Lovely love song

A song of forbidden love. A heartrending, sorrowful love song.

Deputy Editor of RAG MUSICSasashina
Deputy Editor of RAG MUSIC. JFC-certified fact-checker. I’m Sasashina, a mom currently raising an elementary schooler and a preschooler. During my student years at Kyoto College of Science and Technology, I studied a wide range of fields including sound, lighting, and video technology, building a foundation in comprehensive stage production and creative expression. After graduation, I joined a music production company, where I still work, consistently building experience in production and engaging in a variety of music-centered tasks. Currently, I mainly handle articles for children, drawing on what I’ve learned about parenting and what I feel and discover through daily interactions with my kids. I hope my work can be of help to you, even in a small way!

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.

A song of forbidden love. A heartrending, sorrowful love song (21–30)

Sleepless nights are because of you.MISIA

MISIA – Sleepless Nights Are Your Fault (Official HD Music Video)

Sleepless nights are because of you, MISIA

A wistful medium-tempo ballad released in August 2002.

It portrays the inner turmoil of being drawn to someone you shouldn’t love, set against the loneliness of the night and fragile hopes.

The earnest feelings—sleeplessness when memories surface, the desperate wish to see them even if only in a dream—are delicately woven through MISIA’s rich expressiveness.

Included on the album “KISS IN THE SKY,” the song was used in Kirin Beverage’s “RAKUDA” commercial and served as the theme song for the Fuji TV drama “Love Quotient” (Ren’ai Hensachi).

Recommended for those who want to connect with the bittersweetness and depth of romantic feelings.

Raise the rankinglower

wanderingAKASAKI

[AKASAKI] Wandering / HAIKAI (Lyric Video)

Wandering AKASAKI

A bittersweet love story portrayed as if wandering through the city at night.

With the purity of youth and a delicate sensibility, AKASAKI sings of a heart swayed by love.

Together with a chorus that soars in the hook, it becomes a gem of a ballad that beautifully conveys guilt and yearning.

Released in April 2025, this work, though arranged simply with piano and guitar, resonates with young listeners thanks to its richly expressive vocals.

Not every love story is pure and straightforward.

This song accompanies those who wrestle with the feelings smoldering deep in their hearts and those who hesitate to find the courage to take a step forward.

Raise the rankinglower

MELROSE ~A Promise Not to Love~EXILE ATSUSHI

EXILE ATSUSHI / MELROSE ~A Promise Not to Love~

MELROSE ~A Promise Not to Love~ EXILE ATSUSHI

A ballad that portrays the bittersweet feelings of a man and a woman drawn to each other despite a promise not to fall in love.

The wavering heart caught between reason and emotion pairs beautifully with EXILE ATSUSHI’s deeply expressive vocals.

Released in December 2012 as his third solo single, the song is included on albums such as Music and Love Ballade.

It was also featured as the ending theme for NTV’s Sukkiri!!, garnering widespread attention.

This is a track that resonates deeply with those who relate to the complexities of adult romance or who are striving to move forward while carrying a sense of longing.

Raise the rankinglower

I could never say I like you.fayray

I could never say I like you.

I can't say I love you, Fayray

A ballad delicately portraying the feelings of a woman swaying between urban loneliness and an unrequited love, released in January 2003 as Fayray’s 14th single.

While her feelings deepen for someone who is already engaged, she fears breaking their relationship and can’t bring herself to confess—emotions depicted alongside a beautiful piano melody.

Also chosen as the theme song for the Yomiuri TV/Nippon TV drama “Message: Words Keep Betraying,” this work showcases Fayray’s growth as a singer-songwriter.

It’s a song that offers solace to those suffering from the pain and conflict of love, recommended for anyone struggling with an affair or unrequited feelings.

Raise the rankinglower

Sentimental Sisteryonige

yonige “Sentimental Sister” Official Music Video

Sentimental Sister yonige

Set to a heartrending vocal, this song—told from a woman’s perspective—portrays a heart swaying within a forbidden love.

The protagonist, unable to escape tangled relationships and events of the past, conveys her feelings with raw, relatable honesty.

Released in July 2016 as part of yonige’s mini-album “I Want to Be a Snail,” the track captures the mindset of a woman who tries to move forward while still bound by past romances.

For anyone who has grappled with complex emotions like longing, regret, and guilt, it’s a song that’s impossible not to relate to.

Raise the rankinglower

LiarKanoerana

Usotsuki

Liar Kanoerana

A heartrending ballad that traces the pain and confusion of a protagonist who’s suddenly told it’s over—and that there’s someone new.

Unable to blame their partner and instead turning the blame inward, the protagonist beautifully embodies the universal emotions of heartbreak.

This piece is a February 2017 work included in Kanoerana’s 30-second song collection, “30 seconds ~ Kanoe’s Fun Song Diary ~.” It’s a song that will resonate with anyone trying to come to terms with the pain of a breakup or spending their days unable to forget a former lover.

Raise the rankinglower

pure whiteMaiko Fujita

Maiko Fujita “Pure White” Music Video

Pure White Maiko Fujita

This is a work by Maiko Fujita that portrays a forbidden love that reason cannot suppress, using the motif of a white flower blooming in the dark night.

Set in a foggy city bathed in moonlight, it delicately weaves the precarious and heartrending fate of a man and a woman burdened with loneliness.

Released in March 2025, it was included on the album “Unrequited Love” as the 2nd anniversary song for the smartphone romance game Ikemen Villains: A Dark Love That Blooms at Night.

It is a quiet companion for those who are in a love they cannot tell anyone about, or who have once burned with the purity of love.

Raise the rankinglower