[Unrequited Love] Heart-wrenching Love Songs | A Roundup of Tear-Inducing Crush and Breakup Tracks
“Even though I know it won’t be rewarded…” Once you fall in love, it’s not so easy to stop your feelings, is it?
You tell yourself you can’t go on like this, that you have to end it, but when you see them, you just can’t hold back your love.
In this article, we introduce love songs that portray the pain of unrequited love and lay bare those unspoken feelings.
Listen to them when you’re tired of loving.
They’ll gently wrap around you, saying, “It’s tough, I know.”
- Unrequited Love Song: A heartrending love song dedicated to you who are going through a painful romance
- [Songs of Infidelity] A collection of forbidden love songs about unattainable romance
- [Unattainable Love] A love song about two people who feel the same way but can’t be together
- Bittersweet love songs to listen to when the person you like already has a girlfriend or boyfriend
- Tear-jerking unrequited love songs that will break your heart: timeless classics about unattainable love
- Unattainable Love: A Heartbreaking Love Song About Falling for a Married Person
- “I Want to See You”: A love song that makes you cry when you listen to it while you can’t meet
- Songs that depict a teasing, suggestive attitude | Love songs to listen to when you're in unrequited love or a painful relationship
- [Today's Unrequited Love Song] Guaranteed to Make Your Heart Flutter! A Sweet and Bittersweet Love Song
- A heart-wrenching story that tightens the chest! A Showa-era unrequited love song
- [To Those in Love] Relatable Love Songs to Listen to When You’re Crushing Hard
- A classic song about a forbidden love
- A song of forbidden love. A love song about feelings that can't be stopped.
[Unrequited Love] Heartbreaking Love Songs | A Comprehensive Introduction to Tear-Jerking Crush and Breakup Songs (221–230)
someone I likeUeno Yūka
Released in 2018, this is a song about unrequited love, with lyrics and music by Hanako Oku crafted to match Yuuka Ueno’s image.
It expresses the bittersweet feelings of a woman who has fallen for the same person her friend likes.
While cheering on her friend’s romance, she realizes that she herself truly loves that person.
Many listeners may feel the sweet-and-sour essence of youth when they hear this track.
ShipwreckNakamori Akina
This song likens a woman, who knows her love is hopeless yet cannot give it up, to a wrecked ship drifting at sea.
Originally released in 1984 as a song by singer-songwriter Tokiko Kato, the version sung by Akina Nakamori is a later cover.
With Nakamori’s richly expressive voice, the lyrics poignantly recount lingering feelings for a former lover, resonating deeply in listeners’ hearts.
It may make your chest tighten as you listen, yet it became known as a track people somehow want to hear after a breakup.
red scarfInoue Sonoko
Inoue Sonoko’s “Red Scarf” is a song about a woman who decides to give up on her feelings without ever putting them into words, as the person she likes becomes drawn to someone else.
The protagonist is likely friends with both the guy and the girl he likes.
Holding back her tears, she tells herself she has to support the two of them… she has to wish for their happiness.
It’s a heartbreakingly poignant song that anyone with an unrequited love should hear.
#302Hirai Ken
Ken Hirai, a singer with a captivating husky high-tone voice, is known for his many popular love songs! In these lyrics, the protagonist has feelings for a woman who has just had her heart broken.
The song depicts the two of them going to karaoke together, and it’s truly moving.
That’s because, while he feels it’s unfair to be kind to her when she’s vulnerable, he still wants to be her support—an expression of love from the bottom of his heart.
If you’re wondering what to do when the person you like has just gone through a breakup, maybe treating them gently, as in these lyrics, could be one way to go.
distress (at sea/in the mountains); being lost; stranded; a disaster situationToukyou Jihen
It’s a song about two people who, even knowing they shouldn’t, can’t help but fall headlong into a dangerous love.
With lyrics penned by Ringo Sheena in her distinctive wording, it portrays the bittersweetness of an adult romance.
Its melody, reminiscent of Showa-era kayōkyoku, also exudes a mature allure.
It hurts.Kiyoshi Ryujin
Some of you might find yourselves carefully watching the gestures of someone you like, or pondering the meaning behind their offhand words.
This is a song by Seiryu Jin, a singer-songwriter from Osaka Prefecture.
It was released in 2010 as his third single.
Feelings for the other person overflow uncontrollably—but it’s heartbreaking to think about what happens when those feelings don’t reach them.
Unrequited Love: A Collection of Heartbreaking Love Songs | A Comprehensive Introduction to Tear-Jerking Crush and Breakup Songs (231–240)
First LoveFukuyama Masaharu
Masaharu Fukuyama’s “Hatsukoi” could truly be called a song about an unattainable first love.
Even after building a family with someone else and having another place to return to, you can sense the lingering feelings that won’t easily be severed and the pain they cause.
It’s a song that deeply resonates with those who can’t move forward because of unforgettable memories of love.
Please give it a listen.