Bittersweet songs you’ll want to sing at karaoke: recommended masterpieces and popular tracks
While it’s great fun to sing crowd-pleasers that get everyone hyped at karaoke, it can be just as nice to connect over a poignant, melancholic ballad.
So this time, we’ll introduce a selection of bittersweet songs you’ll want to sing at karaoke all at once!
Unlike upbeat tracks that amp up the energy, melancholic ballads tend to be slower in tempo and feature lots of long sustained notes.
That’s why they feel so good to sing!
And above all, many of these songs invite you to empathize with the lyrics and pour your emotions into them, so you’re sure to bond and get excited with the people you’re with through that shared connection to the music.
Let’s dive in.
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Bittersweet songs you’ll want to sing at karaoke. Recommended classics and popular tracks (21–30)
I forget you, who are so quiet, in October.aratayo
There’s a bittersweet breakup song that you find yourself humming when you feel that somewhat melancholic air of the season.
Created by Atarayo, known as a “band that grows by feeding on sorrow,” this piece features vocalist Hitomi delivering an emotional performance that lays bare the lingering attachment and pain of a relationship coming to an end.
When the music video was released in November 2020, it quickly resonated across social media, becoming a hit with over 100 million total views for related videos on TikTok.
It was also selected as the theme song for the ABEMA drama “The Night I Became a Beast,” tightening our chests with its dramatic progression and lyrical worldview.
If you let your emotions flow and sing it out at karaoke, it might help you let go of a bit of the heartache of a breakup.
Choose this song when you want to let the tears stored in your heart flow.
Tearful KissSazan Ōrusutāzu
A heartbreaking farewell song with a constricting, bittersweet melody and Keisuke Kuwata’s wistful vocals that pierce the heart.
You can keenly feel the protagonist’s helpless emotions as they sense an impending breakup yet can’t let go of their lingering attachment.
The lyrics, written entirely in Japanese with great care, are filled with straightforward words that resonate deeply—so much so that if you’ve just had your heart broken, you may not be able to listen without tears.
Released as a single in July 1992, it’s also famous as the theme song for the drama “I’ve Always Loved You,” which became a social phenomenon.
It became Southern All Stars’ first million-selling record and continues to be loved by many to this day.
It’s a masterpiece that offers healing—belt it out at karaoke with all your emotions, and it feels like the tears will wash away the sadness along with them.
Heart-wrenching songs you’ll want to sing at karaoke. Recommended masterpieces and popular tracks (31–40)
The summer you gave meieiri reo
Released in 2015, this is a song by Leo Ieiri that was also used as the theme for the drama ‘Koinaka.’ The expressions unique to a singer-songwriter really tug at the heartstrings.
Although it’s a bittersweet song, it has a good tempo, so it should be easy to sing at karaoke.
evening primroseNovelbright
This work portrays a poignant state of mind: unable to forget a once‑beloved person, the protagonist can’t help but keep chasing their lingering shadow as memories of days gone by well up.
Vocalist Yudai Takenaka’s delicate high-tone voice gently envelops the pain of a protagonist who cannot accept the breakup.
The grand sound centered on piano and strings is another highlight.
It’s a song to listen to when you want something to stay close to the pain of heartbreak, or when you can’t take a step into a new love.
Departures ~A Song of Ai for You~EGOIST
It’s the ending theme of the anime Guilty Crown.
It’s a love song that reflects EGOIST’s emotions, set to a beautiful piano-driven melody.
The song alone conveys a deep sense of poignancy, but I think watching the anime makes it even more moving.
AitaiKato Miria
Included on Miliyah Kato’s fourth original album, Ring.
Released on July 8, 2009.
It’s a slow-tempo unrequited love song in which the singer admits the love can’t come true, yet still longs to see you.
With a piano-based accompaniment, it expresses a poignant, feminine heart.
Lovers AgainEXILE
EXILE’s 22nd single, released on January 17, 2007.
From the intro, the song already conveys a deep sense of melancholy.
Set against a winter backdrop, it’s a slow-tempo track brimming with 120% bittersweet emotion, in which the singer speaks of wanting to see the person they parted with once more.
It’s a song you’ll want to deliver with a gentle, heartfelt touch.