[2026] Tearjerker Songs That Bring the House Down at School Culture Festivals
The school cultural festival, held once a year, is always a fun event.
From exhibitions and food stalls to volunteer performances on stage, there are all kinds of activities.
Amid all that, music plays an important role.
Whether it’s band performances, singing, dance routines, background music at the venue, or a theme song, music adds color to every moment.
In this article, we’ll spotlight tear-jerking, deeply moving songs from among our recommended tracks for cultural and school festivals.
Be sure to check out this playlist of masterpieces that will bring back memories of school life and the bonds with friends—and might just move you to tears!
- An uplifting, moving song to liven up the school festival—one that will be etched into your memories.
- [Tearjerker] Songs that make your heart tremble with tears & moving tracks with lyrics that touch the soul
- Popular band songs that hype up cultural and school festivals & recommended latest hit songs
- Tear-jerking youth songs: recommended classics and popular tracks
- [Uplifting Songs] A curated selection of popular and latest tracks to energize your school cultural festivals!
- A friendship song that fires up the culture festival/school festival
- [Youth Anthems] A curated selection of popular and latest songs to hype up your school cultural festival
- [For School Culture Festivals] A Selection of Hype Dance Tracks [2026]
- Youthful songs recommended as theme songs and openings for cultural and school festivals
- [March 2026] Trending Songs: A roundup of the hottest viral tracks right now
- [Cultural Festival / School Festival] A Collection of Vocaloid Songs to Liven Up Your Event
- [Culture and School Festival Songs] A curated selection of popular and hit songs to brighten up your venues and events!
- [Guaranteed to resonate!] Youth songs that strike a chord with teens. Recommended coming-of-age tracks.
[2026] Tearjerker Songs That Bring the House Down at School Culture Festivals (91–100)
Photograph feat. Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra Horn SectionEXILE ATSUSHI
EXILE ATSUSHI’s “Photograph” is a song that makes you feel that both the fun days and the tough days are all precious moments of youth.
Released in 2023, this track is a collaboration with the horn section of Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra and was selected as the support song for the 2023 National High School Baseball Championship.
The lyrics depict how the players, striving toward the Koshien stage and ultimately the goal of winning the championship, etch each day into their hearts like photographs.
At a school festival, too, it’s not just the main event—there are many memorable moments in the preparations and the cleanup.
Listening to this song while reflecting on each of those moments will surely move you.
CorrectRADWIMPS
RADWIMPS delivers a tender melody with a profound message that resonates deeply during graduation season.
The warm soundscape woven by piano tones and a student choir gently embraces moments of looking back on youthful days.
The lyrics, which depict the search for the right answers in life and the journey to find one’s true self, strike a universal chord that anyone can relate to.
Released for streaming in January 2024 and followed by a limited-production CD in February, this work was born from encounters with the younger generation and takes on a new challenge by incorporating a student choir.
It is a heartwarming song that stands beside young people leaving their schools and those facing turning points in life.
KizunaORANGE RANGE
The title “Kizuna” already hints that it’s a moving song, doesn’t it? It’s the 12th single released in 2005 by ORANGE RANGE, the band synonymous with wildly energetic rock tunes and one of Okinawa’s most iconic acts.
Chosen as the theme song for the drama “Ima, Ai ni Yukimasu” (Be With You), it’s a ballad that expresses feelings for someone precious, making it perfect for scenes where you want to convey heartfelt emotions toward friends or teammates.
How about using it as background music for a school festival finale?
Dear Sir or Madam, on this day when cherry blossoms fluttermafumafu
A heartwarming coming-of-age story by Mafumafu that vividly captures the emotion of spring as cherry blossoms dance in the air.
The song’s structure is striking, beginning with gentle piano melodies and unfolding into an exhilarating, fast-paced rhythm.
It delicately weaves universal themes of school-day memories, friendship, and farewells, highlighted by a warm vocal delivery that feels close to the listener’s heart.
Included on the album “Kagurairo Artifact,” released in October 2019, it was also used as the theme song for the website Shonen Janmaga Gakuen.
It’s a track to listen to when you want to feel the tender memories of student days, the arrival of spring, or when you’re going through a parting from someone important.
That paper airplane splits the cloudy sky19
Ano Kami Hikōki Kumori Sora Watte is one of the signature songs by the folk duo 19, who disbanded in 2002.
Released in 1999 as their second single, the track became a long-running hit and even earned them a spot on NHK’s Kōhaku Uta Gassen.
The lyrics, which feel like a letter recalling a time not so long ago and the friends you used to be with, evoke a tight, aching sense of poignancy.
Even if you haven’t heard it because it’s an older song, listening to it while thinking about the friends you’re with now will surely make your heart swell.