Ten guides to the music world beyond single artists: country, disco, folk, K-pop and reggae, plus Woodstock, Coachella, Eurovision, the Grammy Awards and MTV.
Behind every star there is a whole musical world: a genre with its own history, and the festivals, contests, awards and TV channels that turn songs into shared moments. This collection looks at that bigger picture. Five articles explain the roots of country, disco, folk, K-pop and reggae; five more tell the stories of Woodstock, Coachella, the Eurovision Song Contest, the Grammy Awards and MTV.
Many genres turn out to have surprising origins. Country music's banjo came from Africa and its pedal steel guitar from Hawaii, disco began as an underground refuge for Black, Latino and LGBTQ communities, and reggae's sound-system DJs invented both the remix and the toasting that inspired early hip-hop. Modern K-pop, now a multi-billion-dollar export, traces back to a 1992 talent show where its pioneers received the lowest score from the judges.
The milestones are just as unpredictable. Woodstock did not take place in Woodstock and was saved by a local dairy farmer; Coachella's first festival in 1999 was a financial disaster; Eurovision once crowned four winners at the same time; and MTV launched with Apollo 11 footage because it could not afford its own animation. Even the Grammys hand out fake "stunt double" trophies on stage.
Whether you want to understand where a sound comes from or relive a famous moment in music history, the articles below each offer fifteen facts.
Every item on this page, with the one fact most people get wrong about it.
| Name | Where you'll meet it | The fact worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Country Music | American South, 1920s | Its signature instrument, the banjo, originated in Africa. |
| Disco | New York, 1970s | It began as an underground refuge for Black, Latino and LGBTQ communities. |
| Folk Music | Oral tradition, worldwide | "House of the Rising Sun" began in 17th-century England as a warning about syphilis. |
| K-Pop | South Korea, 1992-present | Its pioneers, Seo Taiji and Boys, got the lowest score on the 1992 talent show that launched them. |
| Reggae | Jamaica, late 1960s | Reggae producers invented the modern remix by turning the mixing desk into an instrument. |
| Woodstock | Bethel, New York, 1969 | The festival did not actually take place in Woodstock. |
| Coachella | Indio, California, 1999-present | Pearl Jam's boycott of Ticketmaster led them to the venue that became Coachella. |
| Eurovision Song Contest | Europe, 1956-present | In 1969 four countries won the contest at the same time. |
| Grammy Awards | United States, 1959-present | The trophies handed out on stage are fake "stunt doubles". |
| MTV | United States, 1981-present | Its launch used Apollo 11 footage because the network could not afford original animation. |
Biggest Crowd
~500,000
Nearly half a million young people gathered for Woodstock in August 1969. Woodstock
Longest-Running Contest
Since 1956
Eurovision is the longest-running international TV music competition. Eurovision Song Contest
Youngest Grammy Winner
8 years old
The youngest winner in Grammy history was just eight years old. Grammy Awards
Longest Disco Hit
17 minutes
Donna Summer's "Love to Love You Baby" was extended into a seventeen-minute epic almost by accident. Disco
American South, 1920s
Country music grew from European folk, African American blues and Mexican ranchera, and was first marketed as "hillbilly music". The Grand Ole Opry began as a radio show to sell insurance, and the 1927 Bristol Sessions are called the genre's Big Bang. Studies show it is one of the most lyrically dense genres of pop.
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New York, 1970s
Disco gave the world the twelve-inch single and the modern remix. Studio 54's door policy had little to do with fame, and Disco Demolition Night ended in a riot. Far from dying, disco evolved into house and techno.
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Oral tradition, worldwide
The term "folk music" was coined by an 18th-century German philosopher, and sea shanties were tools to keep sailors working in rhythm. The Lomax family recorded early American folk on a 315-pound machine powered by car batteries. Woody Guthrie wrote "This Land Is Your Land" as a rebuttal to "God Bless America".
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South Korea, 1992-present
South Korea's government promoted K-pop as an export to rebuild the economy after the Asian Financial Crisis. Its idol training system was inspired by Motown, and songs are often built in international songwriting camps. Mandatory military service shapes the life cycle of male groups.
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Jamaica, late 1960s
Reggae's rhythm deliberately drops the first beat of the bar, and the bass carries the melody. Its "toasting" DJs inspired American hip-hop, and records spread through mobile sound systems rather than radio. The United Nations has recognised reggae as a cultural treasure.
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Bethel, New York, 1969
Nearly half a million people came to a local dairy farmer's land for three days in August 1969, causing a 17-mile traffic jam. Security was handled by a commune armed with cream pies, and Santana played for $750. The organisers ended up in deep debt, and the clean-up took five months.
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Indio, California, 1999-present
Coachella's first festival in 1999 was a financial disaster, but it grew into the defining event of modern pop culture. Daft Punk's pyramid transformed live electronic music, and a Tupac hologram stunned audiences in 2012. Beyoncé became its first Black female headliner.
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Europe, 1956-present
Eurovision is the longest-running international TV music competition, and almost none of its first broadcast survives. Céline Dion won for Switzerland, ABBA's "Waterloo" was voted the best Eurovision song ever, and Australia now competes. Ireland and Sweden share the record for most wins.
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United States, 1959-present
The Grammys were almost called "the Eddies", and the first ceremony took place in two cities at once. Milli Vanilli are the only winners to have had an award revoked, and three US presidents have won one. Beyoncé holds the record for most wins.
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United States, 1981-present
MTV's first video was "Video Killed the Radio Star", and on launch day the channel was not even available in New York or Los Angeles. It initially refused to play Black artists until CBS Records threatened a boycott. Its logo was designed to look unfinished so it could be constantly redesigned.
Read the full article →8 questions, every answer is somewhere above.
1. Where did the banjo originally come from?
2. What happened at the baseball event called Disco Demolition Night?
3. What was "This Land Is Your Land" written as a response to?
4. Who saved Woodstock by offering his land?
5. What bird appears on the Woodstock logo?
6. How many countries won Eurovision at the same time in 1969?
7. Which act is the only Grammy winner to have its award revoked?
8. What was the first music video MTV played?
One important root is Jamaican "toasting", in which sound-system DJs talked and chanted over instrumental records. Jamaican producers also turned the mixing desk into an instrument, creating dub and the modern remix.
No. Despite the backlash that peaked with the riot at Disco Demolition Night, disco evolved directly into house and techno, and its sound has returned to mainstream pop roughly every decade since.
Australia has a huge Eurovision fan base and joined as a special guest before becoming a regular participant, even though it lies on the other side of the world. Ireland and Sweden share the record for the most wins.
Beyoncé holds the all-time record for most Grammy wins. At the other extreme, Brian McKnight has earned 16 nominations without winning a single trophy.
Not by design. It was planned as a ticketed, profit-making concert, but the crowds overwhelmed the fences and it effectively became free. The organisers ended up deep in debt, and the clean-up took five months.
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