[Gratitude, Encouragement, Memories] Tear-Jerking Graduation Songs You Can’t Listen to Without Crying [2026]

Because we’re friends.Ochiai Wataru

Wataru Ochiai – Because We’re Friends (Music Video)

Student days are packed with memories, and the moment of parting is both beautiful and tinged with melancholy.

Wataru Ochiai’s “Tomodachi Yakarane” richly conveys those feelings.

Along with its warm melody, it portrays everyday life at school and farewells to close friends, celebrating the strength of those bonds.

Sweeping away the anxiety of growing distant, this song makes you feel a connection that won’t change, and it resonates especially deeply when listened to during graduation season.

Its sincere lyrics give courage and hope to listeners, offering a cheer for taking a new step forward.

Sakura RabbitKawasaki Takaya

Takanori Kawasaki - Sakura Usagi [OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO]

It’s a heart-wrenchingly bittersweet graduation song that makes you see your timid self in a “rabbit.” After three years of pent-up feelings, all you can manage to say in the end is “thank you.” Doesn’t it make you overlay your own image onto that sweet-and-bitter page of youth? Takaya Kawasaki’s husky yet warm voice gently wraps around the protagonist’s frustrating, unrequited feelings.

Released in January 2021, this song is also included on the album Nukumori (Warmth).

For those who couldn’t say that single word, “I like you,” its message tenderly embraces those painful memories—and if you’ve ever had a one-sided crush, it will surely warm your heart.

Like a flower that blooms in the fieldGACKT

GACKT “Like a Wildflower Blooming in the Field” [Official Music Video]

This is the 26th single by singer-songwriter GACKT, who announced an indefinite hiatus in 2021 due to ill health compounded by a severe voice disorder.

The song was written to fulfill a promise to a high school student who was a radio listener, and since it was actually performed at their graduation ceremony, it’s also known as a track that showcases GACKT’s sense of honor.

Despite its minimal arrangement—just vocals and acoustic guitar—the overwhelming presence of his voice gives you a powerful push forward.

It’s a moving graduation song that fills your heart with memories of your school days and a renewed resolve.

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Hoshino Takashi

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Sakura AleAdachi Kana

Kana Adachi “Sakura Yell”

This is the third single by singer-songwriter Kana Adachi, who made her entertainment debut after winning the Grand Prix at the LINE × SONY MUSIC audition jointly hosted by LINE and Sony Music Entertainment.

Created as a “cheering song to send encouragement to dear friends who are walking a different path,” it also served as the commercial song for the tutoring school Kobetsu Shidō Gakuin Free Step and is known as a graduation song.

The lyrics, filled with memories of youth and messages to friends, feel like they speak the very words you’d want to convey to your close companions on graduation day.

With its lyrical piano and straightforward vocals coloring the moment of departure, it’s a pleasantly uplifting number.

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Hoshino Takashi

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Only the graduation photo knowsHinatazaka46

The Only One Who Knows Is the Graduation Photo by Hinatazaka46

A song by Hinatazaka46 themed around graduation.

It gently sings of the bittersweet feelings of the cherry blossom season and the love that went unspoken.

Memories and regrets sealed in graduation photos resonate deeply, intertwined with clear, transparent vocals.

Set for release on January 29, 2025, the track features Nao Kosaka as center and will be available in five editions: limited first-press versions and a regular edition.

It was premiered at their Tokyo Dome concert on December 26, 2024.

It’s a recommended listen not only for students entering graduation season, but also for anyone who wants to reflect on past loves.

my graduationSPEED

Speed My Graduation

This is the sixth single by SPEED, a four-member female idol-style dance and vocal group that drew major attention for debuting with an average age of 13.5.

One of SPEED’s signature songs, it makes a striking impact with an arrangement that shifts from piano-only instrumentation before the chorus to an impassioned surge at the hook.

Rather than a typical graduation theme, the lyrics evoke a graduation from a love that once set the heart ablaze.

Still, in choosing to draw a line in one’s heart and move on to the next stage, it resonates with the same meaning in life.

It’s a memorable number that conveys the resolve to become stronger while holding cherished memories close.

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Hoshino Takashi

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It’s goodbye, but it’s not goodbye.yamadakatsutenai Wink

It's goodbye, but it's not goodbye.

It was released in 1991 as a single by Yamada Katsutenai Wink.

It became a major hit as a song used during the TV show “Hō-chan no Yamada Katsutenai TV.” The lyrics were written by Kuniko Yamada, and the music was composed by KAN.

It’s a graduation song filled with warm feelings for a cherished friend.