[Northerner]

Overall, I have to go with Western music, but then again I don't listen to a lot of Western Top 40 pop unless I'm in the car. Most of my favorite bands and artists are British, and the vast majority of those are from the electronic/new wave and indie categories.

I also listen to a lot of Slavic music (Ukrainian, Russian, ETC) because I love the way the languages sound. I'd still say these are "Western" artists as well, even though they're from the easternmost end of Europe. As for their style/creativity, I used to listen to a lot of cheap Slavic pop when I first discovered it, but now my tastes are closer to what I listen to in English but with a more "folky" flair.

To be honest, I think Asian pop is not inherently better than Western pop. ACO (a trip-hop singer) is my favorite Japanese artist, though I still do love Ayu's older albums and Namie is also pretty great when I want something truly "pop."

However, I do have to admit that I'd like the Western pop I hear on the radio a lot more if the lyrics weren't so dumb. It might be fun to listen to while driving or dancing, but I'm really starting to get tired of this "party rap" fad. It seems like everything played on American radio NEEDS to have a rapper to be a hit, and most of it makes women out to be pieces of meat. Now, I don't mean for this to turn into a feminist rant (or a discussion about the merits or non-merits of rap --- I listen to some local stuff on occasion), but it certainly does make me wonder if many of the English-speaking people on this board who say they prefer Asian music 100% do so because they want catchy and upbeat music without being distracted by the dumb lyrics!