Thai music and culture have been making serious waves across the globe as of late. And they're gaining momentum in large part thanks to a fandom-fueled subgenre.
Thai music is driven by a devoted local fan base that includes the United States, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Japan as its top markets, extending well into the global community. As a result, listenership in T-Pop has doubled in the past year: Tracks like , , and (Just Being Friendly) are hitting massive stream numbers both on and off the T-Pop Now playlist, which has seen 3.5 times the growth of the past five years. With artists like Billkin, PiXXiE, and Tilly Birds taking T-Pop from local markets and reaching fans in countries like Sweden, Mexico, Germany, and France, the newfound visibility of the genre is proof positive that music knows no borders.
It's undeniable that we're seeing a T-Pop wave in the world right now, says Gautam Talwar, Spotify's General Manager of Asia Pacific. It's a category that encompasses multiple genres including indie, hip-hop, experimental, and the massively popular Boys' Love, which has grown tremendously in recent years.
Thai artists are putting a lot of their Thai identity and culture into their music, from the melodies to the overall vibes, says Jeff Satur, popular T-Pop artist and actor. When you give it a listen, you can immediately tell it's a T-Pop song. It's like a musical journey that lets people from all over the world experience the richness of Thai culture through music. This was something quite novel in the music scene, and it began to captivate more and more listeners globally.
Boys' Love Soundtracks Fueling The T-Pop Wave The rise of Boys' Love (otherwise known as BL or simply Y, inspired by the Japanese word yaoi ) in Thailand is a unique story and one borne out of Thailand's support of stories that revolve around the love between two men. Popular fan fiction was adapted into television dramas, and soon an entire industry was jump-started. Centering on themes of loyalty, diversity in love, and the highs and lows of a relationship, the many, many shows have garnered massive plays and a passionate fan base of mostly young women.
Larger still is the love of BL TV soundtracks from fans. Through our own Boys' Love and (Why I Love You) playlists, BL fans searching for a good laugh or a good cry can can look forward to tracks like (Ost. ) by NuNew, (Ost. ) by Nat Natasit, and (Sunset) (Ost. ) by Perth Tanapon and Chimon Wachirawit.
For the Record sat down with Jeff Satur to learn more about the global phenomenon of T-Pop.
What sets T-Pop apart from other kinds of pop? The concepts are one of a kind. It's like everyone's got a way with words, and they turn those ideas into a killer song concept. When it comes to the slower jams, T-Pop has a very distinctive Thai vibe, from the melodies to the dance moves when it's performed. All these elements come together to make the genre pretty darn perfect.
What recent changes have you noticed in the world of T-Pop? I've noticed some cool things happening with T-Pop lately. I've seen Brazilian fans singing Thai songs like they were born to it, nailing those lyrics. Over in China, there's a whole bunch of Thai artist admirers. It got me thinking, the T-Pop music scene has really expanded its reach, breaking down musical borders.
Get your Boys' Love fix with our specially curated Boys' Love playlist:
Most recent headlines
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
16/10/2025
SVG Sit-Down: FUJIFILM Execs on GFX ETERNA 55 Camera, Importance of Shallow-Dept...
16/10/2025
Squash's Most Ambitious Broadcast Production To Be Deployed at Comcast Busin...
16/10/2025
Main Street Sports Group Inks Deal With Omaha Productions, Launches Original-Con...
16/10/2025
A Historic Precursor? FIFA, HBS, DAZN Offer an Inside Look at Production of FIFA...
16/10/2025
Prime Video Offers Sneak Peak at New NBA on Prime StudioThe massive 13,000-sq-ft, two-story studio features a LED regulation half court and hoopBy Jason Dachman...
16/10/2025
SVG Remote Production Forum Draws Record Crowd for Visit to PGA TOUR Studios, De...
16/10/2025
BitFire's Ben Grafchik on How Growing Cloud Workflows Are Impacting the Live...
16/10/2025
AI technology is advancing quickly, bringing both new creative possibilities and...
16/10/2025
In 2017, Imani Ellis launched CultureCon, a conference that's become a must-attend event for more than 10,000 diverse creatives and Black professionals to c...
16/10/2025
It might still be a little early to break out the tinsel and mistletoe, but Spotify's already queuing up some holiday magic. This year's Spotify Singles...
16/10/2025
Earlier this year, our in-house publishing imprint, Spotify Audiobooks, put out ...
16/10/2025
VAMPIRE has been integrated onto GM Defenses Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV), providing a mobile solution to effectively and affordably counter small drone threat...
16/10/2025
The AgilePod mounted on the host aircraft....
16/10/2025
60% say infotainment systems are a critical purchasing or leasing consideration,...
16/10/2025
NEW YORK The Broadcasters Foundation of America has launched its 2025 Year-End Giving Campaign, which seeks to raise donations from tax-deductible personal and ...
16/10/2025
Roku has added several new features to its user interface and operating system meant to make it easier to discover and personalize content, the company said....
16/10/2025
NEW YORK CNN has announced that its All Access subscription tier will launch in the U.S. on Oct. 28, providing audiences with a centralized destination for CNN&...
16/10/2025
Student Spotlight: Alan Villanueva The graduate student and saxophonist, who performed on Natalia Lafourcades Latin Grammy-nominated Live at Carnegie Hall alb...
16/10/2025
The XR Sports Alliance (XRSA) has announced the third cohort of members. The new members include Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment (MLSE), the Vegas Golden Kni...
16/10/2025
NEW YORK The Broadcasters Foundation of America has launched its 2025 Year-End Giving Campaign which seeks to raise donations from tax-deductible personal and c...
16/10/2025
NEW YORK Australia's Nine Network and the NHL today announced a media partnership that will bring the world's premier professional ice hockey league to ...
16/10/2025
Parks Associates has released new data showing that nearly half (45%) of U.S. internet homes watch free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) services and 89% of U.S...
16/10/2025
TROY, Mich. -New data from J.D. Power's 2025 U.S. Residential Internet Service Provider Study shows that residential wireless internet providers are growing...
16/10/2025
TV's most charming detective drama * Shakespeare & Hathaway: Private Investi...
16/10/2025
Back to All News
Thailand's Legendary Outlaw Returns: Tee Yai: Born to be ...
16/10/2025
Back to All News
Christmas Is Just Around The Corner: Home For Christmas Season...
16/10/2025
Back to All News
Trist n Ulloa Stars in El crimen de Pazos, the New Netflix Ser...
16/10/2025
ABS Completes Redomiciliation to Dubai Development Authority as Part of Strategi...
16/10/2025
This Saturday October 18 Katja Mia will burst onto the radio airwaves for the first time as she joins 2FM. Katja will be standing in for Bl thnaid Treacy on Sat...
16/10/2025
This October, RT is delighted to support Wexford Festival Opera, Babor International Arts Festival for Children, Open House Dublin and 36 other arts and cultu...
16/10/2025
GeForce NOW is more than just a platform to stream fresh games every week - it offers celebrations for the gamers who make it epic, with member rewards to sweet...
15/10/2025
Across the world, early-career reporters are interrogating systems that shape daily life, from mortuaries and classrooms to the corridors of legal education and...
15/10/2025
St. Louis Blues Pay Tribute to Ozzy Osbourne in New Pregame Open VideoThe NHL franchise worked with production firms 2WEI and 4th Floor CreativeBy Mark J Burns,...
15/10/2025
Cobalt Digital, G3DVu, Proxima Vision, and Telos Alliance Renew Premier Sponsors...
15/10/2025
By Paige Bethmann
Before my grandmother passed away in 2019, I went to visit her in the hospital where she'd been for a few weeks. When I arrived, the nurs...
15/10/2025
Two years ago, Spotify set out to grow the entire publishing industry by making ...
15/10/2025
People turn to DJ for a listening experience that feels personal, dynamic, and j...
15/10/2025
Las personas recurren a DJ para vivir una experiencia de escucha personal, din m...
15/10/2025
Rock legend Bruce Springsteen and luminary actor Jeremy Allen White came togethe...
15/10/2025
At Spotify, we're all about supporting rising talent and helping them connec...
15/10/2025
New SBS Documentary Series THE CANCER KILLERS Premieres 4 November on SBS & SBS ...
15/10/2025
SBS celebrates the Festivals of Lights with bold, illuminating stories across th...
15/10/2025
One of humanity's most profound questions continues: Is there any place in our galaxy suitable for life beyond Earth? NASA intends to find out, with the hel...
15/10/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
15/10/2025
Scality, a global leader in cyber-resilient storage software for the AI era, today announced the advancement of its comprehensive AI ecosystem certification pro...
15/10/2025
The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) today unveiled key highlights of the 2026 HPA Tech Retreat, scheduled for Feb. 15 19 at the Westin Rancho Mirage Go...
15/10/2025
At NAB Show New York 2025 (Stand 244), Interra Systems will showcase the future of media QC, monitoring, and captioning, highlighting its award-winning, AI- and...
15/10/2025
Grass Valley today announced that RMC BFM, part of the CMA-CGM Group and France's third-largest private media group, has chosen Grass Valley's productio...
Thai music and culture have been making serious waves across the globe as of late. And they're gaining momentum in large part thanks to a fandom-fueled subgenre.
