Indo pop

See also: List of Indo-pop musicians

Not to be confused with Indian pop or Indie pop.

Indonesian pop
Other names	I-pop
Stylistic origins	Indonesian folk music Country music Pop music Rock music Ballad music
Cultural origins	1960s, Indonesia
Typical instruments	Vocal, acoustic guitar, electric bass, electric guitar, drum, keyboard, piano, violin, harmonica, ukulele
Subgenres
I-pop groups Malay Pop
Other topics
Indonesian rock Dangdut Indonesian hip hop

Noah, one of the most popular pop bands in Indonesia

Indo-pop (Indonesian: Pop Indo) also known as Indonesian pop or I-pop (though this also refers to the Indonesian boy group/girl group/idol group scene) is loosely defined as Indonesian pop music; however, in a wider sense it can also encompass Indonesian pop culture, which also includes Indonesian cinema and sinetrons (Indonesian TV drama).

Indonesian pop music today is sometimes influenced by trends and recordings from West music. However, in return the Indonesian style of pop music has influenced the regional pop culture in Southeast Asia, especially the Malaysian pop scene that began to imitating the Indonesian style of pop music in late 2000s. Indo pop usually expresses contemporary Indonesian sentiments and lifestyles, generally about love and social life related to relationships. Indonesian-pop music with sad and mellow melodies is also very popular and selling very well.

History

1960s - 1990s

Koes Plus pioneer of Indonesian pop music

Koes Bersaudara later formed as Koes Plus is considered one of the pioneers of Indonesian pop and rock 'n roll music in 1960s and 1970s. The American and British music influences were obvious in the music of Koes Bersaudara, The Beatles were known to be the main influences of this band.

Indonesian pop music in the 1970s also gave rise to legendary musicians and singers such as Chrisye, Titiek Puspa, and Ebiet G. Ade. Their work in the country's music industry was very large and influenced the development of music after that. These names are still stuck in the minds of many people because they are the pioneers of pop music in this country.

The Indonesian music industry in the 1970s was quite advanced where the pop music genre became very popular, presenting great works from legendary musicians from Chrisye, Ebiet G. Ade and Titiek Puspa. Prambors (LCLR) songwriting competition in 1977 was a breaker of stagnation in the pop music industry at that time. This event also gave birth to many new musicians in the following years.

Iwan Fals a legendary Indonesian musician who in his music raises many social and political issues

Entering the decade of the 80s and 90s. Legendary musicians appeared, Iwan Fals was very popular at that time even the music is still a favorite of many people until now. The songs are quite political, the music raises many issues such as war (Puing), the environment (Isi Rimba Tak Ada Tempat Berpijak Lagi), poverty (Siang Sebrang Istana), child labor (Sore Tugu Pancoran). Because the songs are political and criticize the government a lot. Some of his songs were banned by the authoritarian Suharto government at that time.

In the late 80s, boy bands and girl bands began to emerge. The first boyband to debut in Indonesia is Trio Libels, debuting in the late 1980s. Following suit is the first wave or generation of boybands and girlbands, and several notable groups that emerged from this wave are Cool Colors, Coboy, ME, T-Five, Warna, Rida Sita Dewi, AB Three, and Bening.

2000s - 2010s

In 2000s, the popular bands include Peterpan, Dewa 19, Gigi, Sheila on 7, Padi, Ada Band, Ungu, Letto, Nidji, and D'Masiv, all of which are featured on MTV Asia and tour regularly nationwide plus the neighbouring countries of Singapore and Malaysia. These bands have received immense reception in the region (including Brunei), some people have attributed this to the neutral shared vocabulary in songwriting compared to the spoken vernaculars spoken between these countries while some have speculated on the proliferation of pirated cassettes and CDs being the cause. The popularity of Indonesian music in Malaysia in particular had become so overwhelming that in 2008, demands had been made for radio stations there to restrict the number of Indonesian songs being aired so local musicians would be given a fairer chance.

Some of these pop rock bands incorporate traditional Malay roots into their sound, reviving the old Orkes Melayu style once popular in the region across Indonesia and Malaysia. Such bands belong to the "Band Pop Melayu" Malay Pop subgenre which became popular in late 2000s with acts like Kangen Band, Wali, Hijau Daun, Armada, Angkasa and ST 12.

Indonesia first experienced the Korean wave in the 2000s, leading to the popularization of K-dramas and K-pop. The rising popularity of K-pop gave rise to a second wave or generation of boybands and girlbands in Indonesia. There are several K-pop influenced groups that emerged from this wave, one of the earliest being G-String, but the most notable are SM*SH, CJR and Cherrybelle. Other popular groups include 7Icons, XO-IX, Hitz, and Dragonboyz. It is from this era that the term "I-pop" emerged and was used by several groups including Cherrybelle, 7Icons, and XO-IX.

Several J-pop influenced groups also debuted around the same time. In 2011, Super Girlies, a J-pop influenced girlband, debuted; their first single is a cover of a Berryz Kobo song. The same year, Japanese idol group AKB48 launched its first sister group in Jakarta, JKT48. JKT48 introduced the "idols you can meet" concept in Indonesia, and distinguished itself from other groups by calling themselves as simply an "idol group", not a "girlband". Following this, several independent J-pop influenced "idol groups" debuted, including LuSca which debuted in 2012.

Connection with Indonesia films

Indonesian films have a very close relationship with Indonesian music as well. Every Indonesian films generally have soundtracks from Indonesian music, generally Indonesian pop and some rock.

International popularity

The high popularity of Indonesian pop music is now limited to Malay-speaking countries. The wider coverage is only ASEAN countries such as the Philippines, Vietnam and Cambodia.

Indonesian singers such as Agnez Mo have been gaining popularity in neighbouring Asian countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Cambodia and the Philippines.

Afgan performing in 2013

The 2018 single, "Heaven" recorded by Afgan, Isyana Sarasvati and Rendy Pandugo became popular not only in Indonesia but in Taiwan, Vietnam and Sri Lanka too, reaching the top 10 in all four countries.

In 2018, during the Asian Games, the official theme song "Meraih Bintang", performed by pop dangdut singer Via Vallen became viral in many countries both within and outside of Asia; with many singers performing translated covers of the song in their own native languages and uploading the videos on YouTube.

However, musicians such as Rich Brian, NIKI, Stephanie Poetri, Weird Genius and Rainych who are all Indonesian, began to become famous internationally around 2018 until 2022. All of these are largely part of international labels, and symbolize the rise of Indo pop in international popularity.

See also

• List of Indonesian pop musicians
• Indonesian rock
• Indonesian hip hop
• Malay Pop
• Dangdut
• Campursari