Korean pop music has a short history distinctly different from the global music genre K-pop. With roots in acoustic folk music and songs of student revolution of the 1970s and 80s, the Korean pop music of the late 80s and 90s began having a new, foreign flavor. As the country was experiencing fast economic growth, rapid globalization and the early years of a new democratic government, artists like Kim Hyun Chul (김현철), Jang Pil Soon (장필순) and Lee So Ra (이소라) were taking the past and creating savvy music that reflected an evolving, sophisticated sonic palettes. This mix gathers artists and songs that reflect the joyful mix of sounds of a time of exciting change and optimism, but also a period before coming devastation of the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis.
Korean pop music has a short history distinctly different from the global music genre K-pop. With roots in acoustic folk music and songs of student revolution of the 1970s and 80s, the Korean pop music of the late 80s and 90s began having a new, foreign flavor. As the country was experiencing fast economic growth, rapid globalization and the early years of a new democratic government, artists like Kim Hyun Chul (김현철), Jang Pil Soon (장필순) and Lee So Ra (이소라) were taking the past and creating savvy music that reflected an evolving, sophisticated sonic palettes. This mix gathers artists and songs that reflect the joyful mix of sounds of a time of exciting change and optimism, but also a period before coming devastation of the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis.