[For High School Students] Melancholy Songs That Stay Close to Your Feelings [Tough Times]
School isn’t all fun and games, is it?
It’s sad, but some people might even say, “Most of it isn’t fun at all!”
Still, no matter how tough it gets, those memories and feelings will become the strength that supports you.
In this piece, we’ll introduce some “dark” songs that will stay close to your tired heart.
There are plenty to choose from, so if you go through the songs listed, you’re sure to find something you can relate to.
Let’s borrow the power of music and get through the present together.
- [Yami Song] Fight darkness with darkness!? Deep tracks that stay close to your pain
- [Songs to Listen to When You Want to Die] I want to disappear... A song to support you who feel that way
- [Dark Songs] A carefully curated selection of deeply dark tracks and heartbreaking songs that accompany you in tough times
- Songs to listen to when you’re feeling down! Tracks that boost your self-confidence
- [Recommended for Teens] Songs to Listen to When Your Heart Is Tired / Songs You Want to Hear
- Emo songs recommended for junior high school students: A roundup of classic and popular Japanese tracks!
- Uplifting songs recommended for high school students
- [Relatable Lyrics] Emo songs to listen to when you're stuck after a breakup or relationship troubles
- [Melancholy] For when you want to sink all the way. Masterpieces that depict various kinds of gloom.
- [For those doing their best] A comforting song to listen to when you're tired of life
- Songs that hit home when you're feeling blue: masterpieces of Japanese music
- [Tearjerker] Songs that make your heart tremble with tears & moving tracks with lyrics that touch the soul
- Yami songs recommended for college students: melancholic tracks to listen to when you're feeling down
[For High School Students] Emo Songs That Stay Close to Your Feelings [Tough Times] (41–50)
If I were to die tomorrowKitanitatsuya
This is the song by Tatsuya Kitani that I want you to listen to on nights when, deep down, you find yourself wishing tomorrow would never come.
Released in January 2024, it opens the album ROUNDABOUT as the first track.
It begins with a beautiful piano melody and unfolds into a sweeping band sound—an arrangement that leaves a strong impression.
The lyrics carry a single-minded wish for you to keep living, even while holding despair.
For those of you getting through days that make it hard to breathe, it’s a song that feels like someone offering you an umbrella.
in my placeHiguchi Ai
A song that embraces the parts of yourself that feel incapable and lights the courage to keep moving forward.
It’s the second installment of Ai Higuchi’s “Soliloquy Trilogy,” released digitally in August 2025.
The expansive sound and gentle vocals are a perfect match.
The lyrics depict the feelings of repeatedly grappling with self-loathing while taking one step at a time.
Try listening on a quiet night or on a heavy-footed morning on your way to class.
It will bring your heart’s pace back to your own stride.
seamUeno Daiki
When we confront the uncertainty of memory, how much anxiety do we carry? Written by Daiju Ueno for the drama “Unmet: A Neurosurgeon’s Diary,” this piece overlaps with the struggles of a protagonist living with memory impairment.
It features a mysterious sound marked by lingering strings, and Ueno says he “challenged a kind of topline melody I wouldn’t normally use.” The lyrics carefully trace the blurry borders of the memories we all possess, the unease toward time that has vanished, and the surges of emotion we long to reclaim.
When you want to reconnect your past self with who you are now, this song will quietly stay by your side.
AnswerIkuta Rira
A warm cheering song that gives you the strength to look forward during tough times.
It’s a track by Lila Ikuta, released digitally in March 2021 and later included on her 2023 album “Sketch.” It was featured in a Tokio Marine Nichido Anshin Life commercial.
The song delicately portrays the feelings of trying to move ahead while carrying weakness and loneliness, offering comfort to the doubts and anxieties everyone experiences.
It’s a song I’d like people who are living through days without clear answers, or who are struggling with choices or relationships, to listen to.
A love on the verge of witheringSuzuki Suzuki
This song poignantly portrays a couple who, after their youthful days end and they enter the working world, gradually drift apart until their relationship ends.
It’s sure to resonate with anyone in college who feels distance growing with someone important.
Released by Suzuki Suzuki in April 2021 as the final installment of their love-themed trilogy, it’s characterized by beautiful harmonies.
The lyrics, in plain and realistic language, capture the fragility of a relationship where busy days lead to fewer meetings and dwindling contact.
Its mellow tones will stay close by your side.
What do you want to become?Rozarīna
If you’re a college student who feels crushed by anxiety about the future, please give this a listen.
It’s a track by Rozarina, included on the album “INNER UNIVERSE,” released in January 2020.
The song portrays the struggle of being overwhelmed by obligations and losing sight of what you truly wanted to do.
Its smoky vocals and acoustic tones gently wrap around a tired heart.
It’s a number I hope you’ll listen to without holding back your tears.
MetronomeYonezu Kenshi
It’s a poignant song by Kenshi Yonezu that depicts the growing mismatch of feelings between two people who matter to each other.
It’s included on his 2015 album Bremen.
The lyrics liken two metronomes that initially tick in the same rhythm but gradually fall out of sync over time to a relationship drifting apart, offering solace to the pain of loss that everyone experiences.
The gentle tempo and piano tones are soothing, and you can’t help but be drawn in.
It’s a song I especially want those grieving the loss of someone dear to listen to.