Tear-jerking unrequited love songs that will break your heart: timeless classics about unattainable love

usmilet

milet 'us' MUSIC VIDEO (Theme song for the Nippon TV Wednesday drama 'Gisou Furin' [Fake Affair])

A heartrending love song by milet that earnestly sings about cherishing the present moment, even while feeling anxious about possibly losing a relationship by confessing one’s feelings.

She conveys the interplay of courage and fear in taking a step forward through her signature husky voice.

Born from the album “us,” released in August 2019, this track also perfectly captures the world of the NTV Wednesday drama “Fake Affair,” for which it served as the theme song.

It gently accompanies those who struggle to express their feelings honestly to someone, or who hesitate out of a desire not to change a precious relationship.

The town where you liveShimizu Shota

Shota Shimizu “The Town Where You Live” MV

This is a ballad that paints the feelings of someone who, in unguarded moments, finds themselves searching for traces of a lover who should no longer be there.

It’s a song by singer-songwriter Shota Shimizu, released in October 2010 as his eighth single.

The track is also included on the album COLORS.

You can almost picture the protagonist overlaying the face of the one they can no longer meet onto a lookalike spotted on a station platform or onto familiar cityscapes.

Imagining the city where that person lives and simply wishing to see them—those one-sided feelings are, in a way, the very essence of a lingering “unrequited love” that follows a finished romance.

The melody, like an autumn dusk—lonely yet warm—soaks into the heart.

If there’s someone you can’t forget, listening to this will surely resonate deeply.

My name is Unrequited Loveindigo la End

indigo la End "The Name Is Unrequited Love"

This is a song by indigo la End that portrays a heartrending unrequited love beginning with love at first sight.

Set to a lively mid-tempo track crafted by Enon Kawatani in January 2023, it sings of the protagonist’s complex emotions after falling for someone of the same sex.

While feeling the pain of social prejudice and unspoken pressures, the story tightens the chest as the protagonist suppresses their own feelings for the sake of the other person’s happiness.

It’s a song that will resonate with those who, having fallen in love, lose sight of themselves yet can do nothing but carry those feelings, as well as those struggling with a love they can’t tell anyone about.

MissingKubota Toshinobu

Toshinobu Kubota – Missing [Official Video]

It’s a heartrending love song.

It sings about the painful feelings of a man’s unrequited love.

Kubota’s overwhelming vocal ability and his gentle, sweet voice amplify the sense of poignancy.

Listening to this song makes you feel a bittersweet ache, yet it makes you want to cheer him on so much.

And if you yourself are in unrequited love, it’s ultimately a song that can encourage you.

It makes you wonder why love can’t go right, and why it can’t be this person.

No matter how many times I listen, it resonates in my heart—truly a masterpiece among masterpieces.

ContrastTOMOO

TOMOO – Contrast [OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO]

A gem of a love song where longing for someone and bittersweet ache are exquisitely interwoven.

The feelings TOMOO weaves—wavering between the joy and loneliness of love—gently embrace emotions anyone can relate to.

That aching sense of being unable to close the emotional distance, even when the person is right in front of you.

Pure feelings that slip out despite putting on a brave face.

Carefully giving voice to the heart of someone in unrequited love, this song has been airing as the ending theme for cour 2 of the anime “Blue Box” since January 2024.

It’s a track we especially hope those “in the middle of love,” unable to be honest even with the person they like so close by, will listen to.

I became someone else’s girlfriend.wacci

wacci “I Became Someone Else’s Girlfriend” Music Video

A love song woven with a voice that leaves a bittersweet afterglow, capturing a form of love different from a simple unrequited crush.

The emotions of a woman swaying between reason and feeling are portrayed with delicate nuance.

Though she should be satisfied with her new relationship, the frustration of being unable to sever her feelings for her ex presses on her heart.

Released digitally by wacci in August 2018, the song gradually gained popularity through word of mouth on social media, reaching 100 million total streams in June 2021.

It has sparked a major response, with many artists covering it.

This is a track that deeply resonates with anyone who feels, “I should be happy, yet I’m not fulfilled,” and who carries such complex romantic emotions.

Iorokudenashi

Good-for-Nothing “Io” / Rokudenashi – Io [Official Music Video]

Even knowing it will never come true, you still can’t let go—this bittersweet number likens such yearning to celestial orbits.

Sung by Rokudenashi, the track also drew attention for having NayutalieN handle everything from lyrics and composition to arrangement.

Its catchy, addictive melody melds beautifully with lyrics that tighten around the heart.

Released as a digital single in August 2025, it was also included on the album Rokka, released that December.

Following “Spica” and “Albireo,” it’s another song themed around celestial bodies that fans hold dear.

Ninjin’s fragile yet steadfast vocals gently embrace listeners who carry unrequited feelings.

It’s a piece you’ll want to listen to quietly while gazing up at the night sky.