[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 (21–30)
PretenderOfisharu Higedan Dism
It’s a song about someone who’s in unrequited love, knowing they’re not the one the other person wants—yet wondering, what if we felt the same way? In the imagined scenario, I’m honest, and I end up hugging them because I care so much.
If I could do that, I wouldn’t be brooding and agonizing.
Even after heartbreak, they still look beautiful to me, and I can’t help loving them to the very end.
SparkleIkuta Rira
Lila Ikuta is a singer-songwriter from Tokyo who is also popular as ikura, the vocalist of YOASOBI.
This song, Sparkle, was released as a digital single on January 17, 2022.
It was used as the theme song for ABEMA’s popular dating show Today, I Fell in Love: Mikan Edition, and it portrays the fleeting brilliance of romantic moments.
The song beautifully expresses the desire to grasp love’s brief spark, the pain and joy it brings, and the journey toward realizing what that love means to oneself.
Lila Ikuta’s gentle voice offers comfort and lifts your spirits.
[Unrequited Love] Heartbreaking Love Songs | A Comprehensive Introduction to Tear-Jerking Crush & Breakup Songs (31–40)
shutterYuuri
A heartbreak song whose bittersweet vocals and striking phrases linger in your mind.
Throughout the track, you can feel the painful turmoil of thinking about a loved one while still carrying the regret of not being able to express your feelings honestly.
The song was released digitally in July 2021 and later as a single on January 12, 2022.
It was written by Yuuri for JUN MIYASAKA, the cameraman for the official “Yuuri Channel,” and was released in response to fan requests.
It’s recommended for those who can relate to the pain of a broken heart or who want to convey their feelings to someone important.
Your happinessUru
Uru is a Japanese singer-songwriter known for her enveloping vocals and profound expressiveness.
“Kimi no Shiawase wo,” digitally released on November 22, 2023, portrays one-sided love, the yearning to know the other person’s true feelings, and the loneliness and ache of realizing that wish won’t come true.
While finding happiness in the other person’s smile, what is truly desired is a bond where hearts genuinely connect… Yet in the end, the way the protagonist chooses to act by putting their loved one’s happiness first deeply resonates with listeners.
It’s a highly recommended song for anyone in love who feels their feelings aren’t returned, and for all who sincerely wish for someone else’s happiness.
PrologueUru
Even if it’s an impossible love, Uru’s “Prologue” sings about a heart overflowing with feelings for someone you like.
Released in 2018, the song was used as the theme for the drama “Chuugaku Seishun Nikki” (Middle School Love Diary).
The lyrics portray how, even though you know in your head that happiness won’t come from this love, your eyes can’t help but follow that person, and your emotions only grow stronger.
It was a perfect match for a drama about a romance between a teacher and a student.
Highly recommended for those who are hurting from a bittersweet, painful love.
Hey,SHISHAMO
“Hey,” is an unrequited love song marked by its sweet-and-sour yet heartrending lyrics.
Unable to find the courage to confess to the person they like, the narrator can only keep holding those feelings inside.
It portrays that frustrating limbo and the anxiety that one day the feelings might never be conveyed.
Released in June 2018 and featured in a Calpis Water commercial, the song showcases SHISHAMO’s signature catchy melodies and down-to-earth lyrics.
It has gained broad support, especially among teens and people in their twenties who struggle with love.
After listening, you might just feel like saying a single word—“Hey,”—to share your feelings.
Like this tonightaimyon
This is a song by Aimyon that portrays a helpless night where you dissolve your true feelings into the bubbles in your glass and surrender yourself to an ambiguous relationship.
Wishing for no more than a modest trigger to feel fulfilled evokes emotions akin to the resignation of unrequited love.
Released in November 2018, the song drew attention as the theme for the drama “We Can’t Become Beasts,” and has been streamed over 100 million times.
If you’ve ever been unable to tell someone how you really feel and felt like you might as well just go with the flow, you’ll surely understand the protagonist’s pain.
Doesn’t it feel like this song gently stays close to a heart burdened with feelings that have nowhere to go?