10 best anime to watch if you like Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty

Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty, the 2025 anime adaptation of a manga set in an elite girls' academy, follows Lilisa, a student who suppresses her passion for rock music to fit into high society norms.

Her outlook changes when she meets drummer Otoha and forms a secret band that challenges the school's strict rules. With its blend of music, relationships, and defiance of expectations, Rock Is a Lady's Modesty has resonated with viewers.

Fans drawn to these themes of youthful rebellion, rock spirit, and school life drama have plenty of other quality anime titles to explore. From high-energy musical performers to intimate coming-of-age stories, these shows capture a similar tone and excitement.

10 must-watch anime for fans of Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty

1. BanG Dream!

With a bright color palette and cheery J-pop tunes, BanG Dream! at first seems far removed from the Gothic melodies of Rock is a Lady’s Modesty.

But at its core, it shares the theme of young musicians forming bonds. Amateur guitarist Kasumi and four other high school girls set out to become a professional pop band, navigating relationships and emotional growth.

Overflowing with energy, BanG Dream! spotlights each band member while capturing the thrill of playing music with friends. Fans of Rock is a Lady’s Modesty’s character dynamics and performances will find a lot to love in this series spanning anime, manga, games, and real-life concerts.

2. Show By Rock!!

For viewers who want something closer to Rock is a Lady’s Modesty’s visual style and rocking attitude, Show By Rock!! hits the right notes.

When shy schoolgirl Cyan gets transported to a fantasy world of anthropomorphic musicians, she finds herself as the guitarist and vocalist for the band Plasmagica as they enter the cutthroat music industry.

As the series progresses, Cyan gains confidence in her skills and bonds with her bandmates while plunging into underground clubs and massive stadium shows. The anime captures the band experience with humor, vibrant concerts, and fierce competition, echoing Rock is a Lady’s Modesty.

3. Revolutionary Girl Utena

Revolutionary Girl Utena (Image via J.C. Staff)

Behind Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty’s story hides complex relationships and a defiant, revolutionary spirit. The series follows Utena Tenjou, a teen girl who wears a boys’ uniform and aspires to become a princely figure at the mysterious Ohtori Academy.

As she crosses paths with the charismatic Anthy Himemiya and the shadowy End of the World organization, Utena finds herself fighting sword duels in a metaphorical search for revolution and self-realization.

With avant-garde visuals, heady symbolism, and a dramatic classical score, Revolutionary Girl Utena is an anime classic that paved the way for shows like Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty. Viewers will find intricate characters, tense battles of nobility, and the same defiance of expectations.

4. Nana

Music brings people together in Nana, an influential anime drama series from the 2000s. Two very different young women, both named Nana, cross paths on a train to Tokyo and ultimately decide to share an apartment.

As the upbeat Nana Komatsu pursues her changeable dreams of love and fame, the punk rocker Nana Oosaki advances with her band Black Stones towards a major record deal. Nana beautifully captures the thrills and hard truths of chasing ambitions in the music industry while forming intimate bonds.

Much like Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty, it portrays endearingly flawed characters trying to discover themselves through their art. An emotional powerhouse, Nana still resonates with audiences through its memorable J-rock and punk-influenced soundtrack and honest depictions of complex relationships.

5. Revue Starlight

Revue Starlight (Image via Kinema Citrus)

For a dazzlingly theatrical anime experience themed around music and rebellion, Revue Starlight is a gorgeous spectacle. The show follows a group of students at a prestigious music school as they engage in extravagant song and dance battles to achieve top star status.

But beneath the brightly-colored song routines lies an ominous shadow organization pulling the strings behind the scenes. Like the leads in Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty, the Revue Starlight girls must break from oppressive systems to achieve liberation and self-actualization.

Combining catchy musical numbers, stylized stage duels, and themes of adolescent self-discovery, Revue Starlight captures a similar tone of passion and defiance.

6. K-On!

Fans who want a lighter-hearted slice of life anime centered on an all-girl band need look no further than K-On! This massively popular series follows Yui Hirasawa’s journey from musical novice to lead guitarist in the pop band Hokago Tea Time, formed with four of her high school friends.

Centered around the girls’ hilarious misadventures, group bonding, mouth-watering cake, and cheery band practices, K-On! perfectly encapsulates the joy of playing music with friends.

Those drawn to the relationships and coming-of-age themes in Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty will find similar positive energy and character growth here, with adorable comedy thrown in.

7. Maria Holic

Set at a high-class all-girls Catholic academy, Maria Holic focuses on the peculiar life of Kanako Miyamae at the elite Ame no Kisaki school.

Forced to transfer due to her severe allergies to boys, Kanako pursues the cute girls around her but ends up rooming with Mariya Shidou, a boy disguised as a girl who hides his cruel nature behind a perfect facade.

As crazy hijinks ensue, the series satirizes yuri tropes within the prestigious school setting. With the same private girls' academy backdrop as Rock is a Lady’s Modesty, Maria Holic similarly plays with the reversal of gender norms and satirizes yuri tropes, particularly through its yuri-loving protagonist.

8. Love Live! School Idol Project

Love Live! School Idol Project (Image via Sunrise)

Charm explodes off the screen in Love Live! School Idol Project, a megahit multimedia franchise about a schoolgirl J-Pop act. Energetic Honoka and her friends form the nine-member group μ's (pronounced "Muse") to attract new students and save their academy from closing.

They later compete in contests and win fans' hearts with their bubbly tunes. Vibrant, upbeat, and overflowing with smiles, Love Live! spotlights the bonds of friendship between creative girls chasing big musical dreams.

The show overflows with colorful energy, similar to Rock is a Lady’s Modesty’s passionate performances. For viewers craving more music mixed into their school life stories, Love Live! delivers triple encores of delightful entertainment.

9. Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad

Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad (Image via Madhouse)

For a more mature, gritty tale about the hard road and soaring highs of making it big in music, Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad delivers the goods. Teenager Yukio "Koyuki" Tanaka's life changes when he meets maverick guitarist Ryusuke Minami and joins his rock band Beck, named after a stray dog Ryusuke rescues.

This marks the start of a wild journey through music and self-discovery. Through ups and downs, navigating a tumultuous music scene, the series reveals the realities of rejection, rivals, and running a working band while chasing fame.

Beck captures the exciting journey of misfits bonding through their passion for music, much like the secret band in Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty. Raw, funny, and bursting with killer rock tunes, this anime is a must-see for music fans.

10. Bloom Into You

Bloom Into You brings things full circle as an exquisite anime based on a yuri manga, much like Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty. The intricate romance depicts high school student Yuu Koito’s journey exploring her identity after years without any romantic feelings toward others.

Her perspective shifts when she meets the seemingly perfect and composed student council president, Touko Nanami, who recognizes she has her internal struggles behind her façade. As the two slowly begin a tender relationship, it deftly explores the complexity of love and the meaning of personal fulfillment.

With the same gorgeous aesthetic and emotional richness as Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty, this profoundly heartfelt series transcends genre limitations to deliver a sincere portrait of youth, intimacy, and self-discovery.

Conclusion

From the exhilaration of chasing musical success to personal journeys of identity and purpose, these 10 anime titles capture similar notes to Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty.

Music resonates deeply through several selections, while series like Revolutionary Girl Utena and Bloom Into You explore intimate bonds against the backdrop of academy life. There’s something here for all fans of Rock is a Lady’s Modesty..