Britpop was the most popular genre of music throughout the 1990s. This genre takes inspiration from rock bands such as The Beatles from the 1960s and The Smiths who were popular throughout the 1980s. Britpop singers sung to melodic choruses, and the lyrics were direct and honest, which makes way for the audience to connect to the songs. While Suede debuted in 1993 as the first Britpop band, 1994 was when many Britpop bands began to get their starts. Some of these bands were Blur, Oasis, Elastica, and there were many more that could be considered "Britpop."

In Never Let Me Go, Kathy is impacted by a tape called "Songs After Dark" by Judy Bridgewater. The album and the artist are both made up for the story, and the song by Judy Bridgewater that Kathy loves the most is even titled "Never Let Me Go." In fact, she dances to this song imagining a pillow case is her baby. Because Kathy is shown to have a love for the music she was exposed to, it felt necessary to write about what music was popular at the time in which Kathy was alive. As stated beforehand, she was only exposed to one tape, and this music is older as Kathy had only found it at a sale. Britpop is the current style of music that is popular in the United Kingdom at the time she is alive, even if she cannot know of its' existence. 

Sources:

Levine, Alan. This Old Guitar. 2010. Flickr, https://www.flickr.com/photos/cogdog/4270950372. 

"The Story of Britpop." The Music Origins Project, 10th April, 2020. https://musicorigins.org/the-story-of-britpop/.