I've been offered jobs in both. I'm a mid-twenties foreigner and I know the ~happening areas for that demographic are hongdae/itaewon. the only concern I have is that these places are overly gentrified and expensive tourist traps. I've never been to korea before so I'm not sure if these areas (or areas nearby) also have affordable hole-in-the-walls and mom & pop stores or if they're just overhyped by tourists. is it a mixed bag?

songpa seems a little quieter, but maybe less gentrified and touristy? I google maps-ed it and it's only about 45 min from yeongdeungpogu. is it more worth it to stay in songpa and then go to hongdae/itaewon/etc on weekends? songpa is close to gangnam, which seems very expensive & gentrified, but I'm just not sure.

I know gentrification is an increasingly large issue in seoul; my thinking is that if both are at the same level, I may as well go to the place that has more of the things I enjoy. I'm not super into clubbing but I love art/music & I would love to meet same-aged locals. mainly, I just want to figure out which district has the lowest ratio of bougie/gentrified things in this area to local joints/non-tourist areas. thanks in advance <3