Ranking of Heart-Wrenching Songs by Male J-Pop Singers [2026]

Only goodbyes make up life.Ito Kashitaro29rank/position

[Hatsune Miku] Only Goodbyes Are What Life Is [Ito Kashitaro]

This song with a sorrowful title sings of a truth of the world: “Life is nothing but farewells.” Even if the title is taken at face value, there are countless stories leading up to goodbye.

How do we face loneliness, a human weakness? It’s a song that makes us contemplate this timeless theme of life.

Goodbye once moreOzaki Kiyohiko30rank/position

Sayonarawo Mouichido

A gem of a medium-tempo ballad that portrays parting lovers from a forward-looking perspective.

It’s a masterpiece that resonates with the bittersweet sorrow and resolve of two people who must choose separation in order to walk their own important paths.

Kiyohiko Ozaki’s emotionally rich vocals beautifully express both the loneliness of farewell and the hope of meeting again.

Released in July 1971, the song reached No.

2 on the Oricon Singles Chart and was also included on the album “Kiyohiko Ozaki Second Album.” In the 1999 film “Nodojiman,” Naoto Takenaka performs the song on screen, revealing a new facet of its appeal.

This is a track we highly recommend to anyone who has experienced parting from someone dear and wants to keep those memories as nourishment while moving forward.

I can’t put it into wordsofukōsu31rank/position

Kotoba Ni Dekinai

A gemlike ballad that gives voice to the ineffable emotions faced at love’s end.

Included on Off Course’s album “over,” released in December 1981, and later issued as their 23rd single in February 1982, this song gently portrays the subtle shifts of feeling that emerge through parting from someone dear.

The “la la la” that threads through the chorus is a striking phrase that reminds us how, at times, it can express the heart more eloquently than words.

Used in a Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance commercial, it has surely lingered in many listeners’ memories.

It’s a song that stands beside you through life’s many moments, embracing the complex emotions we feel—cherishing someone important, tenderness, and a sense of loss.

Nylon threadSakanakushon32rank/position

Sakanaction / Nylon Thread -Music Video-

This song is included on Sakanaction’s seventh album, “834.194,” released in June 2019.

It was also featured in a commercial, so many of you may have heard it.

It’s mellow, with that distinctly Sakanaction melody that slips naturally into your ears.

With words like wind, sea, and waves woven in, it makes you feel as if you’re right there—perfect for a gentle listen in the summer.

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utatane

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Tears of MagnoliaSutādasuto☆Rebyū33rank/position

Tears of Magnolia

A love ballad that sings of the profound sense of loss after losing the lover to whom eternal love was vowed.

Using the magnolia—the flower that symbolizes spring—as its motif, it beautifully depicts warm memories with a beloved person and the loneliness felt after their loss.

It was included as the first track on Stardust Revue’s album “SOLA,” released in March 1993, and was later released as a single, selling 150,000 copies.

In 2005, an acoustic version was produced for a Nikka Whisky commercial.

For those who have lost someone precious or who recall bittersweet memories in the spring season, this work will resonate deeply with your heart.

red-yellow fragrant olive (Osmanthus fragrans)Fujifaburikku34rank/position

Fujifabric - 'Akaki iro no Kinmokusei' (Red, Yellow Osmanthus)

A song by the Japanese rock band Fujifabric that makes you yearn for the arrival of autumn and feel the melancholy of summer’s end.

Its beautifully written, literary and lyrical Japanese lyrics depict autumnal scenes, and the band arrangement deepens that atmosphere, moving listeners to tears.

Even after the vocalist Masahiko Shimura passed away in 2009, it remains a beloved autumn classic in the rock genre.

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Murakami Shinpei

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Yokohama TwilightItsuki Hiroshi35rank/position

Yokohama Twilight

A classic song set in the port town of Yokohama that portrays the poignant scene of a sorrowful farewell.

Released in March 1971 as Hiroshi Itsuki’s re-debut single, it became a major hit.

Through the symbolic images depicted in the lyrics, the pain of heartbreak is expressed.

Itsuki’s rich, resonant voice further enhances the song’s world.

It’s a piece that gently accompanies those who reminisce about past love.

When you feel like looking back on memories with someone dear, why not give it a listen?