Popular Okinawan Songs: Artist Rankings [2026]

Island InformationMishiro Asahi92rank/position

"Island Feelings" Song / Asahi Mijo

This song combines the musicality of enka and Okinawan music.

It is sung by Asahi Mijō, a singer from Kagoshima Prefecture.

Released in 2000, its heartrending melody and warm vocals linger in your ears.

It’s an Okinawan song that enka lovers should definitely know.

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Araki Jakkan

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Nariyama AyaguMiwa Yonashiro93rank/position

Miwa Yonashiro “Nariyama Ayagu”

This is a representative folk song of Miyako Island.

It is a didactic song in which a wife offers guidance to her husband as he sets off on a journey.

Because of its broad-minded content, it is said to reflect the generous nature of the people of Miyako, and it has many fans not only among locals but more widely as well.

Its place of origin is the Sunakawa and Tomori areas of Gusukube Town, where it has been passed down through the generations.

Okinawa JusticeIN-HI94rank/position

IN-HI Okinawa JUSTICE (Temp) PV

Okinawa is strongly associated with blue skies and blue seas, but in summer there’s the rainy season and sudden downpours, so there are actually few sunny days.

Precisely because it’s Okinawa, I imagine many people there have had the experience of skipping school on a sunny day to go to the beach and swim.

Ryuka of PeaceSazan Ōrusutāzu95rank/position

Ryuka of Peace

There are also songs by Southern All Stars that sing about Okinawa.

It’s a track with an Okinawan sound that conveys Keisuke Kuwata’s deep love for Okinawa.

The lyrics address war and Japanese history, carrying Southern’s message of peace.

Although Okinawa is far from the main island, this song reaffirms that we must not forget that it is part of Japan and its history.

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Murakami Shinpei

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Hainumika-jiYagi Fumitomo96rank/position

Hainumika-ji

Yagih Fumitomo’s songs are crafted under the influence of Okinawan folk music, pop, and Black music, weaving in Uchinaaguchi (the Ryukyuan language).

Carried by tender yet wistful sounds like the warm winds of Okinawa, these pieces convey feelings for his hometown and family.

Sea ChimbōrāNakasone Hajime97rank/position

Tanchamae Section: Sea Chimborā – Hajime Nakasone – Okinawan Folk Song – Sanshin – Onna Village Industry Festival

Because it’s very comical and lively, this song is often heard at banquets and in folk-music taverns.

An old folk song from Ie Island, a remote island in northern Okinawa Main Island, was passed down to the red-light district in Naha, where both the lyrics and melody changed into the version known today.

The lyrics tell a story that moves from a chimbora (a type of sea snail) to seaweed, Tsuji, Nakashima, and Watati—red-light districts that once existed in Naha—where beans were eaten…

It’s also the departure melody used at Asahibashi Station on the Okinawa Urban Monorail.

Uwaki-bushiKina Shouki & Kina Tetsuko98rank/position

2. Uwaki-bushi

This is a call-and-response song between a wife, exasperated by her husband’s cheating, and the husband himself.

Thanks in part to the rhythmic melody, the husband’s unreasonable excuses come across comically.

While the song exposes the foolishness of Okinawan men of the time, many Okinawan men today will likely find it “uchi-atai” (striking close to home).