A breakup song featured in a commercial. A poignant masterpiece that resonates with the heart.
When you’re watching TV or browsing video sites, you sometimes hear commercials that feature break-up songs, don’t you? Many people have probably been moved by the pain of parting and the unreturned feelings expressed in a gripping melody or striking lyrics.
In this article, we introduce break-up songs that were used in commercials and reached a wide audience.
That song you’ve been hearing without thinking might actually be the one that resonates with how you feel right now.
Be sure to listen to each track while reading the lyrics.
A breakup song featured in a commercial. Heart-touching, bittersweet masterpieces (1–10)
IMrs. GREEN APPLE
On a cold winter night illuminated by dazzling lights, there’s a warm-hearted commercial where Ren Meguro brings Kirin Afternoon Tea to Mrs.
GREEN APPLE as they perform on the street.
The song they’re playing in the video is “Watashi.” It’s a gentle, piano-driven ballad whose sound gradually expands as the track progresses, conveying a swell of emotion.
The lyrics depict a winter heartbreak and the accompanying bittersweet feelings, yet the warmth of the sound also evokes a forward-looking sentiment—cherishing the memories while moving on.
me me sheRADWIMPS
From a drama featuring Ren Nagase and Hanaka Hara that evokes Heisei-era love songs, to a commercial promoting Universal Music’s “#Let’s Listen to Playlists” campaign—this is the song used to emphasize that world.
It’s a gentle ballad by RADWIMPS, where the tender, conversational vocals still convey a strong sense of heartbreak.
As the title suggests, “clinginess” is a major theme, and the inability to move on after a breakup is depicted just as it is.
Many listeners will likely relate to the swelling regret and the straightforward expression of refusing to accept the separation.
How are you?adieu
This song was used alongside an animation created to celebrate the 70th anniversary of Kanro Ame, which portrays an unchanging desire to be gentle.
Set to an acoustic sound, the song calmly speaks its feelings, and its vocals convey a unique sense of weightlessness.
The lyrics depict the loss of time spent with a loved one, and the floating, somewhat unreal sonic expressions evoke an inability to accept the present reality.
The lines about feelings refusing to fade and lingering in the heart also heighten the sense of poignancy.
cream sodaoishikuru meronpan
This is a song used in a commercial that shows how LOWYA’s functional interior items help tidy up a room, emphasizing the ad’s bright, upbeat vibe.
Its light tempo and sound are striking, and the buoyant rhythm suggests a forward-looking attitude.
The lyrics depict memories of a past love that has gone, highlighting a sense of sadness through the way only casual, everyday moments are recalled.
The overlap of these heartbreak lyrics with the light rhythm creates the impression of someone putting on a brave face and trying to move forward.
RhetoricMeruto Taimā
This commercial, drawn from a drama portraying family interactions, shows how the warmth of a drink in a Zojirushi stainless bottle supports one’s efforts.
The bright, rhythmic song that highlights the theme of pressing forward in the footage is Melt Timer’s “Rhetoric.” Its light, memorable rhythm—featuring guitar cutting—evokes a positive feeling of moving ahead.
The lyrics depict a determination to convey one’s feelings wholeheartedly, calling on listeners to take a first step even if mistakes and failures may await.
One more time,One more chanceYamazaki Masayoshi
This is the song used to accentuate the calm atmosphere in the Suntory Maker’s Mark commercial, which portrays the unchanging deliciousness of the whiskey through a character played by Shun Oguri who is immortal.
The track is also famous as the theme song for the feature-length anime 5 Centimeters per Second, and it conveys a bittersweet sentiment over the sound of an acoustic guitar.
The lyrics honestly express memories of the past and the regrets tied to them, as well as the pain of wishing for “just one more time,” even while knowing it can never come true.
The part about instinctively looking for someone’s figure somewhere—a feeling many can relate to—also heightens the sense of poignancy.
NEVER FALL IN LOVE AGAINSazan Ōrusutāzu
It’s a track included on the album “Kirei,” released in September 1983.
As the title—meaning something like “I Won’t Fall in Love Anymore”—suggests, it portrays a bittersweet heartbreak.
The lyrics, written from the perspective of the man in a couple who broke up after he realized her feelings had drifted away, are easy for many to relate to.
Between the lines, you can still sense that he hasn’t completely let go of his feelings for her.
The song was featured in 2025 in UNIQLO’s HEATTECH commercial, “A Pleasant Morning.”
