Podcast
♪「うたからまなぶ日本語」ポッドキャスト♪
Let's learn natural Japanese through the lyrics of Japanese songs!
Why I Started This Podcast
If you’re learning Japanese while living outside Japan, you probably don’t get many opportunities to hear natural Japanese in everyday life. That’s exactly why I wanted to start this podcast.
My hope is simple: through Japanese songs, I’d love to help you improve your Japanese while discovering the culture and stories behind the language.
The gap between textbook and real Japanese
One thing I’ve noticed over the years—and something many Japanese learners talk about—is the gap between the Japanese we learn from textbooks and the Japanese native speakers actually use in real life. I wanted to create something that helps bridge that gap.
Many learners tell me they’re comfortable reading Japanese but find listening and speaking much more challenging. If that’s you, you’re definitely not alone! Through these episodes, I hope you’ll gradually train your ears to recognise natural spoken Japanese—things like sound changes (〜てる, 〜とく, 〜ちゃう), homophones and other similar-sounding words with different meanings, and grammar or vocabulary that can have several meanings depending on the situation, such as 「ように」. The more you hear them in context, the more naturally you’ll begin to recognise and understand them.
Why songs work
I truly believe songs are one of the best language-learning tools. They help you get used to the natural rhythm and intonation of Japanese. And because songs often tell stories or express emotions, they’re much easier to remember than isolated vocabulary lists.
If you eventually sing along using the karaoke version, you’ll be practising three important language skills at once: listening, reading the lyrics, and speaking (or singing!). That’s a fun and effective way to reinforce what you’ve learned.
Learning takes repetition
Even if you’ve already studied a grammar point or vocabulary word, it doesn’t always mean you’ll recognise it instantly when native speakers use it. That’s completely normal. Developing your listening skills takes time, and repeated exposure helps your brain recognise not only the sounds themselves but also the situations in which they’re commonly used.
How this podcast began
On a more personal note, becoming a mum was one of the biggest inspirations for this project. Since my child was born, I’ve found myself singing Japanese songs almost every day. One day, it suddenly occurred to me, *”These songs could be an amazing resource for Japanese learners!”* That simple thought eventually grew into this podcast.
I hope these episodes help you enjoy learning Japanese a little more, discover some wonderful music along the way, and feel a little closer to Japan, wherever you are in the world.
Contents
How episodes are organized
In my podcast, each episode has a certain theme based on a Japanese song. I usually talk about a couple of grammar points that appear in the song and explain how to use them. There’s time to practice for listeners as well. To make the content engaging and fun, we usually have a small quiz related to the theme of each episode.
I’ve organised the podcast episodes by JLPT level, based on the grammar points covered. Please note, though, that this is only a general guide — since I often use more advanced vocabulary when explaining, the actual listening level tends to run a bit higher than the grammar level suggests. You can download show notes for each episode, where I’ve added vocabulary lists for difficult words.
Feel free to start with any topic that interests you, but I try to include key points that were covered in the previous episode.
Episodes in the N5–N4 range are sometimes also available in English.