ABSTRACT
Sweden has for a long time been an internationally successful country when it comes to producing popular music. One important aspect of Sweden being and becoming a prosperous music country is its popular-music festivals. Popular-music festivals have a long tradition in Sweden, as well as in other countries, but there are some characteristics that are specific for the development in Sweden. In the 1940s, 1950s, and early 1960s the music and the linked lifestyles of young people "happened" in the city dancehalls and in the specifically Swedish amusements parks in both the towns and the countryside. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Music Movement started to implode due to internal conflicts, mostly along political dividing lines. In the early 1990s Swedish indie pop became a concept around the world, especially in the UK and Japan.
