Heart-piercing, bittersweet songs and sad music for Instagram Stories
Doesn’t everyone have moments when they feel a little blue or sentimental? Listening to music can help us connect with those feelings, too! This time, I’d like to introduce some bittersweet songs you can use in your Instagram Stories.
Many of them are about breakups and lost love, but there are also songs that capture different shades of melancholy, like the despair of things you can’t change—so please read to the end! I think sharing those aching feelings with others is a wonderful thing, so I’d be happy if you find a favorite and use it! Now, let’s get started!
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Heart-piercing, melancholic songs and sad music on Instagram Stories (21–30)
JANE DOEYonezu Kenshi, Utada Hikaru
Created as the ending theme for the film “Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc,” this song is characterized by a poetic worldview that symbolically depicts yearning and pain.
A first-time collaboration between two of Japan’s leading singer-songwriters, Kenshi Yonezu and Hikaru Utada, it intertwines translucent vocals with a melancholic melody, imbued with deep emotion centered on memory and loss.
Released in tandem with the film’s premiere in September 2025, it drew attention as a double A-side single alongside the main theme, “IRIS OUT.” Expressing the resolve to move forward even while carrying fragility and hurt, this piece is perfect for posts made in sentimental moments or when thinking of someone dear.
Everyday lifeOfisharu Higedan Dism
In the days that pass as a matter of course, there are moments when anyone might suddenly feel, “I dread tomorrow.” This song by Official HIGE DANDism, a driving force in the J-pop scene, gently stays close to those restless feelings.
The lyrics portray the heart’s cries worn down by work and relationships, and a quiet despair toward things that can’t be changed.
Yet what makes this piece so affecting is that it isn’t merely dark.
Its calm, warm sound brings into focus the subtle kindnesses in everyday life and the fleeting moments of salvation, tightening the chest all the more.
Released in September 2023 as a double A-side single with “Chessboard,” it was written as the theme song for Nippon TV’s “news zero.” On nights when you can’t help but feel unbearably sad, why not sink into a sentimental moment with this song?
PretenderOfisharu Higedan Dism
I can’t stop crying at this heartbreaking story of someone stepping back on their own.
This is the song that truly made Official HIGE DANDism a nationwide name.
It’s easy to be captivated by Satoshi Fujihara’s beautiful vocals, but the real charm lies in the lyrics that portray the protagonist’s emotions.
Realizing he won’t end up with the one he loves, the song conveys the feelings of a man who chooses to bow out.
He can no longer say “I love you”; all he can do is praise the other person’s beauty.
The world it paints—where dignity and lingering attachment intersect—tightens your chest, doesn’t it? Released as a single in May 2019, it became a massive hit as the theme song for the film The Confidence Man JP, spending 34 consecutive weeks at No.
1 on Billboard Japan’s streaming chart.
On nights when you’re tormented by unrequited love, it’s sure to gently stay by your side.
long hairFOMARE
This is a bittersweet breakup song by FOMARE, a three-piece rock band from Gunma Prefecture.
The lyrics are striking for their symbolic portrayal of the moment of parting, with images like falling cherry blossoms and the road in front of an amusement park.
While clinging to memories of the past, the song delicately expresses the difficulty and inner conflict of moving forward into the future.
It was included on the EP “Me o Tojireba,” released in July 2020, and a strings version was digitally released in March 2021.
It’s recommended for times when you want to feel the pain and poignancy of heartbreak, or when you’ve experienced a farewell with someone important.
The lyrics, carried by a gentle melody, are sure to resonate in your heart.
Agate Caressed by NightAyase
Ayase’s song, themed around a heartrending farewell, is characterized by its electronic sound and emotionally resonant melody.
The lyrics convey the protagonist’s regret over not expressing words of gratitude and apology, as well as a deep sense of consideration for the other person.
A Hatsune Miku version was released in February 2019, and a self-cover version was issued as a digital single in September 2021.
Loved by many, it has garnered over 15 million views on YouTube.
Paired with photo posts, it can create an emotional atmosphere.