A song of forbidden love. A heartrending, sorrowful love song.
A forbidden love you can’t tell anyone about.
If you’re reading this article, perhaps you’re experiencing a similar kind of love.
If so, there are probably many painful moments.
I’ve gathered some songs I want you to hear.
They capture the pain of falling for someone who already has a lover or partner and feeling lost, or knowing it won’t come true yet being unable to give up.
When things are tough, try finding one song that stays close to your feelings.
Like when someone listens to you, it might make your heart feel just a little lighter.
- [An Adulterous Love] A love song about a secret affair you can't tell anyone about
- [Adultery Song] A forbidden song about an affair that sings of an impossible love
- A classic song about a forbidden love
- A song of forbidden love. A love song about feelings that can't be stopped.
- [Unattainable Love] A love song about two people who feel the same way but can’t be together
- [Cheating Song] A forbidden love that crossed the line — infidelity song
- "A Love Song I Can't Tell Anyone" — a love song you can relate to when times are tough
- [Empathetic & Tear-Jerking] A love song about an unrequited romance
- A tear-jerking love song. A love song that stays close to a hurting heart.
- “I Want to See You”: A love song that makes you cry when you listen to it while you can’t meet
- [Unrequited Love] Heart-wrenching Love Songs | A Roundup of Tear-Inducing Crush and Breakup Tracks
- Tear-jerking unrequited love songs that will break your heart: timeless classics about unattainable love
- [2026] Japanese love ballads of tragic romance: classic masterpieces of sad love songs
A forbidden love song. A heartrending, sorrowful love ballad (71–80)
Happinessback number
Rather than evoking an affair, this song centers on the theme of an “unattainable love.” It poignantly expresses feelings that make you wonder whose “happiness” the title refers to.
It feels like witnessing the person you love loving someone else, and it tightens your chest.
Can’t Stop Fallin’ in Loveglobe
Released in 1997, this is a poignant ballad by globe—known for many hit songs—that sings of an unrequited love.
It portrays a love that can’t be stopped, no matter how hard one tries.
The song captures the heartache of a woman who has fallen for a man who already has a partner.
While she knows she must give up at some point, she doesn’t want to lose the one she loves.
It’s a classic that conveys the anguish of an unattainable love.
Street Loveindigo la End
This is a love song by indigo la End about a finished romance that must not be known by anyone.
It’s included on their 2019 album “Nureyuku Shōsetsu” (My Soaking Novel).
The song feels like a letter addressed to an ex-lover, conveying lingering attachment and frustration—though they’ve broken up, the feelings remain.
It says, no matter what happens, I want to keep loving you, but knowing those feelings won’t reach you anymore makes it all the more heartbreaking.
Depicting pure love and the painful outcome of a difficult relationship, it’s a breakup song recommended for anyone experiencing an unrequited love.
A triangular lovesaji
A saji song that portrays the pain of unrequited love with a heart-wrenching voice and delicate words.
The aching feelings of being unable to hold back one’s love are expressed with striking directness.
Many listeners will inevitably relate to the narrator’s position—unable to become a lover yet continuing to harbor unwavering affection.
Included on their second mini-album Hanabi no Uta, released in September 2020, the track became a hit through TikTok.
The arrangement, featuring live strings, further enhances the song’s appeal.
It’s a piece that offers solace to anyone who has experienced heartbreak or unrequited love—or is struggling with it right now.
Unraveling Loveyama
A song that tightens your chest with yama’s faint, heartrending vocals.
It portrays the complexity of love and the pain that can’t be avoided, delicately depicting two people who hurt each other yet still love one another.
Wanting to be together but being unable to say it honestly reflects an awareness that someone is being hurt and that the relationship should not go on.
It makes you think deeply about whether happiness awaits a love forged at the cost of hurting many, and its quiet, lingering ache of unrequited love pierces the heart.
This is a track I especially recommend to those struggling with clumsy, awkward love.