[Let's Enjoy Japanese Festival Songs!] Songs about festivals. Famous songs related to festivals.
When you think of summer festivals, there are so many things to enjoy—fireworks, food stalls, and more.
And at Japanese festivals, mikoshi (portable shrines) and bon odori (bon dances) are essential, too.
In this article, we’ll introduce plenty of songs related to these festivals! When you hear “festival-themed songs,” you might think of a lot of enka, but we’ve picked tracks across a wide range of genres—J-pop, rock, idol music, and more—that kids can get excited about, with modern touches woven in as well.
These songs are perfect companions for festivals, and there are also tracks that let you soak up the festival mood or savor the afterglow.
Be sure to check out some festival tunes that match your taste!
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[Let’s Enjoy Japanese Festival Songs!] Songs that sing about festivals. Classic festival-related tunes (21–30)
cotton candyback number
This is the sixth single by back number, a three-piece rock band whose heartrending vocals and lyrics resonate especially with younger listeners and have earned support from a wide range of fans.
Chosen as the opening theme for the music program “COUNT DOWN TV,” the track conveys a palpable sense of summer humidity through its atmosphere and arrangement.
The lyrics exquisitely depict scenes that many men have likely imagined at least once, linking with the imagery of a summer festival to make the pictures even more vivid.
It’s a festival song whose daring yet relatable lyrics and nuanced sense of temperature—something not seen before in J-pop—are perfectly balanced.
Hurray for the festival!kururi
Quruli, a rock band that represents Kyoto.
This irresistibly catchy song, “Omatsuri Wasshoi,” sticks with you after just one listen and is included on Quruli’s sixth album, “NIKKI,” released in 2005.
Speaking of festivals, you think of mikoshi portable shrines—and the chant shouted while carrying them, “wasshoi,” appears throughout the lyrics, amping up the festive mood.
It conveys the exhilaration of a festival, while also capturing that inexpressible, slightly chaotic feeling unique to such occasions.
Once you hear it, you’ll find it stuck in your head and catch yourself humming along, for sure (lol).
Sound of SummerGReeeeN
If you’re thinking, “This is the summer I’ll finally tell the person I like how I feel,” I recommend GReeeeN’s Natsu no Oto (Sound of Summer).
Released in 2015 as a digital-only single, it was featured in Kirin’s Namacha campaign and is also included on the best-of album C, D desu to!?.
Just listening to scenes like picking out a yukata for your special someone before the big event of watching fireworks together will fill you with that sweet, bittersweet feeling.
Give Natsu no Oto a listen to summon the courage to confess!
Dancing! Summer Festival10nin matsuri
Dancing! Natsu Matsuri, released in 2001 by 10nin Matsuri, a group formed by shuffling members of Hello! Project.
Packed with the heat and excitement of a summer festival, this song is perfect as background music for events like summer festivals! The lyrics depict how people who usually lead their own lives in different places return to their hometowns when festival season arrives to liven up the local festivities.
If you used to go to your hometown festivals as a kid, listening to this song will surely bring back those fun memories!
Hometown Ibaraki Ondo
Set in Ibaraki City, Osaka Prefecture, this is a heart-stirring original bon-odori song.
Featuring the vocals of Mayuko Hayashida, the piece stands out with its brisk tempo and familiar, catchy phrasing.
Just by listening, you can feel your body naturally start to move as if you were in the festival circle—such is its joy.
Woven into the lyrics are deep affection for one’s hometown and a warm message encouraging everyone to cherish and carry on local traditions together.
Performed for many years at the Ibaraki Festival, it has been embraced as a bon dance number that promotes the community.
For those connected to Ibaraki City, it may well evoke fond memories and images of the hometown landscape.
party peopleKetsumeishi
When you hear it’s a party song by Ketsumeishi, you know you’re guaranteed to get hyped! This track, “Party People,” released digitally in 2021, is a high-energy number that amps up the festival and party vibes.
The music video features Eiko Kano, and his wild performance—doing calligraphy right after skydiving—also became a hot topic.
It’s the ultimate festival anthem that makes your body move, makes you want to clap, and lifts you out of any slump.
Pokemon OndoKobayashi Sachiko
The fourth ending theme used in the Pokémon anime was “Pokémon Ondo.” It’s sung by Sachiko Kobayashi—an enka singer with deep ties to the Pokémon series—under the name “Kangaskhan Kobayashi,” and it was included as the B-side on the 1998 single “Trade Please.” “Pokémon Ondo” features many Pokémon and is a perfect fit for Bon Odori dances.
If you’re looking to add a fresh track to your Bon Odori music, how about “Pokémon Ondo”?