Bad Apple!! – Lyrics, meaning and song breakdown (Touhou)

Black, white, and a voice that can barely feel what it feels: for many people, “Bad Apple!!” arrives first as a shadow film full of dancing Touhou silhouettes — and only later as a song. That is exactly why the lyrics themselves are worth a closer look.

Here we break down the Alstroemeria Records version with nomico: full Japanese text, romaji, English reading, and vocabulary line by line. If you want help with kanji readings, try the furigana helper, or follow along with this instrumental karaoke that includes furigana.

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Where does “Bad Apple!!” come from?

The melody comes from the Touhou Project: ZUN wrote “Bad Apple!!” as the stage 3 BGM of 東方幻想郷 ～ Lotus Land Story (1998). The short original track is instrumental — the famous sung arrangement came later from the doujin music scene.

In 2007, the circle Alstroemeria Records released the arrangement by Masayoshi Minoshima on the album Lovelight, with lyrics by Haruka and vocals by nomico — about five minutes long, clearly longer than the short in-game BGM. The English title plays with the idiom “bad apple”: the rotten one that spoils the rest, the “no-good” type — in Japanese that idea often lands as ろくでなし, a word that appears in the lyrics themselves.

Important for context: this is not a Vocaloid original. nomico is a human singer; Vocaloid covers and instrumental karaoke versions exist by the dozens and easily blur the origin. If you want the difference between synthesis voices and this scene, start with What is Vocaloid? — and for fan-made production culture, see doujinshi and fan works.

Fact	Short answer
Original BGM	ZUN · Lotus Land Story · Stage 3 (Elly)
Vocal arrangement	Alstroemeria Records · Lovelight (2007)
Arrange / lyrics / vocal	Masayoshi Minoshima / Haruka / nomico
Length (vocal)	about 5 minutes
Best-known PV	Black-and-white shadow animation (Nico Nico Douga, 2009)

Song lyrics

Breaking the song down line by line

Now we take the lyrics apart: Japanese, romaji, English reading, and vocabulary. For lines that repeat (chorus), we skip the second word list — look back at the first appearance if a word slips your mind.

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流れてく　時の中ででも　気だるさが　ほらグルグル廻って
Nagarete ku toki no naka de demo kedaru-sa ga hora guruguru mawatte

Even in the flow of time, I feel languid, look spinning around me

• 流れてく - nagareteku - current, flow, drift, float, be carried away
• 時の中ででも - toki no naka de demo - in the middle of time, but
  • 時 - toki - time
  • 中 - middle, center
  • でも - demo - but
• 気だるさ - kedarusa - languid, indifferent, apathetic, without strength, without energy
• ほら - hora - look, see, be careful
• グルグル - guru guru - spinning, circle, turns, walking in circles
• 廻って - mawatte - around, around me

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私から　離れる心も　見えないわ　そう知らない？
Watashi kara hanareru kokoro mo mienai wa sō shiranai?

As for me, my heart has separated from me, I cannot see, apparently I do not know?

• 私から - watashi kara - as for me, from me
• 離れる - hanareru - leave, separate, go away, distance
• 心 - kokoro - heart
• 見えないわ - Mienai wa - I do not see, invisible, not perceive
• そう - sou - thus, really; apparent, it's true
• 知らない - Shiranai - do not know, I do not know, do not understand

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自分から　動くこともなく　時の隙間に　流され続けて
Jibun kara ugoku koto mo naku toki no sukima ni nagasa re tsudzukete

Even if I do not move, I continue to be dragged by the gaps of time

• 自分 - jibun - myself
• から - kara - from, since, as
• 動く - ugoku - change, move, stir, change
• こともなく - koto mo naku - without even, without possibility
• 隙間- sukima - gap, crevice
• 流され - Nagasare - drag
• 続けて - Tsudzukete - continuously, continues

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知らないわ　周りのことなど　私は私　それだけ
Shiranai wa mawari no koto nado watashi wa watashi soredake

I do not know anything around me, I am just me and nothing more.

• 知らないわ - Shiranai wa - I do not know
• 周り - mawari - circumference, around, around, environment
• ことなど - kotonado - such thing
• 私は私 watashi wa watashi - I and I
• それだけ - soredake - just that, no more than that, nothing more

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夢見てる？　なにも見てない？　語るも無駄な　自分の言葉
Yumemi teru? Nani mo mitenai? Kataru mo mudana jibun no kotoba

Am I dreaming? Am I seeing nothing? My words are useless even if I speak them.

• 夢見てる - yumemiteru - dreaming, seeing dreams
• なにも - nothing
• 見てない - mitenai - not see
• 語る - kataru - talk, speak about
• 無駄な - mudana - useless, unimportant
• 自分の言葉 - jibun no kotoba - my words

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悲しむなんて　疲れるだけよ　何も感じず　過ごせばいいの
Kanashimu nante tsukareru dake yo nani mo kanjizu sugoseba ī no

I am tired of sadness, not feeling anything is better.

• 悲し - kanashi - sadness
• なんて - nante - things like
• 疲れる - tsukareru - tired, tiring
• 何も - nanimo - nothing
• 感じず - kanjizu - feel, experience
• 過ごせばいいの - I spend
  • 過ごす - Sugosu - pass, exaggerate, spend
  • いいの - ii no - it's good, it's better

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戸惑う言葉　与えられても　自分の心　ただ上の空
Tomadou kotoba atae rarete mo jibun no kokoro tada uwanosora

Even if I were to speak those disconcerting words, my heart will not pay attention

• 戸惑う - tomadou - confused, perplexed, disconcerting
• 言葉 - kotoba - word
• 与え - give
• 自分の心 - jibun no kokoro - my heart
• 上の空 - Uwanosora - inattentiveness, distraction
• ただ - tada - simply

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もし私から　動くのならば　すべて変えるのなら　黒にする
Moshi watashi kara ugoku nonaraba subete kaeru nonara kuro ni suru

If I move, if I change everything, I would become black.

• もし - moshi - if
• 動く - ugoku - change, move, stir, change
• ならば - naraba - if, if it is the case, if that
• すべて - subete - everything
• 変える - kaeru - change, alter, transform
• なら - nara - become
• 黒 - kuro - black
• 黒にする - kuro ni suru - to black, become black

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こんな自分に　未来はあるの？　こんな世界に　私はいるの？
Kon'na jibun ni mirai wa aru no? Kon'na sekai ni watashi wa iru no?

Is there a future for someone like me? Do I exist in a world like this?

• こんな = konna - such, like this, this
• 未来 - mirai - future
• ある - aru - some
• 世界 - sekai - world
• いる - iru - be, exist

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今切ないの？　今悲しいの？　自分の事も　わからないまま

Ima setsunai no? Ima kanashī no? Jibun no koto mo wakaranai mama

Is it painful now? Is it sad now? I still do not know anything about myself.

• 今 - ima - now
• 切ない - setsunai - painful
• 悲しい - kanashii - sad
• わからないまま - wakaranaimama - not knowing

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歩むことさえ　疲れるだけよ　人のことなど　知りもしないわ
Ayumu koto sae tsukareru dake yo hito no koto nado shiri mo shinai wa

I am tired even of walking, I do not even understand people

• 歩む - ayumu - walk, walk
• ことさえ - kotosae - even, if only
• 疲れる - tsukareru - tiring, getting tired
• だけよ - dakeyo - just, only
• 人のこと - hito no koto - people
• など - nado - such, similar
• 知りもしないわ - shirimoshinaiwa - I also do not know (understand, not even know)

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こんな私も　変われるのなら　もし変われるのなら　白になる
Kon'na watashi mo kawareru nonara moshi kawareru nonara shiro ni naru

If someone like me can change, if I can change, I would become white.

• こんな私も - konnawatashimo - This I also
  • こんな - konna - such, like this, this, thus
• 変われる - kawareru - change, transform, move, alter
• なら - nara - if, in case, if it is the case
• もし - moshi - if, in case, assuming
• 白 - shiro - white
• なる - naru - become

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Repeating the first chorus:

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無駄な時間に　未来はあるの？　こんな所に　私はいるの？
Mudana jikan ni mirai wa aru no? Kon'na tokoro ni watashi wa iru no?

Is there a future in this wasted time? Do I exist in a place like this?

• 無駄な - mudana - useless, waste
• 時間 - jikan - time
• 未来 - mirai - future
• ある - aru - some, exist, have, be
• 所 - tokoro - place

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私のことを　言いたいならば　ことばにするのなら　「ろくでなし」
Watashi no koto o iitainaraba kotoba ni suru nonara `rokudenashi'

• 言いたいならば - Iitainaraba - if you want to say
• ことばにするのなら - kotoba ni suru no nara - if you want to put into words
• ろくでなし - rokudenashi - bastard, good for nothing

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こんな所に　私はいるの？ こんな時間に　私はいるの？
Kon'na tokoro ni watashi wa iru no? Kon'na-jikan ni watashi wa iru no?

Do I exist in a place like this? Do I exist at a moment like this?

• こんな時間に - konna jikan ni - at this moment, at a moment

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こんな私も　変われるもなら　もし変われるのなら　白になる
Kon'na watashi mo kawareru nonara moshi kawareru nonara shiro ni naru

If someone like me can change, if I can change, will I become white?

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今夢見てる？　なにも見てない？　語るも無駄な　自分の言葉
Ima yumemi teru? Nani mo mitenai? Kataru mo mudana jibun no kotoba

Am I dreaming now? Am I seeing nothing? My words are useless, even if I speak.

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悲しむなんて　疲れるだけよ　何も感じず　過ごせばいいの
Kanashimu nante tsukareru dake yo nani mo kanjizu sugoseba ī no

I am tired of being sad, I should continue without feeling anything.

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戸惑う言葉　与えられても　自分の心　ただ上の空
Tomadou kotoba atae rarete mo jibun no kokoro tada uwanosora

Even if I were to speak those disconcerting words

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もし私から　動くのならば　すべて変えるのなら　黒にする
Moshi watashi kara ugoku nonaraba subete kaeru nonara kuro ni suru

If I can move, if I change everything, I will turn it black.

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動くのならば　動くのならば　すべて壊すわ　すべて壊すわ
Ugoku no naraba ugoku no naraba subete kowasuwa subete kowasuwa

If I move, if I move, if I break everything, if I break everything

• 動く - ugoku - move
• ならば - naraba - if
• 壊すわ - kowasuwa - break
• すべて - subete - everything

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悲しむならば　悲しむならば　私の心　白く変われる？
Kanashimu naraba kanashimu naraba watashi no kokoro shiroku kawareru?

If I cry, if I cry, will my heart turn white?

• 悲しむ - kanashimu - lament, cry
• ならば - if
• 心 - kokoro - heart
• 白 - shiro - white
• 変われる - kawareru - change, transform, move, alter

---

貴方の事も　私のことも　全ての事も　まだ知らないの
Anata no koto mo watashi no koto mo subete no koto mo mada shiranai no

About you, about me, about everything - I still do not know anything

• 貴方 - anata - you
• 全て - subete - everything
• まだ知らないの - mada shiranai no - I still do not know anything
  • まだ - mada - still

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重い目蓋を　開けたのならば　すべて壊すのなら　黒にな
Omoi mabuta wo aketa no naraba subete kowasu no nara kuro ni nare!

If I open my heavy eyelids, if I break everything, let everything turn black!

• 重い - omoi - heavy
• 目蓋 - mabuta - eyelid
• 開けた - aketa - open and close, pierce
• 壊す - kowasu - break, destroy, demolish

What the lyrics say: apathy, black and white

The speaker drifts through time, feels a circling languor (気だるさ), and watches her own 心 — heart, mind, “inner life” — pull away. She does not move on her own; she keeps being carried through the gaps in time. Everything around her? “I am just me, and nothing more.”

The question “夢見てる？ なにも見てない？” is not decoration — it is the core: am I dreaming, or am I seeing nothing at all? Grieving only makes her tired; better to feel nothing. Words that reach her bounce off; her heart is 上の空, elsewhere.

Then the color pivot: if she moves and changes everything, she turns it black (黒). If someone like her can change, she becomes white (白). Later readings often treat black as guilt or contamination and white as purity or a chance at reset — not a dictionary rule, but a useful lens when the song swings between “destroy everything” and “can my heart turn white?”

Near the end she calls herself ろくでなし if put into words — a good-for-nothing — still unsure about you, herself, or anything else, until the heavy eyelids open and everything goes black. The text never explains a neat plot; it stays inside numbness, self-doubt, and the fear of what happens if feeling returns.

The shadow PV and why the song is everywhere

Without internet culture around Nico Nico Douga, the song would never have become this ubiquitous. In 2008 a user posted a storyboard for the arrangement; in 2009 the famous black-and-white shadow animation (影絵) appeared, with Touhou characters flowing, dancing, and morphing into each other. The clip became a meme and a template for endless remakes — from 8-bit machines to formula graphs — and it still shapes what many people mean by “Bad Apple” before they ever read the lyrics.

So the song lives on two tracks at once: the visual earworm of silhouettes, and the Japanese text about apathy and black/white change. Karaoke, covers, and language study all sit more comfortably once you know which version you are hearing — ZUN’s short BGM, nomico’s vocal arrange, or one of the countless later reinterpretations.