Yami songs recommended for college students: melancholic tracks to listen to when you're feeling down

Grim ReaperOmori Seiko

Seiko Oomori 'Shinigami' Music Video

If you’re exhausted by life and overwhelmed by an inescapable loneliness, I recommend Seiko Oomori’s song “Shinigami.” She became popular as an artist whose “lyrics are profound,” praised even by novelists.

The worldview of her lyrics and her distinctive voice mesh together to create an indescribable atmosphere, don’t they?

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Saitō Ayumu

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The Edge of the Blue SkyOkuda Miwako

Miowako Okuda – The Edge of the Blue Sky

Miwa Okuda’s “Aozora no Hate” (“At the Edge of the Blue Sky”) is a song about the despair of life.

Released in 2003, it was used as the theme song for the drama “Yankee Bokō ni Kaeru” (“A Yankee Returns to His Alma Mater”).

The lyrics depict a state of pain—when everything is hard, you feel utterly alone, and you think life is no longer worth it.

They will likely resonate with those who are going through a similarly difficult time.

Even so, the song ultimately lets you feel a future where light breaks through, suggesting that someday you will surely escape this reality.

If you’re overwhelmed by hardship right now, try lifting your head just a little while letting this song be by your side.

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SAKI

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studio (apartment)Novelbright

Novelbright – One-Room [Official Music Video]

With its beautiful piano performance and grand sound that gently envelops a aching heart, “One Room” is a song you’ll want to listen to on lonely nights alone.

Released by Novelbright in 2021, its lyrics, which candidly sing of bittersweet love, pierce the heart.

In school life, there are times when you become separated from someone you were romantically involved with, or a loved one graduates and moves on.

Rather than leaving that sadness as it is, letting the song stay close to you can give you the courage to move forward, little by little.

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mutō

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Wolverine Nenzutto mayonaka de ii no ni.

Zutomayo “Kuzuri Nen” MV (ZUTOMAYO – KUZURI)

A piercing song that captures feelings of loneliness and self-denial.

It’s a track by the band ZUTOMAYO (Zutto Mayonaka de Iinoni), centered around the vocalist ACA-ne.

It’s included on the mini-album “Koke no Ichinen Kaiba ni Takusu,” released in October 2024.

The pain of emotional repression is conveyed through ACA-Ne’s transparent vocals and a funky guitar sound.

It’s a song that will resonate with teens and people in their twenties struggling with relationships.

The track “TAIDADA,” also included on the same album, was used as the ending theme for the anime Dandadan.

aitaiKato Miria

Miliyah Kato - “Aitai”

It’s a song that portrays the feelings of a girl who keeps thinking about an ex-lover she can no longer meet.

The straightforward words “I miss you” feel incredibly poignant and make my heart ache.

Isn’t it a song that speaks on behalf of a heart wounded by heartbreak?

crimsonX JAPAN

X Japan - Kurenai

This is a song I want to listen to when I feel like I can’t trust anyone.

It’s truly a legend—the signature track of the visual-kei band X JAPAN—and I think many people know it.

This song speaks the words I can’t usually say, the cries from my heart.

cowardTatetakako

Coward / Tate Takako

Tate Takako captivates with her beautiful singing voice and astonishing piano technique.

You can’t take your eyes off her as she performs with an intensity that feels like she’s burning her very life.

Her lyrics, which put into words and lay bare the murky parts we all carry as humans—things you wouldn’t normally dare to say—make you gasp in spite of yourself.