Video gaming is now a big part of many people’s day-to-day lives, with lots of people spending several hours per day playing their favourite video games online with their extensive networks of friends. It’s no surprise that gaming has become a popular reference in songs nowadays, especially with the newer, younger generation of artists.

In what genres of music can we find references to gaming?

References to gaming are becoming more common in a variety of music genres. The main genres we can find an increasing number of gaming references in songs today are the following in no particular order:

• Pop
• Dance
• Hip Hip/Rap/Drill
• Techno/E.D.M.
• Grime

As well as having references to gaming, many songs throughout history right through to the present day have featured references to gambling in one form or another. In these songs, there are mentions of casinos, poker, cards, dice, roulette, and gambling in general.

What are the most famous songs about casinos, poker, and other forms of gambling?

Some of the most popular evergreen songs about gambling in history that have referenced gambling in one form or another, and which many of you may already be familiar with by now, are memorable tracks, such as:

• Ace of Spades by Motörhead
• Poker Face by Lady Gaga
• Deuces are Wild by Aerosmith
• Desperado by The Eagles
• The Angel and the Gambler by Iron Maiden
• Queen of Diamonds by Tom Odell
• Roll of the Dice by Bruce Springsteen
• Gambler from Whitesnake
• Gambling Man by The Overtones
• Gambler by Madonna
• Casino Queen by Wilco
• The Jack by AC/DC

Honourable mentions

Some of the other most famous songs throughout history with one or two lines relating to gambling include Blackjack by Ray Charles, The Stranger by Leonard Cohen, You Can’t Beat The House by Mark Knopfler, Gambler’s Blues by B.B. King, and The Gambler from Kenny Rogers.

More honourable mentions include Viva Las Vegas by Elvis Presley, Deal by the Grateful Dead, Luck Be a Lady by Frank Sinatra, Tumbling Dice by the Rolling Stones, Deck of Cards by Don Williams and Four Little Diamonds by E.L.O. (Electric Light Orchestra).

That’s also not forgetting Huck’s Tune by Bob Dylan, Ooh Las Vegas by Gram Parson, Kentucky Gambler by Merle Haggard, Have a Lucky Day by Morphine, and The Lottery Song by Harry Nilsson.

Finally, there’s Lawyers, Guns and Money by Warren Zevon, When You’re Hot, You’re Hot by Jerry Reed, A Good Run of Bad Luck by Clint Blackjack, and Ramblin’ Gambling Man by Bob Seger, to name just a handful.

What’s the best way to listen to some of these tunes?

There are many different ways you can listen to these famous songs about gambling and songs that reference video games. Some of these methods are free, and others require a rolling paid-for subscription fee, which you can cancel at any time. Before forking out any money on a monthly or yearly subscription fee, you may want to start by seeing if any of the tunes mentioned above that you want to listen to are available on YouTube. Failing that, here are some of today’s best music streaming options for you.

Some of the most trusted music streaming companies today, which some of you may already be familiar with, are SoundCloud, Amazon Music, Spotify, iHeartRadio, and Pandora.

If you’re looking for more music streaming options, you also have Jango, CC Trax, Noise Trade, Audiomack, Last.fm, SoundClick, Reverbnation, Jamendo, and LiveOne.

You can sign up for free and listen to hundreds of thousands (sometimes millions) of songs in just a few simple taps or clicks of a button from any modern smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer with Wi-Fi/internet connectivity. Some provide similar services, and others provide unique services and features that others don’t. For example, some are great for current top hits, live radio stations, live performances, and connecting with friends.

Others are great for watching music videos, finding new and exciting independent music from lesser-known artists, and others are great for building an extensive library of your favourite music, finding local artists or finding popular music.

Some of these services are great for instrumentals, classical music, and for certain genres only, such as Rap, Hip Hop & R&B, whereas others are great for supporting independent artists and creating stations based on an artist or specific genre. Some, like CC Trax, have background music genres, such as ambient, electronic, dub, techno, etc. On the other hand, Amazon Music has a mixture of everything, and it’s available exclusively for Prime Members.

You can even get a free trial when using Amazon Music for the very first time.