Relive those feelings from back in the day! Youth anthems recommended for the Yutori generation

Song of LoveKōda Kumi

Kumi Koda - 'Ai no Uta (album version)' ~ 20th Year Special Full Ver. ~

Released in September 2007 as her 37th single, this work is a deeply resonant ballad in which Kumi Koda sings from a new perspective she realized through giving love advice to friends and fans: “love is something you give.” She found inspiration while driving along the coast on a getaway to a hot spring inn, and wrote the lyrics immediately upon arrival.

They delicately portray a young woman’s aching heart as she senses a breakup approaching yet tries to convey unwavering love.

The song was featured in the MTI “music.jp” commercial and served as a support song for Fuji TV’s World Judo 2007.

Composed entirely of Kumi Koda’s vocals without any backing chorus, it centers on mid-to-low registers, making it easy to sing even for those who struggle with high notes, and it’s a track anyone who has experienced the end of a romance can relate to.

SAKURA DropsUtada Hikaru

Hikaru Utada – SAKURA Drops

A signature song by Hikaru Utada, released in May 2002, that intertwines the season of falling cherry blossoms with the tremors of the heart.

Issued as a double A-side single with “Letters,” it was also used as the theme song for the TBS drama First Love.

The lyrics, which entrust the feelings of a lost love—and the inevitability of falling for someone new—to the coming of spring and the farewells it brings, resonate deeply.

With a delicate mid-tempo beat and Utada’s translucent vocals, the track carries both sadness and hope.

It’s a song you’ll want to hear as graduation and parting season arrives, or on a spring day when you find yourself reminiscing about a past love.

crescent moonayaka

Ayaka – Crescent Moon

Ayaka’s signature song, released in 2006, was used as the theme for NHK’s “Mirai Kansoku Tsunagaru TV @ Human” and as the CM song for au’s “LISMO.” It’s a poignant love ballad about feelings for a precious person far away, with piano melodies and a vocal that’s both powerful and delicate, resonating deeply in the heart.

The title refers to the shape of a cell phone, conveying the message that even if you’re physically apart, your hearts remain connected.

It’s a track that overflows with nostalgia, bringing back memories of listening to it with friends while gazing at the night sky during school days.

A classic that gently stays by your side when you’re in a long-distance relationship or thinking of someone dear who lives far away.

User ManualNishino Kana

Kana Nishino “Torisetsu” MV Full

Kana Nishino’s 27th single, used as the theme song for the film “No Longer Heroine,” released in September 2015.

Its unique lyrics, which liken a woman’s delicate emotions to an instruction manual, became a hot topic and won the Grand Prize at the 57th Japan Record Awards.

The lyrics, where she introduces herself through the metaphor of a user manual, are both chuckle-worthy and heart-fluttering just by listening.

The song is included on her 6th album, “Just LOVE,” and has become a wedding staple.

It’s a perfect love song not only for those with a crush or in a relationship, but also for when you want to convey your feelings to your partner.

Have you seen the crimson-red sky?BUMP OF CHICKEN

BUMP OF CHICKEN "Have You Seen the Crimson Sky?"

Born from a sunset Masukiyo Fujiwara witnessed during a creative slump, this track is a high-velocity rock number whose lyrics carry a nursery rhyme–like gentleness.

The uncertain distance—unsure whether the other person saw that red sky—evokes the ache of unrequited love.

It was included as the B-side to the single “Namida no Furusato” released in November 2006, and later collected on the B-sides compilation “present from you.” Having been completed after a period of anguish when he couldn’t write songs, the lyrics vividly reflect the struggles of creation and a thirst for expression.

It’s a song for anyone who’s ever been moved by a beautiful sunset—or who feels stuck and needs something to stir their heart.

The Autumn SongELLEGARDEN

ELLEGARDEN – The Autumn Song LIVE 2007 (4/26)

This song, which expresses the loneliness and poignancy of autumn through a rock sound, was included in the compilation album “Figureheads Compilation” in July 2007 and later selected for the best-of album “Ellegarden Best (1999–2008),” making it a popular track.

While its energetic sound and exhilarating, fast-paced melodies are quintessential ELLEGARDEN, a closer look at the English lyrics reveals a delicate portrayal of the solitude and sense of loss that the autumn season brings.

It’s a curious song that vividly revives memories of school days spent with friends when you listen to it.

Give it a spin on a long autumn night when you want to immerse yourself in music alone.

Ms. SeptemberRADWIMPS

September San

This song is included on RADWIMPS’s major-label debut album, “RADWIMPS 3 – The one we forgot to bring to the desert island –,” released in 2006.

The date indicated in the title, September 3, is the anniversary of their first-ever one-man live show.

The lyrics capture the bittersweet feelings that arise in the quiet fade-out of summer as it gives way to autumn, along with the resolve to take a step forward from there.

Yojiro Noda’s poetic and abstract choice of words evokes each listener’s own memories and emotions.

The gentle melancholy woven into the simple band sound is soothing, making it a track you’ll want to sink into on a long autumn night.

Hum it along with memories of your school days, and the feelings from back then will come rushing back.