Popular Japanese music. Latest rankings [2026]

Friend ~Time to Depart~yuzu99rank/position

Yuzu “Friend ~The Time of Departure~”

Released in 2013 and also broadcast on NHK’s “Minna no Uta,” this number was chosen as the set piece for the middle school division in the 80th NHK National School Music Competition, so many people may have sung it in chorus.

It was created out of feelings for the staff who supported the tour after the Great East Japan Earthquake, and its theme is the strong bond that connects us under the same sky even when we’re apart.

Its beautiful melody and Yuzu’s signature warm harmonies really resonate in the heart.

It’s a song of encouragement that you’ll especially want to hear during the season of farewells.

One more time, One more chanceYamazaki Masayoshi100rank/position

Masayoshi Yamazaki – “One more time, One more chance” MUSIC VIDEO [4K Quality]

When it comes to bittersweet love songs, many people probably think of Masayoshi Yamazaki’s voice.

This song, which portrays the feelings of searching endlessly for someone you can never forget while carrying a sense of loss and loneliness, is a classic whose acoustic guitar tones and husky vocals truly move the heart.

Released as a single in January 1997, it became a hit as the theme song for the film The Moon and a Cabbage, in which Yamazaki himself starred, and was also included on the album HOME.

It later returned to the spotlight in March 2007 as the theme song for the animated film 5 Centimeters per Second.

It’s a track I hope you’ll listen to quietly with your favorite drink when daily life starts to feel stifling and you want to gently loosen those taut strings.