Songs that Gen Z feel are 'emo'—tracks that stir their emotions.
Have you recently come across a song that felt “emoi” and truly moved you? Among Gen Z in particular, “emoi songs” are a major topic and are widely shared on social media.
Perhaps you’ve felt healed—or even moved to tears—by melodies that evoke nostalgia, bittersweetness, and an indescribable lingering afterglow.
In this piece, we’ll introduce a selection of highly popular tracks described as “emoi,” songs that deeply resonate with many listeners—especially Gen Z—and stir the emotions.
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- Tear-jerking masterpieces sung by male artists that I’d recommend to Gen Z
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Songs that Gen Z finds 'emo': emotionally stirring tracks (21–30)
Love is litrokudenashi
This is a ballad that gently stays close to the hearts of those who feel lonely or anxious.
Performed by ROKUDENASHI, the music project fronted by Ninzin, it was released in February 2023 as a collaboration with Vocaloid producer MIMI.
The simple, piano-centered arrangement highlights Ninzin’s delicate vocals.
The lyrics, which evoke the warmth of someone’s presence lighting a candle in your heart, resonated with many listeners.
The song is also included on the album “Ai ni Saku Hana,” and it has gained strong support among younger audiences on social media, with over 27,500 videos posted on TikTok.
It might be a good one to listen to when times are tough and you need encouragement.
1000 daysnozomi
This is a heartrending song that portrays the brilliance and fragility of youth.
Released in April 2025, it was written specifically for the new web commercial “Seishun Bonus Time” for the vitamin carbonated drink MATCH.
The lyrics, which frame high school life as roughly 1,000 days, carry both a bittersweet nostalgia for those short yet intense three years and a cheer for the future.
While it’s a power song that rides a passionate melody over a high-velocity guitar rock sound, its delicate depictions—like scribbling and erasing the name of a crush in the corner of a notebook or the secrets one has guarded—are deeply moving.
Fully self-produced by Noshi, who handled all lyrics, composition, arrangement, vocals, and artwork, this track resonates with anyone who spent time in high school or wants to cherish their memories of youth.
LeoYuuri
Let me introduce a ballad that reminds us how irreplaceable our everyday, ordinary moments truly are.
Included on Yuuri’s album “Ichi,” released in January 2022, this song tells the story of the bond between a dog and its owner.
As the owner grows up and spends more time with a romantic partner, the lyrics tenderly convey the lonely feelings from the pet’s perspective.
The music video, directed by Mai Sakai and starring rising actress Rin Kataoka, became a hot topic as a tear-jerking MV.
Singing about the importance of the “ordinary” that we often only recognize after it’s gone, this song will gently accompany you when you want to reflect on the time you share with family or pets.
Q / tenjoōbachi
Queen Bee radiates a singular presence with their original worldview and visuals.
The title track of their 2017 album Q and the title track of their 2019 album Ten function as mirror images that reveal the band’s polar extremes.
The former is a song with bleak lyrics that evoke abuse, symbolizing the resolve to rise from it.
The latter is a magnificent, strings-centered ballad that depicts escaping an abusive home and, though worn down, striving to live—sad yet brimming with hope.
Performed back-to-back during their audience-free livestream in 2020, the two songs vividly highlighted contrasts—attack and defense, light and shadow.
While each stands independently as a single track, they are often performed as a pair live, and their lyrics are clearly connected; thus, I’ve chosen to present them here as a single work.
Spot the differenceSuda Masaki
This song, which Kenshi Yonezu wrote specifically for Masaki Suda, tells the story of a protagonist who once felt like a mistake but discovers the meaning of life through meeting an irreplaceable person.
The powerful message resonates: it doesn’t matter whether something is right or wrong—what matters is that I met you.
Released digitally in May 2019, it became etched in many hearts as the theme song for the drama “Perfect World.” It’s a song that gently stays by your side on days when your self-esteem wavers or when you want to reaffirm your feelings for someone important.
Masaki Suda’s rich, resonant voice delivers each word with care.