A song of forbidden love. A heartrending, sorrowful love song.
A forbidden love you can’t tell anyone about.
If you’re reading this article, perhaps you’re experiencing a similar kind of love.
If so, there are probably many painful moments.
I’ve gathered some songs I want you to hear.
They capture the pain of falling for someone who already has a lover or partner and feeling lost, or knowing it won’t come true yet being unable to give up.
When things are tough, try finding one song that stays close to your feelings.
Like when someone listens to you, it might make your heart feel just a little lighter.
- [An Adulterous Love] A love song about a secret affair you can't tell anyone about
- [Adultery Song] A forbidden song about an affair that sings of an impossible love
- A classic song about a forbidden love
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- [Unattainable Love] A love song about two people who feel the same way but can’t be together
- [Cheating Song] A forbidden love that crossed the line — infidelity song
- "A Love Song I Can't Tell Anyone" — a love song you can relate to when times are tough
- [Empathetic & Tear-Jerking] A love song about an unrequited romance
- A tear-jerking love song. A love song that stays close to a hurting heart.
- “I Want to See You”: A love song that makes you cry when you listen to it while you can’t meet
- [Unrequited Love] Heart-wrenching Love Songs | A Roundup of Tear-Inducing Crush and Breakup Tracks
- Masterpieces of bittersweet unrequited love songs. Recommended popular tracks.
- [2026] Japanese love ballads of tragic romance: classic masterpieces of sad love songs
A forbidden love song. A heartrending, sorrowful love ballad (71–80)
Can’t Stop Fallin’ in Loveglobe
Released in 1997, this is a poignant ballad by globe—known for many hit songs—that sings of an unrequited love.
It portrays a love that can’t be stopped, no matter how hard one tries.
The song captures the heartache of a woman who has fallen for a man who already has a partner.
While she knows she must give up at some point, she doesn’t want to lose the one she loves.
It’s a classic that conveys the anguish of an unattainable love.
Street Loveindigo la End
This is a love song by indigo la End about a finished romance that must not be known by anyone.
It’s included on their 2019 album “Nureyuku Shōsetsu” (My Soaking Novel).
The song feels like a letter addressed to an ex-lover, conveying lingering attachment and frustration—though they’ve broken up, the feelings remain.
It says, no matter what happens, I want to keep loving you, but knowing those feelings won’t reach you anymore makes it all the more heartbreaking.
Depicting pure love and the painful outcome of a difficult relationship, it’s a breakup song recommended for anyone experiencing an unrequited love.
Unraveling Loveyama
A song that tightens your chest with yama’s faint, heartrending vocals.
It portrays the complexity of love and the pain that can’t be avoided, delicately depicting two people who hurt each other yet still love one another.
Wanting to be together but being unable to say it honestly reflects an awareness that someone is being hurt and that the relationship should not go on.
It makes you think deeply about whether happiness awaits a love forged at the cost of hurting many, and its quiet, lingering ache of unrequited love pierces the heart.
This is a track I especially recommend to those struggling with clumsy, awkward love.
I didn’t want to know, if it meant losing it.beautiful night
A song where aching sadness and faint hope intersect.
Carried by Atarayo’s vocals, it gently portrays the feelings of those tormented by unrequited love.
Even after learning the truth of a lie, the growing fear of losing the one you love is striking.
Released in January 2022 as an advance single from the album “In the Polar Night, the Moon Remains Silent,” this piece was born from a collaboration with the “Junwaidan” project, drawing on an episode selected from over 10,000 submissions.
It’s a song that stands beside anyone who wants to look forward while carrying the pain of heartbreak—recommended for moments when you want to face the complex emotions deep within your heart.
Tell me you love me, even if it's a lie.Aquarium Life
A poignant song that captures the frustration of a forbidden love.
Suisougurashi’s music portrays the feelings of people living lives as if confined to an aquarium in small urban apartments.
The lyrics delicately depict the inner conflict of a woman who missed the last train, leaving a strong impression that resonates deeply with listeners.
Released in January 2021, the track vividly illustrates the complexities of modern romance.
It’s recommended for anyone who feels the bittersweet tension of love or struggles to be honest with their own feelings.
So it wasn’t me, huh.Lilia.
This song, Riria.’s “It Wasn’t Me, Was It.”, pierces the heart with the feelings of the so-called ‘second woman’ seen from a woman’s perspective.
When you’re having an affair or a love you can’t tell anyone about, you probably end up bottling up a lot of emotions inside, don’t you? In this song too, there are lyrics about keeping quiet and enduring—wanting to continue the relationship—even though she sensed his actions and attitude and kind of knew what was going on.
I’m sure many people will relate.
You can also feel that, even knowing the truth, she just couldn’t help loving him so much.
balladKetsumeishi
Ketsumeishi’s “Ballad,” a hugely popular affair song, is a masterpiece that brings you to tears from the very first notes of the intro.
The song portrays the aching feelings of a man who can do nothing but wait to hear from the woman he loves.
An affair is a relationship where even contacting each other feels forbidden… yet he truly wants to see her, to hold her—an unbearably bittersweet love that brings you to tears.