^{Written by Kaleb Houle-Lawrence – high school Intern}

Foreign music. Nowadays it is by no means a foreign concept; we hear international hits on nearly every radio station. Part of this rise can be partially attributed to the up rise in streaming services like Spotify and Pandora. Across the globe, music from other nations is a sensation that pleases the ears of many people. But why did it take so long for this “Foreign Music Phenomenon” to grace the ears of US listeners? The first real international “hit” that I can recall listening to on mainstream radio and music stations was “Gangnam Style” by Psy. I can remember, with a concerning amount of detail, dancing around my primary school gym whipping my hands around to some South Korean song. “Gangnam Style” topped charts in 2013, becoming one of the most heard international songs in the US since the 1970s. The last time a French song performed that well was “Dominique” by Jeanine Deckers in 1963.