SEOUL - As K-pop companies expand into India in search of their next growth engine, veteran songwriter Alex Karlsson believes the country could become one of the world’s five largest music markets within a decade - a development that could reshape the trajectory of the Korean music industry.

The Swedish American producer, whose songwriting credits include BTS’ We Are Bulletproof: The Eternal, SuperM’s Tiger Inside, Enhypen’s Fever and Ateez’s Bouncy (K-Hot Chilli Peppers), said India represents a long-term opportunity rather than an immediately lucrative market.

“It’s really a conversation about the current market viability versus its potential,” Karlsson told The Korea Herald during an interview held as part of the Fete de la Musique 2026 conference in Seoul. The event commemorates the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between South Korea and France and runs through June 22.

“We’ve seen other high-growth markets have (an) incredible impact on K-pop,” he said.

His comments come as major K-pop companies increasingly turn their attention to India. Hybe and JYP Entertainment have both recently established local operations in the country, seeking to replicate K-pop’s artist-development model in one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing consumer markets.

Karlsson acknowledged that significant obstacles remain.

“Let’s start with the hurdles: your classic lack of centralised reporting, low trust with local actors and limited buying power,” he said.

However, he argued that similar concerns once surrounded China before it emerged as one of the music industry’s most important markets.

“A lot of these were shared concerns with China 25 years ago, and in that market buying power changed while the rest didn’t. And this is where I believe the music industry sees the big change coming.”

What gives him confidence, he said, is the gradual improvement of the market’s underly...