A tear-jerking love song that gently stays by your heart
Tears are inseparable from romance.
There are sad tears shed after heartbreak or from the pain of an unrequited love.
There are joyful tears when love comes true or when a wedding is decided and your heart is full of happiness.
In this article, we introduce moving love songs that stay close to all those different kinds of tears tied to romance.
We’ve gathered a variety of tracks—songs that will cry with you through sorrowful love, and songs that will make you savor your happiness so much it brings you to tears.
You’re sure to find a track that stirs your heart.
Listen to these tear-jerking love songs to heal your wounds or to fill yourself with warmth.
Heartfelt Tearjerker Love Songs (1–10)
yoursNEW!Shimizu Shota
Shota Shimizu is a singer-songwriter who captivates many with a sound that moves seamlessly between R&B and pop.
This track, for which he himself wrote the lyrics and composed the music, is included as the B-side to the single “BYE×BYE,” released in July 2015.
With his warm vocals, he gently wraps and sings about the loneliness of being apart from a lover and the overflowing feelings of longing for them.
It carefully portrays the honest emotions of finding yourself thinking of the one you love again and again in everyday life.
This is a song we especially recommend to those who’ve been too busy to meet their loved one lately.
If you listen on a lonely, sleepless night, it will gently stay close to the earnest feelings deep in your heart.
366 daysHY
A mixed-genre band from Okinawa, HY enjoys widespread popularity regardless of gender.
This song was chosen as the theme for the film “Threads of Destiny” (Akai Ito).
Member Izumi Nakasone handles all the vocals, delivering a powerful performance.
It’s a huge karaoke favorite—so much so that many people choose it for karaoke battles on variety shows.
It’s a heartbreaking, heartrending number that pours out lingering feelings: “Even though we broke up, I keep thinking about you, over and over.” If you’ve ever truly been in love, these lyrics will resonate deeply—listen and let them sink in.
Dried flowersYuuri
This song, which became the catalyst for Yuuri—wildly popular among teens and people in their twenties—to break into the mainstream, was released as his second major single, available exclusively via digital distribution.
Its popularity gradually spread on social media, and after his appearance on the YouTube channel THE FIRST TAKE, where artists deliver one-take performances, it exploded in popularity.
Notably, the lyrics portray the end of a relationship from a woman’s perspective.
It’s a masterpiece that grips the heart with its acoustic guitar and Yuuri’s heartrending vocals.
Drowning loveNEW!Domura Riu
A track by Riu Domura released digitally in December 2020.
Its chill beat and mellow melody feel soothing, suffused with a sweet, humid mood.
It portrays late-night phone calls with a lover and the lopsided desire to have them all to oneself, conveying not only the joy of romance but also a dependency that feels like sinking deeply into love.
The song spread after Local Campione posted an original choreography on TikTok.
A remix version is included on the fifth album, “Yakei,” released in 2023.
It’s a love song that gently keeps you company as you sit in your room at night, thinking of your partner and feeling lonely.
warmthNEW!Kawasaki Takaya
A single that earnestly captures warm feelings for someone special.
Singer-songwriter Takaya Kawasaki released it digitally in May 2023, and the following month it became the title track of his album “Nukumori.” The song conveys a universal kind of love—finding happiness in a voice over the phone or the lingering warmth of memories, even when you can’t meet in person.
With his characteristically husky, gentle vocals and a band sound enriched by strings, this ballad resonates emotionally.
It’s a heartwarming number to listen to while thinking of the “person you long to see,” whether a partner, family member, or anyone dear to you.
I miss you feat. Shota ShimizuNEW!SPICY CHOCOLATE
SPICY CHOCOLATE is a sound crew that energizes the Japanese reggae scene.
Featuring R&B singer Shota Shimizu, this song is a love ballad that poignantly conveys lingering attachment to a former lover and the bittersweet feelings that suddenly surface in everyday life.
Released digitally in October 2014, it became a hot topic as the opening track of the acclaimed album “Shibuya Jun’ai Monogatari.” It was also selected as the opening theme for Fuji TV’s “Sakigake! Ongaku Banzuke ~EIGHT~.” Many people have experienced knowing you can’t go back, yet being unable to forget, right? It’s a song we hope you’ll listen to on nights when you feel like crying because you can’t contain how much you want to see that person.
LikeNEW!eill
Falling in love makes everyday life look vivid, yet it also heightens the ache and the pain.
Sung by singer-songwriter eill, this piece is a love song that gently embraces that duality of romance.
The more you think of the one you love, the tighter your chest feels; the loneliness of the time you can’t meet resonates in your heart alongside her tender voice.
Released in July 2022, it was featured as an insert song in the dating reality show “Love Transit.” It was later included on the album “my dream box,” released in October 2024.
For those who find love painful precisely because they care so much, or for nights when you want to sink into love’s bittersweetness, this song will quietly stay close to the tremors of your heart.