Folk music has never been exactly popular compared to what the music business pushes. Pop = popular. Folk/Jazz/Blues etc. = niche. There has always been some crossover where niche music of some sort has a brief forray into the popular market and likewise some pop songs make it in niche circles if done properly. They are different genres and every genre has its good and bad. Pop music may be louder than folk/jazz/blues etc. but while it may drown out the minority interests, it will never kill them off.