- Strong influences from other countries such as United States and Japan
- Up till 1980, ‘Trot’ music was popular in South Korea
            o Influenced by ‘Enka’ – popular Japanese music during Japanese rule over Korea in 1910-1945
            o A mix of traditional Korean music with Gospel – introduced by America Evangelists in 1870s
- After Korean liberation, Korea was split into two – the North and South
- South Korea was introduced to Western Culture – Western styled bars and clubs playing Western songs

- 1950: Korean War lasted for 3 years, U.S. troops remained to protect South Korea even after the end of the war – soon, American/World culture infiltrated South Korea – this became more widely accepted amongst young adults

- Improvement in recording systems led to productions of LP records – long playing microgroove record
- Civilians exposed to pop songs and performances with chorus became conspicuous
 

- 1970s: popularisation of DJs
            o Huge impact on teenage culture
            o Brought in the trends of guitars and jeans amongst youths
            o Increase in folk singers
            o 1977: launch of the ‘Seoul International Song Festival’
                     - Encouraged and embrace cultural exchanges with other countries
 

- 1980: launch of Asia Music Forum
            o Competition where five different Asian countries nominate a National singer to compete at the event