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From J-pop to folk songs! Popular and classic Okinawan tunes

For those of you looking for songs from Okinawa, this article introduces a wide variety of music related to the islands.

We’ve picked out everything from J-pop themed around Okinawa and Okinawan pops to traditional folk songs that have been passed down for generations.

Okinawan music is so captivating, isn’t it? From instruments like the sanshin and other traditional Japanese instruments to its distinctive vocal style—and that unmistakably Okinawan vibe!

Getting a bit musical here, but Okinawan music often uses a five-note scale known as the Ryukyu scale or the yo-nuki scale, built on the notes do–mi–fa–so–ti–do.

That very resonance of the Ryukyu scale is the secret behind the uniquely Okinawan atmosphere you feel in these songs!

Listen to the tracks we’re about to introduce and soak in the spirit of Okinawa.

Okinawan Songs (41–50)

drunkardSadoyama Yutaka

Drunkard Yutaka Sadoyama @ Kakogawa Ohana
drunkardSadoyama Yutaka

Yutaka Sadoyama, a folk singer from Koza City in Okinawa and the first head of the Okinawa Folk Village.

Believing in the power of lyrics in Uchināguchi, he prominently featured the dialect in his live performances even outside Okinawa.

This song overflows with the warmth inherent in Uchināguchi.

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Mermaid’s TearsMaehana Yūsuke

The great Meiwa tsunami once struck the Yaeyama Islands.

There is a mermaid legend that has been passed down about the tsunami, which claimed around 10,000 lives.

Using that legend as a motif, Yusuke Maehana composed an original song and sings it so that a message of “reconstruction” will reach from Yaeyama.

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LADYfēshi

LADY/Facey song by Shinjiro photo editing: Nobu
LADYfēshi

This is “Lady,” written and composed by the well-known to those in the know, Mr.

Masashi Kinjō.

After it was used in the legendary comedy show that aired on Ryukyu Broadcasting from April 1991 to September 1993, the program’s rising popularity helped the song become a hit within Okinawa.

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Let’s walk facing forwardJonī Ginowan

Johnny Ginowan, who rose to prominence as a singer representing Okinawan local products, performs a song that arranges Kyu Sakamoto’s “Ue o Muite Arukou” in an Okinawan style.

The Okinawan-version lyrics, which seem to speak for the feelings of the Okinawan people who have lived through the Battle of Okinawa and the reversion to Japanese sovereignty, resonate gently in the heart.

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Amerika-dori (America Street)Nēnēzu

It seems this “Amerika-dori” isn’t in Naha City, where Kokusai-dori is, but is a song about the Koza district in Okinawa City.

The Koza area has a U.S.

military base and is known for how each of its streets has an American vibe.

It’s an Okinawan number that sings about “Amerika-dori,” where you can feel a more Okinawan, unique history and culture, and the lyrics sprinkled with Okinawan words are interesting, too.

Murakami Shinpei
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Pink WindROACH

ROACH, a loud rock band representing Okinawa.

This song expresses the feeling of being dyed by the pink-hued breeze of someone you love, and now wanting to dye them pink in return.

While the track itself is loud rock, its melody line evokes the flavor of Okinawan folk music.

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HeidiZUKAN

We are ZUKAN, the Happiness Band formed by close friends from Okinawa Prefectural Ginoza High School.

We cherish our hometown, and for our major debut single “Heidi,” we filmed a music video in our local town of Kin together with local children.

As hometown heroes, we’re spreading energy from our community to Okinawa and all across Japan.

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TeegeeNēnēzu