Tearjerker K-pop ballads: Korean songs that will make you cry
When do you break down in tears?
When you go through a breakup, when you can no longer see someone important to you—so many emotions can well up at times like these.
Here, we carefully curate and introduce K-pop “songs that make you cry” that stand close to each person’s desire to weep.
From tracks that overwhelm with grand, expansive worlds to songs that intimately capture everyday life, we cover a wide range—classic staples, of course, and new releases added as they come.
May these emotion-rich songs unique to K-pop help soothe your heart, even just a little.
- K-POP and Korean tear-jerker songs: tracks that deeply resonate and bring you to tears
- [Exquisite Ballad Songs] K-pop that touches the soul. Korean Ballads
- K-pop that touches the heart: masterful ballads by Korean male artists
- K-pop that touches the heart: iconic ballads by Korean female artists
- K-pop and Korean love songs: Love songs that really capture the Korean view of romance
- A poignant, heart-touching K-pop song. A bittersweet track that resonates with many different emotions.
- [K-POP] Korean 'yami' songs that fit a blue mood
- [Tearjerker] Songs that make your heart tremble with tears & moving tracks with lyrics that touch the soul
- An emotional Korean song. A gently moving, sensitive masterpiece.
- [Korean popular music] Popular trot songs. Masterpieces by trot singers.
- A J-POP song highly popular in South Korea [with a Korean-language cover too!]
- [Korea] A ballad-style friendship song. A roundup of classic K-pop masterpieces
- K-pop to color your Instagram stories: recommended Korean songs
Heart-wrenching K-pop Ballads: Korean Tearjerker Songs (21–30)
GIRL FRIENDBIGBANG
A love song that portrays happy days with someone you cherish, released by BIGBANG, who captivate audiences with their overflowing charisma and rich musicality.
It was included on MADE, the masterpiece released in 2016 that concludes the MADE series.
“Just thinking about the person you love can make you happy.” This song, which sings of such fulfilling love, has a relaxed mood that lets you deeply feel that atmosphere.
The straightforward lyrics, filled with the desire to stay together forever, gently tug at your heartstrings.
How can I love the heartbreak, You’re The One I Love악동뮤지션 (AKMU)
Akdong Musician’s tearjerker.
It portrays lovers on the verge of breaking up.
From the man’s point of view, you can tell he doesn’t really want to part with her.
The song is set on a nighttime sidewalk—only streetlights shine; everything else is pitch-black.
The darkness of the night brings out the couple’s loneliness and sorrow.
There’s no sudden, dramatic swell like in classic sob songs, but the quiet delivery only deepens the sadness.
Tearjerker K-POP Ballads: Korean Songs That Will Make You Cry (31–40)
Don’t Wanna Cry (울고 싶지 않아)SEVENTEEN
A signature song by SEVENTEEN released in 2017.
With its beautiful, fragile melody and atmosphere, it felt like a new frontier at the time, as if it overturned the image Seventeen had up to that point.
The title is “Don’t Wanna Cry,” but the tears overflow and won’t stop.
While facing that kind of sadness, the way the song heats up in the latter half makes my heart swell.
It also carries a sense of strength that pushes you to go out and search.
I think it’s a song that lets you feel the power that comes after the tears.
EYES, NOSE, LIPS -KR Ver.-SOL (from BIGBANG)
“EYES, NOSE, LIPS” was born from SOL’s real-life experience.
It’s based on a breakup he went through with a former lover.
From this true-to-life heartbreak song, it went on to become a major global hit.
The title is striking, and it implicitly means he remembers every detail of his ex-girlfriend.
Her gestures and the way she touched him are seared vividly into his mind.
With memories that clear, you’d think it wouldn’t be painful—but of course it is.
You can really feel the push and pull of wanting to let go but being unable to.
Can You Hear MeTAEYEON 태연
A classic, gently swelling ballad that seeps into your heart: “Can You Hear Me (들리나요).” It was featured as an insert song in the 2008 MBC drama Beethoven Virus.
Taeyeon’s exceptional vocal prowess and expressive delivery are truly overwhelming.
The lyrics, which convey feelings like “I love you but can’t take the step,” and “Being by your side isn’t the only form of love,” squeeze your heart tight.
Even if it isn’t fate, I want to believe; I can’t stop.
If you’re caught in an unrequited love, this song will resonate deeply and likely move you to tears.
It’s a ballad that lets longing spill out—perfect for long nights.
맨정신(SOBER)BIGBANG
The Korean title is “Sober.” It sings of suffering—how, in a sober, ordinary state of mind, you can’t possibly remain calm.
“Sober” refers to not being drunk.
In other words, the person in this song is drinking and can’t breathe without borrowing the power of alcohol.
From the melancholy melody, you can tell they’re in an extremely tough situation.
When you run into a wall, listening to it might resonate with you on a gut level, beyond logic.
7월 7일 (One Of These Nights)Red Velvet
A ballad released by Red Velvet in 2016.
As the title “July 7th” suggests, it’s a Tanabata song themed around Orihime and Hikoboshi.
It will likely resonate with those in a long-distance relationship or anyone unable to see someone important to them.
Time spent with a loved one can feel as if it stands still—and when you can’t meet, that feeling is even stronger.
This song, which stays by your side even in hard times, can bring you to tears.
It’s a classic, straightforward ballad, but there are many interpretations surrounding it, so give it a listen from that angle as well.