[Summer Anisongs] Iconic and Popular Anime Tracks That Feel Like Summer

reclaimROOKiEZ is PUNK’D

ROOKiEZ is PUNK’D “Reclimb” LIVE VIDEO @ Harajuku ASTRO HALL

The opening theme of the anime Yowamushi Pedal.

The series centers on bicycle racing and is a classic hot-blooded sports anime that portrays the intense battles with rivals and the friendships among teammates as high school students still in the midst of growing up.

It’s perfect for pedaling your bike and heading out somewhere on a hot summer day.

Summer Has Come! (Diamond Head)Queen

[Mikurele] Summer Has Come! (Diamond Head)

The opening theme of “Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Kōen-mae Hashutsujo.” It’s a song with lyrics added to “Diamond Head,” a track by the legendary American band The Ventures, and it is one piece in the medley “Nagi-sa no Joō-sama” (Queen of the Beach).

In the TV broadcast credits, it was listed as “Nagi-sa no Joō-sama,” not “Natsu ga Kita!”

Ghost in the FlowersYorushika

Yorushika – Ghost in a Flower (OFFICIAL VIDEO)

It’s a captivating piece with a beautiful melody that evokes fleeting memories of summer days.

In this number by Yorushika, memories of passing seasons and dear ones are portrayed like faint phantoms.

The summer scenes woven into the lyrics carry a nostalgic scent of summer, overlapping with the landscapes tucked away in each listener’s heart and stirring a gentle ache, don’t you think? Released in April 2020, the song touched many as the theme for the animated film “A Whisker Away.” It is also included on the acclaimed album “The Book of Theft.” Give it a listen when you want to be alone with your thoughts on a summer evening, or when you want to immerse yourself in a beautiful melody.

Summer MirageKanako Wada

[Anison] Summer Mirage / Kanako Wada (with lyric subtitles) Kimagure Orange Road, Ending Theme

Kanako Wada is a singer-songwriter whose urbane, sophisticated sound and clear, translucent vocals helped support the rise of city pop in the 1980s.

This song, used as the ending theme for the TV anime Kimagure Orange Road, was released as a single in May 1987.

Like a summer mirage, it captures the elusive flutter and bittersweetness of love, and its echo-drenched production gives it a dreamlike quality.

The arrangement unfolds from a melody where slide guitar resonates with a touch of melancholy into a sentimental chorus, making it perfect for a wistful drive at dusk.

As a quintessential classic of ’80s city pop, it’s also beloved by music fans overseas—truly an indispensable pick for this theme!

Sea of Memoriesyozuka*

yozuca - Sea of Memories

This is one of the ending theme songs from the anime School Days, which is based on a romance game.

The anime aired in the summer of 2007 and drew a huge response due to the gap between its cute character designs and early developments, and the dramatic turn it takes later on.

The lyrics include the names of the two heroines and frankly convey a heroine’s feelings, so I hope you’ll listen with attention to the lyrics that immerse you in the world of the story.

We are!Hiroshi Kitadani

One Piece OP 1 "We Are"

This is the very first opening theme of the hugely popular anime One Piece.

It’s been covered several times, and I think it’s so well known that when you say “One Piece,” people immediately think of this song.

The lyrics are exactly what you’d expect from an anime song, conveying the excitement of adventure.

It’s a track that radiates a strength that won’t lose to the summer heat.

A hill where summer begins to showDaisuke

Pocket Monsters Best Wishes Season 2: Da! – Opening Theme “Summerly Slope” (English Sub)

This is a refreshing, fast-paced song by singer-songwriter Daisuke that feels wonderfully pleasant to listen to.

It combines the excitement of the start of summer with a fleeting sense of poignancy that appears in quiet moments.

The lyrics paint scenes of sloping streets, sunsets, and fireworks that spring vividly to mind, almost like your own memories.

Released in July 2013 as his seventh single, the track served as the opening theme for the anime Pokémon: Best Wishes! Season 2: Decolora Adventure and the movie Genesect and the Legend Awakened.

Even now, its heart-thumping melody line is unforgettable.

It’s a song you’ll want to play on a summer drive or on a night when you want to sink into a slightly sentimental mood.