A classic song about a forbidden love
Adultery dramas we often see in dramas, movies, and TV talk shows—the love that can never come true.
We’ve gathered songs about these “forbidden loves.” There are many beautifully portrayed dramas that make your heart race, but what if you yourself were to fall into a love that isn’t allowed…? Here, we’ll introduce plenty of songs that capture the bittersweet feelings of such forbidden love.
From songs told from a woman’s perspective to those from a man’s point of view, there are more tracks about forbidden love than you might think.
Perhaps that’s because many people are secretly suffering over a love that shouldn’t be….
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Masterpieces about forbidden love (41–50)
A little more, just a bit moreZARD
A song by ZARD about a love that cannot come true.
Even while knowing it’s a forbidden relationship, the protagonist finds herself wishing to be loved “just a little longer.” The song captures her emotions, and because the love is taboo, her earnest feelings resonate with a striking purity.
There’s an anecdote that Izumi Sakai, who also wrote the lyrics, felt saddened while singing it—an episode that speaks to the song’s poignancy.
Released in September 1993, this work compels deep reflection on the weight of unrequited love and the intensity of loving someone.
Timeless songs about forbidden love (51–60)
Article 709 of the Civil CodeMioyamazaki
An unflinchingly vivid major-label debut themed around the text of the law.
It tells the story of a woman who has become a party to a forbidden love, singing of her complex emotions where brazen defiance and a guilty conscience intertwine.
Released in December 2014, the song was later included on the album “anti-these.” The cover featuring Junichi Ishida also drew attention.
If it doesn’t get found out, we’re happy—but what lies beyond that? It’s a track that makes you think deeply about the harsh reality of such a precarious romance and the fragility of the human heart.
nightSakamoto Maaya
This is a song by Maaya Sakamoto that evokes the protagonist’s aching emotions in a room after their lover has gone home.
Even as they desperately try to grasp the lingering fragrance of those happy moments, the memories slip through their fingers and vanish.
That elusive, fleeting quality seems to symbolize the poignancy of a forbidden love, making a deep impression.
The track is included on the acclaimed 2003 December release “Shōnen Alice.” Created during a period when Maaya Sakamoto was honing her expressive power as a stage actor, her vocals here exquisitely portray delicate emotions.
If you’re troubled by a relationship you can’t tell anyone about and find yourself savoring the loneliness of a solitary night, you’ll surely resonate with the protagonist’s solitary heart.
Crime and PunishmentShiina Ringo
A song by Sheena Ringo whose heartrending cry—wanting nothing more than to hear her own name—pierces the chest.
The figure who seeks only the certain “now,” even at the cost of abandoning the future, seems to portray the agony of a heart falling into a love it knows is forbidden.
This work was released as a single in January 2000 and was also included on the classic album Shōso Strip.
It apparently wasn’t originally slated to be a single, but there’s an anecdote that its release was decided due to strong demand from fans.
When you listen to it at times when your heart feels like it’s about to break between the pure desire to be with someone and the reality that such desire is a “sin,” you may feel as if the song affirms your pain along with everything else.
Cinderella BoySaucy Dog
This song is included on Saucy Dog’s mini-album “Lazy Sunday,” which weaves a heart-wrenching love story that tightens the chest.
It portrays a bittersweet, inescapable dependence, even while suffering the agony of being torn apart by the other person’s lies.
Coupled with a melodious rock sound and written from a female perspective, it leaves a lingering aftertaste where sorrow and affection intermingle.
Released in August 2021, it also drew attention for its animation-style music video by Miku Masuda.
In 2022, the band appeared on Music Station.
It’s a recommended track for those struggling with complex feelings toward someone they love or seeking empathy in the subtleties of human relationships.
selling oneselfRosu
A beautiful tragic love song that portrays the heartrending emotions of a woman living in the night city.
Amid a dark, mysterious atmosphere, the protagonist gives herself to a man she does not even love, while continuing to harbor unwavering feelings for the one she truly longs for.
In a darkness without even a single ray of light, the searing emotions of a woman consumed by an impossible love are vividly expressed through Ros’s protean vocals.
Released in March 2022, the song is also included on the album “Yoru no Shizu.” It is a track that deeply resonates with those pained by unrequited love or troubled by a forbidden romance.
PuzzleBAND-MAID
A connection that felt like destiny, yet a relationship that could never be.
This BAND-MAID song portrays the struggle of a forbidden love.
The way the narrator tells themselves it’s okay not to be someone special to the other person may resonate painfully with anyone in an unrequited love.
These helpless emotions are sung with delicacy over powerful beats and a passionate sound.
The track is included on the album “Just Bring It,” released in January 2017.
Even knowing it won’t be reciprocated, the feelings won’t stop—this is a work that stays close to that complex state of mind.