Bittersweet feelings come rushing back! Recommended love songs for the Yutori generation
For those known as the “Yutori generation,” born roughly between 1987 and 2004, their youthful years likely span from around 2002 to 2019.
During their school days, many were probably immersed in club activities and romance, so there are plenty of songs that became memorable in connection with those experiences.
With that in mind, we’ve put together a list of love songs we recommend for the Yutori generation.
They’re all timeless tracks, so they’re recommended not only for members of the Yutori generation who may have listened in real time, but also for a wide range of listeners!
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Bittersweet feelings come rushing back! Recommended love songs for the Yutori generation (41–50)
Loverssumika
This is a bittersweet song by sumika that resonates with anyone who has ever struggled in a romantic relationship.
It carries the wish to grant the other person freedom and to be chosen from among many options.
Though the lyrics may sound as if they condone cheating or looking elsewhere, they actually hold a deeper message: by knowing other possibilities, both people can reaffirm the importance of each other’s presence.
Released in March 2016 as a double A-side single, the track was also used as the theme song for Fuji TV’s “Heart-throbbing Skatto” segment on the show “Pleasant TV: Skatto Japan.” It’s a song you should listen to when you want to take a step back and reexamine your relationship, or when you feel the desire to deepen your bond with someone important.
Bittersweet feelings come rushing back! Recommended love songs for the Yutori generation (51–60)
seesawtuki.
A bittersweet love song by tuki.
that overlays the delicate distance between two people in romance with the image of a seesaw.
It’s a track we hope those in relationships that aren’t progressing—and who feel that frustrating stagnation—will listen to.
When you’re struggling with the distance or mismatch in feelings between you and your partner, you’re sure to find moments that resonate.
The album “15,” releasing in January 2025 and featuring this song, is a collection of tracks she created up to the age of 15—be sure to check it out along with this track.
front-facing camerawacci
A warm song that captures special moments hidden in everyday life.
“In Camera” is included on wacci’s sixth album, Dressing, released in January 2025.
It portrays looking back on memories with a lover through photos taken with a smartphone’s front-facing camera.
Its melodious sound and highly relatable lyrics are its charms.
Listening will surely make you rediscover the importance of the time you spend with your partner.
Reasons I like youwacci
This is a wacci song that gently traces the deepening of love.
It warmly depicts how the more you learn—about small gestures, a tendency to tear up, or the way someone hides their true feelings—the more your affection grows.
The music video features Jun Nishiyama and Riho Takada, carefully portraying a story from their first meeting to a proposal.
Released digitally in August 2024 and included on the album “Dressing,” this gem of a love song celebrates the joy of embracing and loving someone in their entirety.
It’s a perfect track for those who want to know everything about the person they love, and for anyone who deeply resonates with that feeling.
It’s love, right?wacci
The song by wacci, which sings of a bittersweet love, overflows with gentleness and warmth.
Written as an insert track for the Fuji TV drama “A Thorny Path to Royalty” (Yangotonaki Ichizoku) and released digitally in April 2022, it won an Excellence Award at the 64th Japan Record Awards.
It gives powerful voice to love’s ability to overcome every barrier—gender, age, family background—and has captured the hearts of many listeners.
Conveying unwavering devotion to the other person and the importance of being honest with your own feelings, it’s a track we hope everyone struggling with love will hear.
Emotionwacci
This is a song included on wacci’s album Kanjō Hyakkei, released in August 2017.
It carefully portrays the shifting emotions that arise in human relationships, with love as its central theme.
From the initial flutter of meeting for the first time to the deepening of the two people’s bond, the warm lyrics and melody trace their journey, resonating with many listeners.
It’s a recommended track for those struggling with love or wishing to reaffirm their connection with someone important.
Wrapped in wacci’s gentle vocals, why not awaken the feelings that lie dormant in your heart?
Maiden in Loveikimonogakari
This is a popular song by Ikimono-gakari that gently portrays the delicate feelings of a young woman in love.
Emotions like longing for someone, shyness, anxiety, and joy—subtleties of romance—are carefully expressed.
Released in October 2006, the song was used as the ending theme for the Nippon TV program “Ren’ai Bukatsu.” Yoshiki Mizuno, who wrote and composed the song, said it was “the first song I created with the idea that a girl would sing it,” and it became a turning point that broadened the band’s musical style.
It’s recommended not only for those experiencing unrequited love but also for anyone who wants to reaffirm their feelings for someone special.