With K-pop becoming ever more dominant in charts across the world, it may seem like now is a better time then ever to start learning Korean. Which it probably is. But what if you want to learn Korean but don’t actually like K-pop? Here’s 10 examples of Korean music that’s not K-pop.

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy pop music. I even quite like some K-pop songs, but I’ve never found it quite as endeering as many others clearly do. Yet, music has always played an important role for me in inspiring my language learning. So I was keen to find some Korean music that’s not K-pop to get me listening to more Korean music on the regular.

I asked on my Instagram Stories for suggestions and got TONS of replies. Some listed may be classed as K-pop depending on who you ask, but I’ve tried to pick bands and artists with a less “bubblegum pop” sound. These are just 10 of the best that I’ve found I enjoy the most.

For the full list, be sure to check the playlist on Spotify.

Kihi and the Faces

A quirky Korean indie band I actually found on my own somehow when browsing Spotify one day.

Upon discovering them, I learnt they’ve actually broken up now (at the end of 2018), but they have a back catalogue of 5 albums to enjoy.

The song that initially got me intrigued was That’s Just What You Think, so that’s probably a good place to start. Listen out for the super fast repeated bits in the chorus.

DEAN

DEAN is probably on the fringes of K-pop, but hey, he definitely doesn’t fit the mould of your typical K-pop “pop” idol so he totally deserves a place on this list. Plus, he was recommended A LOT when I asked for suggestions on Instagram.

The best place to start with DEAN is instagram because if you understand nothing, you can at least pick out the word ‘Instagram’ multiple times, which definitely feels like a win.

HEIZE

Also perhaps on the fringes of “cooler” K-pop, HEIZE (and yes, all these names are capitalised) is a bit like a female DEAN. Similar hip-hop inspried beats but with a softer vocal.

Very chill. Very “I’ll take one mocha-froppa-cino with an avocado toast” in a coffee shop with exposed pipes.

Her and DEAN do actually have a song together, but it only seems fair to share some of her own work here. This is First Sight. The chorus is quite a nice pace for beginner learners like me to keep up with when reading lyrics.

Hoody

Similar vibes to DEAN and HEIZE, only with her name in lowercase with just one capital letter! Slight 90’s hip-hop vibes with layered vocals that wouldn’t be out of place on a TLC or Destiny’s Child track.

I could share Sunshine here, but I’m determined not to just share the most popular ones so here’s Hangang instead…

Related: How to Use Spotify for Language Learning

Coffeeboy

Also very chill (I promise, we’ll get more upbeat again soon) but in a much more acoustic way. His lyrics are really clear, which makes for useful music for language learners!

I’m gonna recommend Happy, because it starts with a ‘one, two, three’ that I can understand and that makes me feel like a good Korean learner.

Beenzino

Ok, so some similarities to DEAN, HEIZE, and Hoody, but the big difference is Beenzino is more of a rapper so it makes for a different sound.

I love rap (in French and German in particular) to help me hear language to music in a “less musical” way, if that makes sense? What I mean is there’s no warbling or distortion so you really get a chance to hear the words, even if they’re faster. Ha!

The song I’ve picked here is Dali, Van, Picasso. There’s some swearing and some English too, but I picked it for a selfish reason. I always felt that if I could go back in time, I’d go hang out with Dalí, Buñuel, and Lorca in Spain. So there you go.

Humming Urban Stereo

And now for something completely different. Humming Urban Stereo is the kind of 80s infused indie I expect to blast when I walk into an Urban Outfitters.

Because of that, sometimes the lyircs are a little tricky to hear, but I don’t even care. It’s funky. And there’s enough of their music to find some with lyrics.

If you like Lizzo, you’ll probably enjoy Humming Urban Stereo.

Let’s go all out on the 80s sounds they’ve got going on and listen to Aerobics.

Aseul

If you walk into Urban Outfitters and hear Humming Urban Stereo, Aseul comes on after.

I can’t remember how I first found Sandcastles, but it definitely came before asking on Instagram, and then Aseul was recommended there too. So we’ll start with Sandcastles. Plus the video is cool and has little tiny yellow lyrics at the bottom of the screen.

Related: All The Language Learning Listening Resources That You’ll Ever Need

CIFIKA

CIFIKA (again with the capitals) is one of those artists that’s a little hard to box into a genre.

There’s some bits of English for sure, but not too much to feel like you’re being a lazy Korean learner.

Maybe a little Björk-y (if it’s possible for anyone other than Björk to be a bit Björk-y), maybe a little bit bass-y, maybe a little bit MØ-y.

I like PROSPER (yup, capitals) because I can imagine it in an episode of Skins or whatever the modern equivalent of Skins is.

Wetter

If you’ve read all of this, and you’re thinking “Yes, that’s all well and good, but I came here for the moody indie boys with guitars.” then you’re in luck.

Wetter’s sound fluctuates from heavy indie guitars to softer rock-based beats. But it’s the heavy indie guitars that are more fun, so a good entry point is Hello Sunshine.

The Full Playlist

I’ve put together a Spotify playlist of these and many more songs that were suggested on my Instagram Stories and I found myself through Spotify rabbit holes.

It’s called Kool. With a K. Because why not.

How Do You Use This Newfound Music?

Ok. So you’ve got some music to enjoy in Korean now. But what do you even do with music when it comes to language learning?! I share some ideas in this week’s video…