[2025] A classic song themed around summer festivals. A song of summer memories.
When you think of summer, it’s the season of summer festivals and fireworks.
Hearing the festival music brings back happy memories, and those who love festivals might feel their excitement bubbling up.
In this article, we’ll introduce songs themed around summer festivals and fireworks, as well as tunes that capture summer memories.
From lively, boisterous tracks that embody the fun of festivals to beautiful, fleeting songs about a bittersweet summer romance, these recommendations are full of summer vibes.
If you’re looking for festival songs or summer-themed tracks, or want to listen to songs about summer festivals, be sure to check them out!
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【2025】Summer festival-themed masterpieces: Songs of summer memories (41–50)
Smile Ondoyuzu
Just hearing the intro, buzzing like a festive hayashi, instantly transports you to the lively bustle of a summer festival—Yuzu has crafted just such a song.
Included on the mini-album “Yuzu Smile,” released in July 2003, it overflows with a charm that puts a smile on everyone’s face.
The sound of Japanese taiko drums and spirited calls ring out, conjuring scenes of people of all ages forming a circle and dancing.
In the lyrics, bonds that span generations, gratitude for everyday life, and a warm wish for a peaceful world are sung alongside the joyful atmosphere of a festival.
This mini-album reached No.
1 on the Oricon Weekly Chart.
It also includes “Mata Aeru Hi Made,” the ending theme for the anime Doraemon, making it a work the whole family can enjoy.
Perfect for summer events—and for those times you need a boost—listening to it will naturally bring a smile to your face.
Raging Taiko Drum ~Including 'Outlaw for Life'~Fuyumi Sakamoto
With its soul-stirring taiko drums and Fuyumi Sakamoto’s powerful vocals, this track hits with overwhelming intensity.
Released in March 1987, the song marked her brilliant debut, sweeping numerous newcomer awards, and can rightly be called a masterpiece in enka history.
The lyrics, set against quintessential Japanese scenes like life’s resolve and Kyoto’s Gion summer festival, portray a man’s way of living as if his very soul were ablaze—igniting the listener’s heart.
Re-recorded in September 2008 with a subtitle, it has become indispensable in her live performances and enjoys passionate support.
It’s the perfect song for moments when you want to feel the exhilaration of a festival and a passion rising from deep within.
Tanabata DanceChiyoko Shimakura
It’s a song that vividly brings to life the scenes of Sendai’s Tanabata Festival through Chiyoko Shimakura’s singing voice! This work wonderfully portrays the bustle and splendor of Japan’s summer festivals and is beloved locally as a Bon Odori standard.
The lyrics vividly depict a cheerful circle of dancers in yukata under the starry sky, fans in hand, the beautiful scenery of Aoba Castle and the Hirose River, and the romance of Tanabata.
The song was released in July 1962, when Shimakura was 24.
Its folk-style melody and folk-dance-like rhythm make your heart dance just by listening! It’s recommended for those who want to immerse themselves in the good old Japanese summer or bask in the warm atmosphere of a festival.
Midsummer OrionMorimoto Namua
On slightly grown-up summer nights, those bittersweet memories suddenly come rushing back.
Namua Morimoto captures such sentimental scenes beautifully through R&B sounds.
In the quiet after the bustle of a summer festival, under a beautiful night sky, budding feelings of love and fleeting thoughts—etched as if into the stars—tighten the chest.
As she herself has said, she created the piece “while feeling the sweet and fleeting climate of summer,” and the work is suffused with the moist atmosphere and nostalgia unique to summer nights.
Released as a digital single in July 2018, this is a labor of love for which she also wrote the lyrics and composed the music.
On long summer nights, when you want to sit quietly and sink into memories of a love that has passed, this one track may seep straight into your heart.
All of the YouthFujifabric
It’s one of the most popular songs in Fujifabric’s catalog! I’m sure your town also has a festival that signals the end of summer—where you feel, “Once this festival is over, summer is over.” This song perfectly evokes that kind of festival.
The depiction of fireworks in the chorus carries a deep sense of melancholy, striking the heart with the bittersweet feeling of summer’s end.
It’s a song packed tightly with youth, one that brings back a flood of memories.
SparkleRADWIMPS
RADWIMPS’s “Sparkle,” which also drew attention for being selected as the theme song for the film Your Name, was used as an insert song during the festival scene.
It’s a beautiful, slightly bittersweet song that conjures up starry skies and summer nights right before your eyes.
It’s a perfect summer memory song for your youth.
Ghost Fireworks Ondo
“Ghost Fireworks Ondo” captures a fun, summery vibe.
Its unique world where friendly ghosts appear blends with lively images of fireworks, unfolding in ways that spark children’s imaginations.
The music layers sounds like drums and flutes, clearly evoking the atmosphere of a Bon dance.
The singing is approachable, with vivid expression that seems to breathe life into the ghosts.
The dance choreography is easy to pick up, making it useful for preschools and local summer events.
Combining playfulness with a seasonal feel, this piece is the perfect ondo for summer festivals.