Today, Western music no longer holds that singular dominance. We’re now seeing music from new corners of the world gain that same global popularity. The latest to follow in this trend of globalization is South Korean pop music, known as K-pop. Partly driven by the popularisation of South Korean culture through TV dramas – and boosted by the virality of South Korean artist Psy’s smash hit Gangnam Style, K-pop is on a meteoric rise. This year, the K-pop boy band BTS made history by becoming the first Korean act to be nominated for the 5th time, in as many consecutive years, at the Grammy Awards.
What’s pleasantly surprising, however, is that while Africa has been making its musical presence known to the world, Korean culture and music have steadily permeated into the continent – and its popularity continues to grow.
