![[Touching the Heart] Popular ballads featured in commercials. Timeless classics you’ll want to hear again.](https://i.ytimg.com/vi_webp/6E20QU7Gnnw/maxresdefault.webp)
[Touching the Heart] Popular ballads featured in commercials. Timeless classics you’ll want to hear again.
When you turn on the TV, there’s always a commercial jingle that sticks in your ear.
Among them, it’s the ballads that resonate most deeply, lingering in our memory along with the product’s impression.
Moving melodies and dramatic lyrics stir our hearts in just a short span of time.
In this article, we’ve gathered a wide range of classic ballads that became popular through commercials.
From timeless tunes everyone’s heard at least once to those moving tracks that sparked conversation, we’ll introduce them all in depth.
[Resonates with the Heart] Popular ballads featured in commercials. Timeless hits you’ll want to hear again (1–10)
Stars are falling.Senchimirimentaru
It’s a beautiful piano ballad that lays bare an unending lingering attachment to a former lover.
The song is by Sentimental, the solo project of Atushi.
While looking back on memories with an ex, it describes feelings of longing that remain firmly in the heart—an insistence that even as the seasons change, the emotions won’t.
Many listeners will surely relate to these heartrending lyrics.
Yet, in the final lines, the singer wishes the other person happiness, conveying a sense of trying to move forward.
This song was featured in a commercial for the illumination event at Laguna Ten Bosch.
How could I possibly know?Vaundy
This is a song by Vaundy that portrays someone moving forward while engaging in self-questioning and internal conflict.
Released as a single in April 2025, it was featured not only in Sony Life’s commercial “Let’s Love Our Purpose in Life” but also as the theme song for the drama “PJ: Air Rescue Group.” The chorus’s beautifully grand melodic line is striking, and you can fully enjoy Vaundy’s expansive vocals.
It’s a song I recommend listening to while looking at the lyric sheet, imagining the feelings woven into the words.
iNumber_i
This song, included on the 2024 release “No.O -ring-,” is a ballad that carries a message of savoring the small happiness close at hand without being greedy—saying that as long as I can be with you, just a handful of happiness is enough.
Alongside those warm lyrics, its mid-tempo progression and the inclusion of brass create a charming, blissful atmosphere.
The song was used in 2025 for SEKKISEI’s commercial “i Bright.
Clearer than snow.” The three members of Number_i also appear, dressed in pure white outfits, and their walk through a snowy landscape leaves a striking impression.
Letter ~Dear Fifteen-Year-Old Me~Ikeda Eraiza
Angela Aki’s “Tegami ~Haikei Juugo no Kimi e~” was chosen for a commercial that portrays a feeling many people share: liking to be alone but disliking loneliness.
In the CM, Elaiza Ikeda is shown performing the song with just her voice and a guitar in front of a train station, and the vocals you hear are actually by Ikeda herself.
The lyrics depict an exchange of letters between your 15-year-old self and your grown-up self.
The way the adult self offers advice to the troubled 15-year-old is sure to resonate as a message to many teenagers.
It’s one of those essential ballads that every teen should absolutely hear.
As a personSUPER BEAVER
Released in 2016, SUPER BEAVER’s “Hito to Shite” powerfully expresses what it means to be human.
The sound starts off calm and gradually builds in intensity, and the powerful vocals that resonate with the music are striking.
It portrays that being human includes our messy parts, while also conveying a determination to keep moving forward.
The song was featured in Kao’s Curel commercial, where pairing it with winter dry-skin care effectively communicates a sense of warmth.
To be continuedRyokushokushakai
Ryokuoushoku Shakai’s “Tsuzuku,” set for release in 2025, is a song with a dazzling atmosphere that evokes hope for the future.
The layering of piano and strings is striking, and the powerful vocals add an image of moving forward positively.
The commercial featuring this song promotes the Docomo Future Museum, a creative painting contest held by Docomo.
It conveys hope for the future through a boy who paints a picture and talks about the feelings he put into it.
coloring; color scheme; hues; decoration; embellishment; added flair (figurative)ikimonogakari
This song features a characteristically Ikimonogakari, familiar and beautiful melody and Kiyoe Yoshioka’s clear, expansive vocals.
The lyrics sing about nurturing connections between people and cherishing the colors that arise from them.
The bright, positive words are striking and match well with the relaxed, ballad-like arrangement.
Listening to it gives you a reassuring feeling, as if you’re being gently encouraged from behind.
The song is used in Odakyu Electric Railway’s commercial, “Connected, Expanding Days.”
future paintingFukuyama Masaharu
It’s a song written specifically for Nippon Life’s 2025 commercial “Nurturing the Future,” and the title is said to carry two meanings: a vision of the future and a path toward it.
The lyrics, which sing about living each day earnestly because we ourselves are the ones creating the future, are sure to resonate with many listeners.
Another indispensable charm of this track is being able to hear Fukuyama’s warm, rich vocals.
It’s a heartfelt ballad infused with the desire to cherish our loved ones—and ourselves—for the sake of the future.
You like whisky, don’t you?Noda Yojiro
When it comes to Suntory Whisky commercials, it’s this song that comes to mind, isn’t it? The original was sung by Sayuri Ishikawa, and since then it’s been covered by a variety of artists.
Among those, the 2025 commercial featured a cover by RADWIMPS’ vocalist, Yojiro Noda.
The CM even showed him singing and playing with an acoustic guitar.
The suggestive, layered lyrics are striking—so mature and captivating.
Noda’s characteristically warm high tones are memorable, and I imagine many people found themselves listening intently.
The shape of happinessSon Shigyon
Sung Si-kyung’s “Shiawase no Katachi” is set for release in 2025, a song that conveys gentleness with compelling strength.
The sound centers on a piano-led, calm progression, gradually adding orchestral and guitar tones toward the chorus to create a grand, powerful feel.
The lyrics savor the joy of spending time with a loved one, portraying deep affection.
The song is used in a commercial for Co-op Kyosai, specifically one about applying before a child’s birth, reflecting the value placed on caring for children.