[Unrequited Love] Heart-wrenching Love Songs | A Roundup of Tear-Inducing Crush and Breakup Tracks

Love’s Melody and Rainy SkiesAAA

AAA / “Love Sound and Rainy Sky” Music Video

This song depicts the frustration and inner turmoil of having someone you love but not being able to say the simple words “I like you.” Even if you confess, it may not come true; the feelings are so serious that you can’t express them.

People who are in love will surely find this very relatable, won’t they?

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sasashina

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Dear…Nishino Kana

Kana Nishino 'Dear...(short ver.)'

Kana Nishino, whose love songs capturing real feelings are popular among women.

Her song “Dear…” is her eighth single, released in 2009.

From the lyrics, you can sense a bit of a “complicated situation”: it’s a number that suggests two people who want to meet but can’t, who can’t freely be together.

The desire to always be with the one you love is natural, but it doesn’t come true—and only the painful feelings keep growing.

You can almost feel that heartbreak in your hands, can’t you?

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utatane

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Absolute relationshipakai kouen

Akaiko-en – Absolute Relationship (MV Full Ver.) [Theme Song for Fuji TV Saturday Drama “Lost Days”]

A truly legendary band that disbanded following the passing of Yoneko Tsuno.

Their active period lasted 11 years, yet they’re still known for having a deeply devoted fanbase.

This song, “Zettaiteki na Kankei” (“An Absolute Relationship”), is a mysterious piece that reveals different colors depending on who’s listening: office workers will hear it one way, long-married couples another, and those nursing a broken heart yet another.

You’ll be overwhelmed by its multilayered lyrics, which feel prefaced by the thought, “I know it probably won’t come true, but…” For those in love, it might sound especially bittersweet.

With its heavy, weighty sound, sudden shifts in time signature, and a sorrowful pull that makes you want to hit repeat again and again, it’s a heartbreakingly memorable track.

codependencyDomura Riu

Codependence / Riu Domura (Lyric Video)

A poignant love song by Riu Domura that delicately portrays a heart unable to escape loneliness and anxiety.

It’s striking for its depiction of a woman’s inner conflict as she realizes that, even while drowning in a codependent relationship, she’s nothing more than a convenient presence.

Released in May 2019, the song is included on the album “Escape,” with a remixed version later featured on the album “Night View.” It’s a track that offers comfort to those told their love is “too heavy” because they feel too strongly, or to anyone still carrying the pain of a difficult heartbreak.

Bad personsenritsu kannano

Kano Kanaru “Bad Person” M/V

A gem of a love song that beautifully captures the complex emotions of a woman torn by a forbidden love, with a heartrending vocal and delicate lyrics.

Kayayu from Young Skinny—a favorite among Gen Z—wrote the song, and Kanano Senritsu delivers a fragile, poignant performance.

Since its release in September 2024, it has resonated on social media, delicately depicting the turmoil of a woman who forgives even as she recognizes her partner’s lies, and the ache of memories that resurface with the changing seasons.

Its universal lyrics invite anyone struggling in love to see themselves in the story.

It’s a song that gently stays by the side of those overwhelmed by complicated feelings for someone who can’t exactly be called a good person.

Only a single voicerokudenashi

Rokudenashi “Just One Voice” / Rokudenashi – One Voice [Official Music Video]

It’s a poignant song that empathizes with people carrying the pain of heartbreak and the struggle of living.

Released in December 2021, it delicately portrays the loneliness and inner conflict of young people today, accompanied by the gentle tones of the piano.

The emotions expressed by Rokudenashi reflect the image of people who, though hurt by everyday words, still try their best to smile.

The song resonated across borders, reaching No.

1 on Hong Kong’s Spotify Viral Chart and moving many hearts.

It’s a track I wholeheartedly recommend to those who can’t quite put their feelings into words or who are wrestling with worries alone.

Its tender melodies and vocals will surely stay close to your heart.

I want you to tell me you love me.Oku Hanako

Hanako Oku – I Want You to Say You Love Me (Live ’08)

Released in 2008, this is Hanako Oku’s eighth single.

It sings of an unfulfilled love from the perspective of a woman who has fallen for a man who already has a girlfriend.

He may have thought of her as a female friend he could talk to about anything.

The song portrays the pain of a woman who can neither return to being just friends nor become his lover, trapped in an ambiguous relationship—expressed through Hanako Oku’s heartrending vocals and the sound of the piano.