Songs to listen to when your heart is tired: a miracle cure for laying down the heavy burdens of your twenties
Even though you give it your all every day, does it still feel hard to breathe? Do you ever have nights when you want to throw everything away? When your heart is tired from the whirlwind of work, relationships, and constant change, the right songs can be a special remedy that gently untangles the taut emotions of your twenties.
You don’t have to force yourself to be cheerful.
In this article, we’ll introduce a selection of gem-like tracks that quietly stay by your side and help wash away your heavy burdens along with your tears.
Why not surrender yourself to warm melodies and take a moment to pause?
Songs to listen to when your heart is tired: a magic bullet to set down the overwhelming burdens of your 20s (1–10)
DarlingNEW!Mrs. GREEN APPLE
Mrs.
GREEN APPLE’s “Darling” gently nestles up to the pains of youth.
Released digitally in January 2025, the song was written as the theme for NHK General’s “Mrs.
GREEN APPLE 18 Festival.” It’s filled with a warm message that affirms, just as they are, hearts worn down by trying to meet someone’s expectations and the suffering of comparing ourselves to others.
A version featuring a choir of around 1,000 voices is also included, making it a perfect track both for quietly listening alone on a lonely night and for singing together with someone to set your heart free.
So much of a failure that it’s beautifulNEW!ryo
This song portrays the inner struggle of someone raised in an ordinary household, who feels insecure about not having a special story.
It gently embraces the anxiety born from not having a dramatic past and the pain of being average.
Released as a single by RYO in 2025, the track was entirely handled by RYO—from songwriting to production.
We’ve all had moments when seeing others’ glamorous lives on social media makes it hard to breathe.
This moving piece softly reassures you that it’s okay not to become someone exceptional.
Don’t force yourself to feel upbeat—why not take a small break and let the warm melody carry you for a while?
Just being alive is admirable.NEW!ReoNa
For those shedding tears over days that just won’t go right, how about a song that quietly stays by your side? Sung by ReoNa, known as a “despair-style anisong singer,” this piece is included on her single “Nai Nai,” released in May 2021.
Written and composed by Vocaloid producer Toa Kasamura, it captures raw emotions as if reading a diary.
The whispery vocals woven together with the piano’s timbre resonate deeply with listeners.
The recording used a near-live approach, capturing the vocals simultaneously with the piano, and the lifelike sense of breath is truly moving.
For anyone feeling suffocated from trying too hard every day, this is a song that invites you to let go, relax your shoulders, and have a good cry.
The Secrets of the WorldNEW!Vaundy
“The Secret of the World,” a song by singer-songwriter Vaundy who traverses diverse genres like J-POP and city pop, was released digitally in December 2020.
It was featured in multiple tie-ins, including the web commercial for the university student SNS “Dtto,” a WOWOW drama theme song, and a food commercial, becoming a long-running hit with over 100 million streams.
Its lyrics gently take a step back to observe the subtle discomforts of everyday life, while the upbeat yet faintly shadowed melody seeps into the heart.
Rather than forcing encouragement, this work carries a gentleness that simply stays close to the reality before us.
On nights when you’re worn out by hectic days and want to set down your heavy load just a little, why not listen quietly?
horizonNEW!back number
back number is a three-piece band from Gunma Prefecture.
Their song “Suiheisen” (Horizon), released in August 2020 and later distributed in August 2021, is a ballad that gently stays by your side when your heart is weary.
Created for high school students whose feelings had nowhere to go after the Inter-High School Championships were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the piece portrays the journey of facing oneself amid despair and sorrow, and gradually discovering hope, carried by a melody that is tender yet powerful.
It’s a song especially for those who strive to live each day earnestly and feel suffocated by the weight of the burdens they carry.
Between Night and MorningNEW!makaroni enpitsu
When you’ve been pushing yourself too hard every day and it starts to feel hard to breathe… on nights like that, how about “Yoru to Asa no Aida” by Macaroni Empitsu? It’s the closing track on their 2017 mini-album “s.i.n.” Using the ambiguous time between night and morning as its motif, it portrays down-to-earth emotions—the wish to see the same scenery as someone else, even while being buffeted by daily life.
Hattori’s earnest words and the intimate acoustic sound gently stay by your side, telling you it’s okay not to force yourself to be cheerful.
It’s a hidden gem that has been performed at key moments over the years—arenas, Billboard Live—and has long been loved by fans.
A recommended song for when you want to set down your burdens and quietly pause.
Only a single voiceNEW!rokudenashi
A beautiful, piano-centered accompaniment layered with a crystal-clear vocal pierces the heart.
The musical project Rokudenashi’s “Tada Koe Hitotsu” is a track released digitally in December 2021, with lyrics and composition by Vocaloid producer MIMI.
The song’s lyrics portray the feelings of facing unanswerable questions in everyday life and striving to live on despite being hurt by the smallest words.
It carries a message that gently stays by your side, telling you it’s okay not to force a smile to hide the haze in your heart.
For people in their twenties who feel overburdened by work or relationships, it’s sure to be a remedy—something to listen to alone at night, shed tears to, and lighten the heart.