The Most Popular Trending Instagram Reels Songs (May 2025)

One of the biggest ways to harness the power of short form video is to use the right trending Instagram Reels songs — and the right trends. 

Brands that use outdated sounds, or use them improperly (the ‘tiny violin’ trend showed many creators weren’t familiar with the ‘playing smallest violin ever’ concept) can come across as out of touch, inauthentic, and rushed. 

Brands can leverage Instagram Reels to engage with their audience more effectively, gain more reach, and ultimately gain new viewers if they use the right sounds at the right times. 

That being said, there are many trends to choose from, and the lifecycle of a trend can range from a couple of weeks to a couple of months. To aid social marketers’ Instagram Reels strategy, we’re sharing the top monthly trending sounds to use on Reels.

Curious about how to find trending Reels sounds outside of this blog? To drive engagement, social marketers should: 

• Follow Reels: Scroll Instagram Reels consistently (and stay up-to-date with TikTok trends that often inform future Reels trends)  
• Stay up-to-date on the latest Instagram Trends: Read up on new Instagram Trends each month
• Watch Reels content: Follow trend-focused Instagram accounts 
• Read this: Bookmark and refer back to this blog (we update monthly)

The virality of sounds on Reels is most popularly thought to be influenced by momentum. In this case, momentum is influenced by use and how often it’s saved. 

‍Tips on How To Find Trending Songs on Instagram Reels

Sometimes, you just need a song that enhances your Reel — whether this is a song that matches whatever you highlight in your Reel, or simply provides a pleasant background atmosphere. 

Here are some tips to find trending Instagram songs: 

• Look outside of Instagram: You might not be exposed to every song that presents a good opportunity for your brand. Fortunately, there are many Spotify playlists that round up the most popular songs on Reels, and this could spark an idea for your Instagram marketing strategy.
• Use ‘Original audio’: Be sure to only use trending videos with the ‘Original audio’ label, which means brands can use them. ‍
• Pay attention to audio permission: As a brand on Instagram, there are certain songs and audio not available — don’t use sounds with the ‘This sound isn’t licensed for commercial use’ label.

Tips on How To Find Trending Audio on Reels

Wondering how to find trending Reels audio? Follow these steps to help you stay on top of trending sounds on Reels for your brand: 

• Pay attention to TikTok trending sounds: Sometimes these sounds trend on TikTok and Reels simultaneously, but sometimes they trend on Reels days or weeks after they appear on TikTok. 
• Don’t be afraid to be an early adopter: Don’t let the fact that an audio has a lower number of uses than you might be used to seeing. For growing trends, this often means the sound isn’t overly saturated — yet. Follow trends, but don’t be afraid to set them. ‍
• Pay attention to Instagram’s recommendations: While marketers might know this, it’s worth noting that there’s an arrow next to trending Instagram songs on the Reels Explore page that tells you if an audio is trending, and recommend related trending audio for you to use.

Here are some of the most popular songs trending on Instagram this May. 

Let’s Talk About My Outfit (6.7K Reels) 

This is a fun Reels trend that’s perfect for fashion brands and creators. While the sound says “Alright, let’s get back to talking about my outfit” show off your outfit. You can participate as a group and lip synch to the audio, or use it as a backing track to show off your outfit. 

Audio: Original Audio

Deep In It (75K Reels) 

This trend is all about the song, a calming, horn-filled song with a catchy beat and sultry vibe, often used in lifestyle and fashion content. Its rhythmic flow and low-key energy make it perfect for smooth transitions and visually polished edits.

Audio: deep in it

Selfless - The Strokes (6.2K Reels)

This trending audio takes an instrumental portion of the Strokes’ song, a dreamy song, with an emotional tone, perfect for video snippets clipped together and other ‘slice of life’ content. This song is trending but still in a fairly under-used phase, which could help boost engagement.

Audio: Selfless

Discover the songs trending for brands and creators on Instagram’s Explore page this month. 

“Deep In It”

Set to a soulful track, this trend involves creators sharing moments of deep thought or emotion, often with a reflective or introspective tone. It's used to convey personal stories or feelings, connecting with audiences on a more emotional level.​

Audio: Deep In It

Selfless 

‘Selfless’ by The Strokes has a mellow, emotive vibe. Its understated mood makes it a versatile pick for lifestyle storytelling, soft aesthetic montages, or even before-and-after sequences with an emotional hook. It’s the perfect backdrop for Reels that aim to inspire, connect, or simply slow things down.

Audio: Selfless - The Strokes

Here are the Reels songs trending on Instagram this March.

Anxiety - Doechii (41.1K Reels)

This song is being used for far more than just content about anxiety — rapper Doechii has blown up since shining with a creative, memorable performance at the Grammy’s and a win. This song is being used in content about mental health, anxiety-inducing moments from daily life and more, including a trending (and simple!) dance. 

Audio: Anxiety - Doechii

Temperature - Sean Paul (161K Reels)

Just because it’s an older song, doesn’t mean it can’t blow up on social media. Sean Paul’s hit song ‘Temperature’ is trending on Instagram Reels this month, Sean Paul’s Temperature is being used on social media as a high-energy soundtrack for dance challenges, nostalgic throwbacks and to usher in content celebrating warm weather and the impending arrival of Spring.

Audio: Temperature - Sean Paul

Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You) - Kelly Clarkson (415K Reels) 

Kelly Clarkson’s ‘Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)’ is being used on social media as an anthem for resilience, personal triumphs and overall motivation — despite its use, it’s also used generally as a fun song to dance to, and can be used to back content from home DIYs to clothing content. 

Audio: Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You) - Kelly Clarkson

Here are the Reels songs trending on Instagram this month.

Not Like Us - Kendrick Lamar (NFL Version) (6K Reels)

After a historic halftime show (the most watched in history!) Kendrick Lamar’s live Super Bowl verson of ‘Not Like Us’ is trending on Reels. Use it to back football related content, OOTD or any other high energy piece of content.

Audio: Not Like Us - Kendrick Lamar

Abracadabra - Lady Gaga (171K Reels)

Lady Gaga has a new single taking streaming services and Instagram by storm. This upbeat, high-energy track is commonly being used across OOTDs, fitness content and general dancing videos.

Audio: Abracadabra - Lady Gaga

Chanting - Original Audio (27.3K Reels)

This moody, haunting audio has an ethereal quality that’s perfect as true background music to truly enhance and complement your video content. Use this sound in fashion content, book reviews or any other content that lends itself to the vintage vibes of this instrumental song. 

Audio: Original Audio

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Check out the these Reels trends to spice up your content this month.

I’M HIS, HE’S MINE - Katy Perry ft. Doechii (15.4K Reels)

This is a fun, upbeat song from Katy Perry’s latest album — use it for OOTD content, early Valentine’s day content or any romantic-inspired content. 

Audio: I'M HIS, HE'S MINE

DENIAL IS A RIVER - Doechii (90.7K Reels)

This song is trending across Instagram and TikTok, and has an infectious, 90’s-hip-hop feel. Creators are using this audio to creatively edit videos, or simply lip synch their favourite parts whil showing off outfits or beauty looks. 

Audio: DENIAL IS A RIVER

People Get Up And Drive Your Funky Soul (Remix) - James Brown (177K Reels)

The funky rhythm is perfect for showcasing vibrant product launches, behind-the-scenes moments, or playful transitions. Its upbeat sound can also enhance user-generated content campaigns, encouraging followers to join in. 

Audio: People Get Up And Drive Your Funky Soul

Curious which trends users are trying out on Instagram Reels this month? Explore the latest trends from creators and brands.

Butterfly Effect 

This trend is a fun way to reflect on your brand’s story. To participate in this trend, take a video or photo of anything related to your brand and use the text overlay feature with the following prompt: “The butterfly effect is crazy because…” describing something that led you to start your business or kicked off another major event in your life. 

Jaws Theme

This trend is another easy breezy one to make your own. Simply use the associated audio, the famous theme from ‘Jaws’, and use the text overlay to write about something that normally grabs your attention — this could range from a particular snack or drink, an activity or even a cat at the function, like in the example below. 

“Let’s Talk About My Outfit” 

This trend features creators showcasing their outfits while lip-syncing to the phrase “Let’s talk about my outfit,” often followed by humorous or unexpected commentary. It's a playful way to highlight fashion choices, blending style with personality.

‍Audio: Original audio

La la la 

This is a simple trend that nearly any brand from any industry can partake in. Simply use the related trending original audio and share nearly any time of POV or ‘when you…’ type content — the example below talks about the challenges of finding a rental space that fits everything a pet cat needs. Other examples include, ‘the face when you fill up your shopping cart’ or any other fun, reaction-style content.

These are trending songs to incorporate into your Reels content this month.

Traffic Was Crazy (6.8K Reels)

This Reels trend is perfect for OOTD content. The trending audio says “sorry, traffic was crazy!”, while participants hold up different outfit elements to create the perfect ‘fit. This is also a great way to draw attention to accessories like shoes or purses that might not get as much attention in video form.

Audio: Original Audio

One of the challenges of staying on top of trends is the 24/7 nature of social media — and even social marketers and managers need a break. 

Dash Social's Multi-Channel Social Media Scheduler feature makes it easy to stay on top of trends, and avoid any rush. When your boss inevitably reaches out about that new audio trend they read about or scrolled by, you have the pleasure of telling them it’s already in the pipeline. 

In addition to the Scheduler feature, Dash Social’s AI powered tools for automation and insights help with repetitive tasks and decision making, allowing you more time for making creative Reels that your audience will love.

FAQs

How do I find trending audio on Instagram?

You can find trending audio on Instagram by navigating to the Audio tool in Reels, and searching through the Instagram audio library — look for arrows that indicate an audio is trending. 

What is the most used audio on Reels?

One of the most used audio on Reels is ‘As it Was’ by Harry Styles with 3.4 million uses, and ‘Wait a Minute’ (Remix) by DJ Exe is the second-most used Instagram Reels song at 1.3 million uses.