City pop (シティーポップ) is a loosely defined subset of pop music that originated in Japan in the late 1970s.

Originally termed as an offshoot of Japan's Western-influenced "new music", it came to include a wide range of styles associated with the country's nascent economic boom, such as soft rock, R&B, funk, and boogie.

Since the 2010s, city pop has gained an international online following as well as becoming a touchstone for the sample-based microgenres known as vaporwave and future funk.

Some Japanese pop artists are extremely popular in Japan, and some also have fanbases in other countries—especially in Asia, but also in Western countries. They influence not only music, but also fashion.

Since the end of the 2000s, more and more idol groups have emerged. The high number of idol groups in the Japanese entertainment industry is sometimes called "Idol sengoku jidai" (Idol war age).

However, in 2019, the forgoing of general election of AKB48 and the decision for hiatus of Arashi sign that the idol groups have lost the domination in Japan. Meanwhile, other artists like Kenshi Yonezu, Aimyon and so on, are becoming more popular in digital market.

Early jazz music was popularized in Japan thanks to the overseas trips of both Americans and Filipino jazz bands, the latter having acquainted themselves with the music in their native country through the presence of the American occupying forces.

The Hatano Jazz Band is sometimes described as the first Japanese jazz band, having absorbed some music during boat trips to San Francisco, although they were principally a dance band.

Built around the performances of the Filipinos, local jazz practice began to emerge in Japan in the early 1920s, most notably in the prosperous entertainment districts of Osaka and Kobe.

Influenced by American and British rock of the 1960s, the first rock bands in Japan performed what is called Group Sounds, with lyrics almost exclusively in English. Folk rock band Happy End in the early 1970s are credited as the first to sing rock music in the Japanese language.

Japanese rock music has received recognition worldwide, being widely known in Asia, and has survived through decades competing with its contemporary local style J-pop. Rock bands such as B'z and Mr. Children are among the best selling music acts in Japan.

The demand for rock in Japan is so huge that festivals mainly focused on it like the Fuji Rock Festival have been introduced since the late 90s with attendances reaching a peak of 200,000 people per festival making it the largest outdoor music event in the country.

The years 1994 and 1995, marked the beginning of hip-hop's commercial success in Japan. The first hit was Schadaraparr's "Kon'ya wa būgi bakku" (Boogie Back Tonight) by Scha Dara Parr and Ozawa Kenji, followed by East End X Yuri's "Da. Yo. Ne." and "Maicca," which each sold a million copies.

This sudden popularity of J-rap, which was largely characterized as party rap, sparked a debate over 'realness' and authenticity between commercial and underground hip-hop artists.

Since 2000, the hip hop scene in Japan has grown and diversified. Hip-hop style and Japanese rap has been an enormous commercial success in Japan. In a 2003 interview with the BBC, Tokyo record-store owner, Hideaki Tamura noted "Japanese hip-hop really exploded in the last two, three years. I never thought there would be a time when Japanese records could outsell American ones but it's happening.