The 80s were the best decade.
Looking to find the Top 90s Party Songs to get them dancing at your event?
I get it... I'm old. I was born in the 70s but grew up in the 80s. I love everything about the 80s. It was a great time to grow up and in my opinion the 80s is without doubt the GREATEST DECADE. The best movies, the best cars, the best TV, the best video games, the best athletes, the best toys, let's not even mention the cartoons.
There was nothing better than watching WWF's Saturday Nights Main Event. No better movies than Ghost Busters, Ferris Bueller, Terminator... Jordan, Gretzky, Montana, Kirby Puckett... OK maybe Kirby Puckett wasn't the definitive 80s MLB player but that name alone gets him on this list. The cartoons in the 90s were so bad that they had to go make cartoons about video games from the 80s... that's how amazing the cartoons were in the 80s.
The 80s were great but...
I love the music in the 80s. There is no doubt about it but when you compare them both side by side, the edge goes to the 90s. But only slightly... I will still say that the 80s had better music videos and an endless amount of iconic album covers but when it comes to the actual music. You gotta give it to the 90s. From across the genres the 90s do have the 80s beat and let's face it, new genres where created in a yearly basis.
My Top 90s Party Songs to get the Party Going
Let me be clear... This isn't a list from the internet. I use Virtual DJ and I've tried my best to transfer the info from laptop to laptop over the last 15+ years or so. These are my actual most played songs from the 90s that will help you to get them dancing.
Remember that I've done a lot of different events over the years. Weddings, Birthdays, Baptisms, Kids Parties, Award Ceremonies, etc. I also DJ'd every Friday Night at an Irish Pub in Toronto for 10 years. I played a lot of 90s tunes and not all of them are gonna be suitable or appropriate for every single event.
- Be Faithful by Fatman Scoop - I love 90s party songs that everyone knows instantly. Always works and will get people literally running to the dance floor. A bit of a cheat cause it samples so much from other decades and although originally released in 1999, it didn't become popular till 2002. 522 on my VirtualDJ Play Count.
The song heavily samples "Love Like This" by Faith Evans, which in turn is made of a covered loop from Chic's "Chic Cheer". It also samples "Party Ain't a Party" by Queen Pen, "Off the Books" by the Beatnuts, "Can I Get A..." by Jay-Z, "Hip Hop Hooray" by Naughty by Nature and "The Choice Is Yours (Revisited)" by Black Sheep. - Fantasy by Mariah Carey - Just another Big tune from 1995 that's heavily sampled. Listen to the Tom Tom's Genius Of Love if you've never heard that one before. But a Great song to play if there is a need to get them back on the dance floor. 501 on my VirtualDJ Play Count
- Jump Around by House of Pain - I play 90s party songs at almost every single party to get them dancing and this might top the list. It never fails to energize the guests. I usually play it at the end of the night when people start to roll out but if you're not jumping to this than you're a country fan. 408 on my VirtualDJ Play Count but I have different versions of the song so it's more like 600+
The song features a distinctive intro, sampled from Bob & Earl's 1963 track "Harlem Shuffle". The song also samples "Popeye the Hitchhiker" by Chubby Checker, but it is best known for a high-pitched squealing sound that appears at the beginning of almost every bar - 66 times. Most likely by Junior Walker and the All Stars' and his song "Shoot Your Shot" - Hypnotize by the Notorious B.I.G. - Released in 1997, I've played this song countless times in various different versions... It's just a song that everyone knows and with an awesome cool intro that works almost... almost every time. I'm sure I've played various versions of Hypnotize & Rise well over 800+ times. The Ultimate Hip-Hop 90s Party Songs list starts with this song.
Baby Oil Boy sampled Herb Alpert's 1979 hit "Rise" which was a huge instrumental hit in the 70s. - Shoop by Salt-N-Pepa - I'm actually surprised that this song is so high on my VirtualDJ Play Count (324) but it nudged out Everyday People by Arrested Development by a couple of plays. Great Song and Salt-N-Pepa have a bunch of songs that can make any DJ list and get them dancing.
This song uses a sample of The Sweet Inspirations version of The Ikettes's "I'm Blue (The Gong-Gong Song)", and the line "the voodoo that you do so well" was quoted from Cole Porter's 1929 song "You Do Something to Me".
Play The Hits & Get the Girls Dancing
Honorable Mentions go to Shania Twain's "Man! I Feel Like a Woman" which will get them dancing , and of course Aqua's "Barbie Girl" which I use to play a lot but slowly stopped cause a Principal once complained to me that the song was not appropriate for kids and I was like... but aren't all good songs not appropriate for kids?
Feel the crowd and play around. These songs might not work in 2025 at a High School Graduation but they will at a 25th Year High School Reunion. Some songs can be used at just about any party but remember that some songs might not be that appropriate. I mean if you want the best 90s Party Songs they might not be appropriate for kids & grandma. It was after all a different time.