the melody and Cavazza’s vocals to carry the full emotional burden of the track.
For a Better Day
“For a Better Day” is one of the most powerful and underrated songs in Avicii’s entire catalog, tackling the deeply serious subject of child exploitation with unflinching directness. The accompanying music video was particularly harrowing and praised for its brave storytelling, while the track itself channels the emotional urgency of the subject matter into a propulsive, aching anthem. Released as part of Stories, it demonstrated that Avicii was never content to simply make crowd-pleasing dance music but was genuinely committed to using his platform for meaningful artistic expression. The song remains a testament to his integrity as an artist.
You Make Me
“You Make Me” was the lead single from True and served as an early signal of the eclectic, genre-blending direction Avicii was about to take the world in. With its infectious melody, layered vocal chops, and buoyant energy, the track became an instant hit that dominated radio and streaming charts throughout 2013. The song’s carefree spirit and dancefloor-ready construction made it a summer anthem that year, while its folk-influenced chord progressions hinted at the deeper artistic transformation underway. It remains one of the most joyfully straightforward tracks he ever recorded and never fails to lift the mood.
SOS ft. Aloe Blacc
“SOS” was one of the first posthumous releases from the Tim album, a deeply emotional record assembled from recordings Avicii left behind before his death in April 2018. Featuring Aloe Blacc reprising their creative partnership from “Wake Me Up,” the song is a raw cry for help and human connection that many fans and commentators interpreted as reflecting Avicii’s own struggles with mental health and the pressures of global superstardom. The production is characteristically beautiful, with warm acoustic guitar and piano interweaving beneath Blacc’s impassioned delivery. It stands as one of the most emotionally significant songs in his entire catalog and a haunting farewell from a truly extraordinary talent.
Heaven ft. Chris Martin
“Heaven” from the posthumous album Tim features Coldplay frontman Chris Martin delivering a performance of stunning emotional depth and sincerity. The song is a meditation on love, loss, and the possibility of reunion beyond this life, themes that resonate profoundly in the context of the album’s creation. Martin has spoken publicly about his close friendship with Avicii and the emotional weight of contributing to the album, making this one of the most personally significant collaborations on the record. The combination of Avicii’s lush melodic production and Martin’s unmistakable voice creates something genuinely transcendent, a song that feels like both a conversation with the artist and a farewell from one.
Addicted to You
“Addicted to You” is one of the most elegant and emotionally restrained tracks on True, built around a beautiful country-pop melody and featuring the vocals of Audra Mae. The song’s narrative of romantic obsession and longing is conveyed with warmth and nuance rather than melodrama, showcasing Avicii’s skill at writing music that feels intimate even when played in a festival setting. Its gentle acoustic instrumentation contrasts with the electronic elements in a way that feels entirely natural, demonstrating once again how seamlessly he could blend sonic worlds. The track is a fan favorite for its quiet beauty and remains one of the most replayable songs from the True era.
Silhouettes
“Silhouettes” is one of the earlier tracks that foreshadowed the folk-influenced direction Avicii would fully embrace on True, featuring vocals from Salem Al Fakir over a melodic, piano-driven progressive house production. The song builds with characteristic elegance, moving from a restrained intro through layered instrumentation before arriving at a deeply satisfying emotional release. It appeared on the Silhouettes EP in 2012 and received widespread praise for its more mature and song-centered approach compared to pure club tracks. If you want to experience the full sonic richness of this track, pairing it with quality earbuds can make a significant difference to the listening experience.
Broken Arrows
“Broken Arrows” is a soaring, arena-sized anthem from Stories that features vocalist Zac Brown and blends country rock with Avicii’s signature electronic production in spectacular fashion. The song’s message of resilience and moving forward despite past failures connects deeply with listeners navigating difficult chapters of their own lives. Brown’s gravelly, powerful delivery adds a rootsy authenticity to the track that elevates it beyond a simple motivational dance anthem into something with genuine emotional weight. It became a staple of Avicii’s live sets and is one of the tracks that best demonstrates the breadth of his artistic ambition during the Stories era.
Dear Boy
“Dear Boy” is a gorgeous, sun-drenched progressive house track featuring vocals from MAPPED, brimming with warmth and a sense of carefree joy that feels like the musical equivalent of a perfect summer afternoon. The track appeared on True and served as a reminder of Avicii’s ability to create music that was simultaneously euphoric and deeply melodic without sacrificing either quality in favor of the other. Its layered vocal harmonies and shimmering production have made it a long-term fan favorite that rewards repeated listening with new sonic details. It represents the lighter, more playful side of his artistic character and is impossible not to love.
Taste the Feeling
“Taste the Feeling” was created in collaboration with Conrad Sewell for a Coca-Cola campaign and demonstrated that Avicii could deliver commercial pop-EDM without compromising his melodic instincts. The song is irresistibly upbeat and infectiously catchy, with Sewell’s bright, soulful vocals riding a production that feels effortlessly joyful. While some productions made for brand partnerships can feel hollow, this one retained Avicii’s distinctive warmth and craftsmanship throughout. Its success in connecting mainstream pop audiences with his sound further underscored his unique crossover appeal, making it one of the most widely heard tracks of his later career.
Fade Into Darkness
“Fade Into Darkness” is a fan-favorite deep cut that exemplifies the kind of melodic house production Avicii was creating at the height of his early career powers. Released in 2011 and featuring Audra Mae, the track has a timeless, ethereal quality that sets it apart from many of its contemporaries and has made it a beloved entry in his back catalog. The production is rich with emotional texture, and Mae’s vocals add a haunting beauty that stays with you long after the final note fades. It is the kind of track that rewards dedicated fans who dig deeper into his discography beyond the obvious chart hits, and it stands up beautifully against any of his more celebrated releases.
Seek Bromance
“Seek Bromance” is a landmark early release that helped establish Avicii’s international profile and demonstrated his gift for crafting irresistibly euphoric electronic music from a very young age. The track samples Tiësto’s “In Search of Sunrise,” transforming it into a massive progressive house anthem that dominated club playlists and online music communities throughout 2010. Its enormous, cascading synth melody and relentless energy made it an instant classic in the EDM world and introduced countless listeners to the young Swedish producer who would go on to redefine the genre. Revisiting this track today, it still sounds fresh and remarkably accomplished for an artist who was only twenty years old at the time of its release.
X You
“X You” rounds out the True album with a sense of melancholic warmth that perfectly encapsulates the emotional range Avicii achieved throughout that record. Featuring the vocals of Vargas and Lagola, the track channels a restrained longing into its melody, making it one of the quieter and more reflective pieces in his catalog. It may not have received the same commercial attention as some of his bigger singles, but among dedicated fans it is treasured as one of the most emotionally honest and beautifully constructed songs he ever recorded. Exploring tracks like this is part of what makes diving into Avicii’s full catalog such a rewarding experience, and you can discover more great songs from legendary artists on GlobalMusicVibe.
Why Avicii’s Music Endures
Avicii’s legacy is difficult to overstate. In a genre often criticized for disposability and formula, he consistently created music with genuine emotional depth, melodic ambition, and crossover appeal that felt honest rather than calculated. His willingness to incorporate folk, country, blues, and pop into electronic frameworks broke down walls between musical communities that had rarely intersected, introducing millions of new listeners to the creative possibilities of dance music. The posthumous release of the Tim album in 2019, assembled with the blessing of his family from recordings he left behind, only confirmed that his artistic evolution was far from complete at the time of his tragic passing at the age of twenty-eight.
His influence can be heard across a generation of producers and songwriters who cite him as a primary inspiration, and his catalog continues to attract new listeners through streaming platforms, tribute concerts, and the tireless advocacy of his devoted global fanbase. The Avicii Experience, a biographical interactive museum opened in Stockholm in 2021, stands as a testament to the profound cultural impact he had in such a short time. For anyone exploring his music for the first time or returning to it after years away, the tracks on this list offer the ideal entry point into one of the most emotionally rich catalogs in modern pop and electronic music.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Avicii’s most famous song?
“Wake Me Up” is widely considered Avicii’s most famous and commercially successful song. Released in 2013 as the lead single from his debut album True, it reached number one in over twenty countries and became one of the best-selling singles in history. Its blend of EDM, folk, and pop, combined with Aloe Blacc’s powerful vocals, made it an era-defining track that introduced Avicii to a global mainstream audience.
Did Avicii release any music after his death?
Yes, Avicii’s family and close collaborators assembled a posthumous album titled Tim, released in 2019. The album was built from recordings and ideas he had left behind before his death in April 2018. It featured collaborations with artists including Aloe Blacc, Chris Martin, and Vargas and Lagola, and was widely praised as a fitting and emotionally powerful final statement from one of electronic music’s most gifted talents.
What genre of music did Avicii make?
Avicii primarily worked within electronic dance music, particularly progressive house and melodic house styles. However, he was widely celebrated for his willingness to blend EDM with folk, country, bluegrass, blues, and pop influences, resulting in a signature sound that was uniquely his own. His eclectic approach helped bridge the gap between the electronic music world and mainstream pop audiences on a global scale.
How many studio albums did Avicii release during his lifetime?
Avicii released two studio albums during his lifetime: True in 2013 and Stories in 2015. He also released several EPs, including Levels, Silhouettes, and AVICI (01). The posthumous album Tim was released in 2019 with the full support and involvement of his family, bringing the total number of studio albums associated with his name to three.
What is Avicii’s real name?
Avicii’s real name was Tim Bergling. He was born on September 8, 1989, in Stockholm, Sweden. He began producing music as a teenager and adopted the stage name Avicii, a word from Buddhist cosmology referring to the lowest level of hell, though the name was chosen for purely aesthetic reasons rather than any particular philosophical significance.