Nick Cannon may seem like an unlikely torchbearer of creating a K-pop-inspired television show, but the actor-producer has ties to the Hallyu wave long before the premiere of Nickelodeon's "Make It Pop."

During a recent interview with Billboard, Nick Cannon revealed the reasons behind him executive producing "Make It Pop."

"I always say, 'America's last to the party,'" said the 34-year-old.

"Honest, it's such a global phenomenon that I've witnessed over the years from traveling abroad. A few years back there was a girl group with a Nickelodeon movie called the School Gyrls. From that there was the Wonder Girls and that's when I was really introduced to Korean pop and thought, 'This is amazing.'"

Cannon cites the relationship between the idols and the fans as a point of inspiration for him.

"The main reason is the admiration and respect for the fans, how they treat the artist and how they really become this real community," continued the rapper.

"That's the thing that opened my eyes initially. And then when you see the quality in the music and the videos, the imaging and how detailed everything was; the pop-art feel. I thought it was just really cool, the way they presented it. Obviously, we've always had girl groups and boy bands and all that stuff in the states. But to see the detail, the hard work and the dedication in K-pop culture, I'd never seen anything like it."

Poducing "Make It Pop" has also come with its share of controversy, as there is confusion over whether the show is really about K-pop or is simply cashing in on the trendiness of South Korean pop.

On this matter, "Make It Pop" star Megan Lee explained the approach of the series to YouTuber JREKML.

"Our show is very cute and very colorful, and we know that there are a lot of different aspects of K-pop where it's very cute and colorful, but we don't want to portray that that's what it's all about," Lee said.

"K-pop is such a huge...big umbrella. It has all sorts of genres. We're sprinkling some of that K-pop influence."