77408
I’ve noticed that some song lyrics use 僕 although the singer is female. After
reading [this](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/36844/) and
[this](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/60636/is-%E5%83%95-boku-
only-appropriate-for-cisgendered-men) post, I’m still unsure if the answers
apply to the songs that I’ve heard. It seems that 僕 is meant to convey a
tomboyish, naïve, or slightly assertive feeling, but this doesn’t seem to be
the case for these songs and musicians (in my opinion, which may be
incorrect).

A few examples: 「[ケセラセラ](https://www.uta-net.com/song/151334/)」 by fhána and
「[スタンドバイミー](https://www.uta-net.com/song/266554/)」 by the peggies.

Does 僕 generate some other desirable feeling for these contexts? For native
Japanese speakers, how might using 僕 instead of 私 change a song’s impression?
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-18T05:11:34.153
77396
2020-05-23T00:40:27.220
question
word-choice
Usage of 僕 in song lyrics
In lyrics and poetry, 君 ("you") and 僕 ("I") are widely used as handy gender-
neutral and/or "juvenile" personal pronouns. Sometimes 私 may sound too
feminine, mature or formal when they want to sing about gender-neutral things
such as your affection for cats, innocent friendship and the beauty of nature.
This type of 僕 is not tomboyish at all, but it feels young and innocent. It's
common also in children's songs.

Although uncommon, a female singer may sing purely from the male's perspective
(男歌), and vise versa. For example
[舟歌](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGI0QZ4Gk34) is an 男歌 sung by a female
singer. [心凍らせて](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=My3z2NFSKKQ) and
[女のみち](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zKcksI14X8) are 女歌 sung by male
singers.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-18T13:33:48.930
77408
2020-05-18T14:08:51.317
2020-05-18T14:08:51.317
5010
5010
77396
answer
While I couldn't find quotes directly from song writers, there have been
people who have wondered the same thing and have come up with a good analysis.
I'll list up some reasons, in no particular order.

**It's is easier to identify with ぼく**

Many songs are ambiguous as to the gender of the singer; they can go either
way. In these cases ぼく is selected often. It is easier to resonate with male
fans and they can sing the song in karaoke with more emotion due to that. わたし
actually sounds more feminine in terms of lyrics, so by using ぼく it makes it
easy for the fans to insert themselves as the singer. Note that songs strictly
from a female perspective would likely choose わたし as there is no need to put
the male listener in the singer's shoes.

**It gives the lyrics another layer of depth**

By making a song "non-gender", the lyrics can have double meanings. This
[blog](https://www.kkbox.com/jp/ja/column/showbiz-0-1255-1.html) analyzed
lyrics from Nogizaka46's
[君の名は希望](http://j-lyric.net/artist/a0560d3/l02c306.html). Take this line:

```

    もし君が振り向かなくても
    その微笑みを僕は忘れない
    
```

While this song can be read as a love song, this can also be interpreted as
the idols themselves talking to the fan, or even the fan to the idol. The
"idol" wants the "fan" to look at her. The "fan" want the "idol" to see him.
Using わたし here would limit it to one way: only the idol to the fan. It's no
longer a two-way street. These kinds of reciprocating lyrics are common in
idol songs and it's most likely because it resonate with the fans.

ぼく could be me (the singer), me (the fan), me (the lover), me (the friend),
etc.

**It is the right level of youth**

Sometimes it may seem わたし may feel just as appropriate: it's a song that is
obviously from the perspective of a girl. But わたし may sound too mature; ぼく
gives off this feeling of youth, of innocence, that the lyricist is looking
for. It feels nostalgic, like reminiscing of one's youth.

**It's easier to fit into the melody**

ぼく is two moras, わたし is three. It is much easier to fit the shorter word into
the melody. Note キミ and あなた follow that same pattern. Take the songs you
listed and imagine how it would sound like if they were replaced by わたし.

A lot of songs, especially for idols, would be made-to-order, with the
composer and the lyricist being two different people. In those cases, the
melody tends to come first, and the lyrics are then created and added. This
means the lyrics are limited what the melody allows, so every space counts.

This [blog](https://www.ongakunojouhou.com/entry/2020/03/26/231008) makes a
good point and shows that female singer-songwriters actually do use わたし. This
is because most of their songs are from their point of view. They can do this
they are able to make the lyrics before making the song, and even if they
decide to use わたし later on, they have the ability to arrange the song
appropriately.

**It's a current trend**

This [blog](https://past-orange.com/po_sp/?p=1456) takes some samples (though
this includes male artists) from different years, and we can see that towards
2000 ぼく becomes prevalent. This is around the same time the modern-day idols,
like AKB48 appears (and they use ぼく a lot). Looking at the older periods, we
can see that わたし・あなた were more prevalent back in the day. So another 20 years
down the line, we might see another shift in first person pronouns used in
songs.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-23T00:40:27.220
77515
2020-05-23T00:40:27.220
9508
77396
answer