Popular and recommended poignant Japanese songs on YouTube Shorts: a collection of timeless tracks that touch the heart
Do you ever feel the ache of love or the sorrow of parting? YouTube Shorts is full of heartrending songs that stir the soul, and there are moments when they pierce your heart before you know it.
In this article, we’ll introduce popular and recommended Japanese songs with a melancholic vibe that are resonating on social media, especially in short videos.
From tracks you’ll want to listen to after a breakup or during unrequited love, to songs that bring back memories of farewells with someone special, you might just discover music that gently stays by your side.
Popular and recommended melancholic Japanese songs on YouTube Shorts: a collection of moving classics (1–10)
Prayer FlowerNEW!Hirai Dai
Hirai Dai, whose gentle, heartwarming voice resonates across generations, is beloved by many.
This work is his memorable debut single, released in October 2011.
In the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake, as anxiety spread, its message themed around prayer and healing struck a deep chord with listeners.
The ukulele’s tones and the warm melody gently embrace wounded hearts.
In September 2020, he created a self-cover version featuring strings, and the song evolved into a timeless classic passed down through the years.
It’s a ballad you’ll want to listen to on nights when you find yourself quietly shedding tears as you remember someone you long to see but cannot—after a farewell, a breakup, or any precious parting.
Why feat. Emimi NodaNEW!Takase Tōya
This work by Toya Takase is a heartbreak song that powerfully sings of the aching lingering feelings that make you think of the one you broke up with night after night.
It was included on the EP “13-gatsu 1-nichi,” released in January 2022, and later featured on the album “13-gatsu 2-nichi.” A distinctive feature is its male–female duet style, with close friend and singer-songwriter Emi Noda as a featured artist.
The dramatic emotional interplay between the two and a certain nostalgia reminiscent of Heisei-era duets resonated widely, especially on social media.
It’s a song that gently stays by your side on nights when you’re weighed down by regret over love that burned too brightly and led to a falling out, and by an inescapable loneliness.
lulu.Mrs. GREEN APPLE
Released in January 2026 as if heralding the dawn of Phase 3, this work was chosen as the opening theme for Season 2 of the TV anime “Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End.” Its grand sound, which conveys the sense of loss felt along the journey and the relentless flow of time that continues nonetheless, gently stands by the listener’s heart.
It blends Mrs.
GREEN APPLE’s signature catchiness with a heart-wrenching poignancy, the kind that loosens your tear ducts even when you just catch a snippet in a short video.
The rollout—linking a live broadcast right before release to the MV premiere—also became a hot topic, leaving a strong impression of a new step for the band.
It’s a song that softly nudges you forward on lonely nights when sadness wells up out of nowhere, or when you need the courage to face ahead.
evening primroseNovelbright
It’s a love ballad that begins with a heart-wrenching piano intro that tightens your chest—impossible to listen to without tears.
Unable to forget an ex-lover and inevitably drifting back to those memories… Yudai Takenaka’s overwhelming high-tone vocals deliver that helpless emotion with dramatic intensity.
Released digitally by Novelbright in December 2020, the song was featured as the Monthly Song for the weather segment on Fuji TV’s “Tokudane!”.
Its performance on the YouTube channel “THE FIRST TAKE” drew a huge response, and it was later included on the album “Kaimaku Sengen.” Give it a careful listen when you want to soothe the pain of heartbreak or have a good cry and feel refreshed at night.
catDISH//
This is a signature ballad by DISH//, also known for having lyrics and music written by singer-songwriter Aimyon.
It portrays the lingering feelings for a free-spirited ex, like a cat, and the poignant desire to reunite despite a sense of loss.
The unique perspective of “what if ‘you’ appeared as a cat…” really tightens listeners’ chests.
Originally released in 2017 as the B-side to the single “Bokutachi ga Yarimashita,” it drew major attention in 2020 after a performance on the YouTube channel THE FIRST TAKE and was also featured as an insert song in a drama of the same name.
Kitamura Takumi’s expressively rich vocals are sure to bring tears, so give it a careful listen on nights when you’re nursing the pain of heartbreak.
Cinderella BoySaucy Dog
Even if your head understands it’s just a convenient relationship, you just can’t cut off your feelings… This song portrays that painfully intense love.
It’s by Saucy Dog, a three-piece band hugely popular with young people, and it’s included on their mini-album “Lazy Sunday,” released in August 2021.
The lyrics, written for the first time from a female perspective by vocalist Shinya Ishihara, felt so real that they resonated with many listeners, amassing hundreds of millions of streams.
Despite its catchy, easy-to-listen-to pop melody, it’s a rock number that presses on the chest with its sorrow and frustration of not being loved.
On nights when you’re torn between lingering attachment and letting go, why not listen to it quietly on your own?
spin; weave; compose (e.g., a story)tota
Singer-songwriter Tota, known for a sound that incorporates indie rock and synth-pop, has been drawing attention.
Released in February 2023 and included on the debut album “oidaki,” this digital single features a voice that leaves a deep impression as it speaks to the heart.
When a short version was posted on social media in June 2021, it spread rapidly, and the performance on the YouTube channel THE FIRST TAKE also became a major topic.
This work is a love song that depicts parting with someone dear, and a prayer for the future that continues despite it.
The lyrics, which evoke scenes of sending one’s feelings on the sky’s tears and the wind’s song, may leave you with a bittersweet ache just by listening.
It’s sure to gently stay by the side of a heart sunk in the sorrow of farewell.