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

yellowback number

back number – Yellow

Back number’s “Yellow” is a painful yet beautiful number that sings of feelings that can’t reach their destination.

Embraced as the theme song of a dating reality show, it has become a track that gently accompanies many hearts.

Shimizu Iyori’s heartrending vocals perfectly convey both a pure heart wishing happiness for the one they love and the frustrating emotions hidden beneath.

With its heartwarming melody and powerful lyrics, it brings back feelings that everyone wants to keep tucked away somewhere, whether they’ve experienced heartbreak or not.

Combining strength and tenderness, this song is a recommended love ballad best listened to quietly.

A triangular lovesaji

saji – “Triangular Love” MUSIC VIDEO

A saji song that portrays the pain of unrequited love with a heart-wrenching voice and delicate words.

The aching feelings of being unable to hold back one’s love are expressed with striking directness.

Many listeners will inevitably relate to the narrator’s position—unable to become a lover yet continuing to harbor unwavering affection.

Included on their second mini-album Hanabi no Uta, released in September 2020, the track became a hit through TikTok.

The arrangement, featuring live strings, further enhances the song’s appeal.

It’s a piece that offers solace to anyone who has experienced heartbreak or unrequited love—or is struggling with it right now.

IenaiSoala

Soala – Ienai [Official Music Video]

A standout track featuring lyrics that portray a bittersweet love and a pop-inspired melody.

Soala’s clear, airy vocals deepen the expression of the struggle to communicate one’s feelings.

Released in August 2022 and included on the album “LOVE,” this song resonated with many listeners and saw its streaming numbers grow.

It conveys the heartache of being treated as a one-sided crush or a mere pastime, and the pain of not being someone’s “number one,” making it a song that supports those struggling with love.

It’s especially recommended for moments when thinking about someone you like makes your chest ache, or when you’re carrying feelings you can’t put into words.

Winter and Springback number

back number – Winter and Spring

Back Number is a three-piece band formed in 2004 in Gunma Prefecture.

Their song “HAPPY BIRTHDAY,” the theme for the drama A Story to Read When You First Fall in Love, is a heartrending track about unrequited love.

Released in February 2019, it conveys the feelings of a male protagonist spending his birthday alone.

While he expresses a desire for the woman he loves to celebrate his birthday, the lyrics also portray his awareness that his love will never be fulfilled.

Set to a rock ballad with signature Back Number strings, the arrangement amplifies the poignancy of the lyrics.

Happy Endingback number

back number – Happy End (full)

This is a poignant song by back number that portrays a woman putting on a brave face at the moment of parting.

On the surface she tries to send him off with a smile, yet she cannot let go of her feelings for him, and the delicate depiction of her inner turmoil is deeply moving.

Written as the theme song for the film “My Tomorrow, Your Yesterday,” released in December 2016, it also drew attention for its music video featuring actress Erika Karata, and was later included on the album “Encore.” If you find yourself in a situation where you have no choice but to give up while still harboring feelings for someone you love, you may see yourself in this song.

It’s a soul-stirring track that will make you want to listen to it again and again through tears.

HAPPY BIRTHDAYback number

back number - “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” Music Video (Theme song for the TBS Tuesday drama “A Story to Read When You First Fall in Love”)

Heart-wrenching—simply heart-wrenching.

Written as the theme song for the drama “A Story to Read When You First Fall in Love,” “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” is a quintessential back number ballad brimming with bittersweet emotion.

Sighing over an unrequited love, the singer whispers “Happy birthday” to themselves as they spend their birthday alone.

The unbearably poignant lyrics tighten your chest.

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A Song Dedicated to the Worst YouYuuri

Yuuri “A Song for the Worst You” Official Music Video

This is a digital release from November 2025 by Yuuri that sings of frustration and self-loathing toward oneself for being unable to escape a sneaky, unfair relationship—even while knowing the other person isn’t serious.

The lyrics pierce the heart as they call the other person “the worst,” yet also reckon with the singer’s own slyness in accepting a convenient role.

Kisses that feel like a gag to hide true feelings, and words that sound like a curse uttered with a sense that the end is near, vividly depict the psychological mind games of a complicated romance.

It’s a song that will resonate with anyone who knows they should walk away but can’t, or who is facing the end while still holding on to lingering attachments.