[Touching] Entrance/Exit Songs for Graduation Ceremonies: Classics & the Latest BGM

Letter ~Dear You at Fifteen~Anjura Aki

Angela Aki “Letter: To You, Fifteen” Music Video (HD)

A coming-of-age anthem based on a letter singer-songwriter Angela Aki wrote to herself as a teenager.

It was broadcast on NHK’s “Minna no Uta” in 2008 and was also chosen as a set piece for the NHK All-Japan School Music Competition.

While embracing student-specific worries and a sense of impatience, its message of looking forward and moving ahead resonates passionately, carried by powerful piano.

It is sure to touch not only graduating students, but also teachers, parents, and younger classmates, leaving a profound impression.

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hiyori

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Don’t bloom.WHITE JAM

[This Year’s No.1 Graduation Song] [MV] Don’t Bloom / WHITE JAM

If you were to color the tearful farewells of graduation and the hope of new beginnings with music, WHITE JAM’s “Sakanaide” would be indispensable.

This song, which emotionally recalls scenes from school life, is a gem where a bittersweet melody intersects with an uplifting beat.

Like its music video, it will etch warm memories into the listener’s heart.

As the cherry blossoms bloom, farewells arrive—yet even while evoking that moment of graduation, it carries a message that lets you start walking forward, dreaming of the day you’ll meet again.

If this song plays at the ceremony, it will surely make the moment unforgettable.

Because we’re friends.Ochiai Wataru

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

Ochiai Wataru’s 2022 number “Tomodachiya Karane” brings tears to your eyes as it evokes days spent with friends.

The lyrics vividly look back on memories many of us likely shared with friends in our school days, resonating even more deeply as they overlap with our own experiences.

The Kansai-dialect phrasing adds a warm touch.

Even if you think you’ll meet again, you can’t see each other every day like in school—this song gently stays close to that budding loneliness while warmly watching over each person’s future.

If it plays during the entrance or exit scenes, many people won’t be able to hold back their tears!

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SAKI

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The meaning of goodbyeNogizaka 46

Nogizaka46 'The Meaning of Goodbye'

This is the song everyone sings through tears when a member graduates.

You could call it the Nogizaka version of the “graduation song” that every 48/46 group has.

It opens with a beautiful piano solo, and the actual piano accompaniment would surely elevate any graduation ceremony.

The lyrics about how “people grow stronger through encounters and partings” are perfect for the occasion.

The soaring chorus is outstanding, too! Nanami Hashimoto served as center for this track, and Nogizaka46 performed it at the year-end NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen.

Sakura (2019)Moriyama Naotaro

Sakura (2019)

When you think of graduation ceremonies, you can’t help but picture cherry blossoms.

It’s a moving day, watching the graduates set off amid the full bloom of sakura, looking so dignified.

There are many “sakura songs,” but Naotaro Moriyama’s “Sakura” really stands out.

Its fleeting beauty—blossoming and then falling—perfectly matches the spirit of a graduation ceremony.

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Murakami Shinpei

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Graduation PhotoMatsutōya Yumi

Yuming Graduation Photo

Countless times, in dramas and TV shows, it’s the go-to background music that heightens emotional scenes—the ultimate “when in doubt, pray to the gods” track: Yuming, aka Yumi Matsutoya’s ‘Sotsugyo Shashin’ (Graduation Photo), right? The fact that this song was released in 1975 makes its longevity all the more astonishing.

A gentle, somewhat short ballad can move people’s hearts this deeply… Yuming really is the goddess of music, isn’t she? It’s the quintessential graduation song that’s sure to move teachers and parents in attendance to tears.

‘Jupiter’ from the suite ‘The Planets’Gustav Holst

Gustav Holst: “Jupiter” aus “Die Planeten” op. 32 mit Andrew Manze | NDR Radiophilharmonie

An excerpt from the orchestral suite The Planets, composed by Gustav Holst between 1914 and 1917.

Its grand orchestration and gently waltzing strings are deeply moving.

Depicting Jupiter as the “Bringer of Jollity,” this piece captivates with an atmosphere full of dignity and hope.

Its historical context is also fascinating, having premiered on September 29, 1918, in the final week of World War I.

Used as a processional and recessional at a graduation ceremony, it would splendidly mark a new beginning.

It’s sure to be etched in children’s hearts as a lifelong memory.