Gangnam Style
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"Gangnam Style"
Single by PSY
from the album PSY's Best 6th Part 1
Released July 15, 2012
Format Digital download
Genre K-pop, electro house, hip house, Korean hip hop
Length 3:39
Label YG, Universal Republic
Writer(s) Yoo Gun-hyung, Psy[citation needed]
Producer Yang Hyun-suk[citation needed]
PSY chronology
"Korea"
(2012) "Gangnam Style"
(2012) "Oppa Is Just My Style"
(2012)
"Gangnam Style"
Hangul 강남스타일
Hanja 江南스타일
Revised Romanization Gangnamseutail
McCune–Reischauer Kangnamsŭt'ail
Music sample
"Gangnam Style"
Music video
"Gangnam Style" on YouTube
Alternative cover
Original design
This article contains Korean text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Hangul or Hanja.
"Gangnam Style" (Korean: 강남스타일, IPA: [kaŋnam sɯtail]) is a single by South Korean rapper Psy. The song was released on July 15, 2012, as the lead single of his sixth studio album PSY's Best 6th Part 1. "Gangnam Style" debuted at number one on the Gaon Chart, the national record chart of South Korea.[1] As of October 7, 2012, the music video has been viewed over 400 million times on YouTube,[2] making it the site's most watched K-pop video.[3]
The video has been shared on the Internet by numerous celebrities including T-Pain, Katy Perry, Britney Spears, and Tom Cruise, covered by music artists Nelly Furtado[4] and Maroon 5,[5] and featured in international media outlets such as CNN International, The Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, the Harvard Business Review,[6] and the global politics magazine Foreign Policy.[7] "Gangnam Style" flash mobs have appeared in cities around the world. The video has become a source of parodies and reaction videos by many different groups including The Oregon Duck, midshipmen from the United States Naval Academy, and the North Korean government.[8][9] Psy has brought the "Gangnam Style" dance to various locations including The Today Show, Saturday Night Live, Dodger Stadium, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and Samsung commercials.[10]
"Gangnam Style" has been highly praised for its catchy beat and Psy's humorous dance moves in the music video and live performances. On September 17, the song was nominated for Best Video at the upcoming 2012 MTV Europe Music Awards to be held in Frankfurt, Germany.[11] On September 20, 2012, "Gangnam Style" was recognized by Guinness World Records as the most "liked" video in YouTube history".[12]Contents [hide]
Background
"Gangnam Style" is a Korean neologism that refers to a lifestyle associated with the Gangnam district[13] of Seoul,[14] where people are trendy, hip and exude a certain supposed "class". The term was listed in Time's weekly vocabulary list as a manner associated with lavish lifestyles in Seoul's Gangnam district.[15] Psy likened the Gangnam District to Beverly Hills, California, and said in an interview that he intended a twisted sense of humor by claiming himself to be "Gangnam Style" when everything about the song, dance, looks, and the music video is far from being such a high class.[16]
People who are actually from Gangnam never proclaim that they are—it's only the posers and wannabes that put on these airs and say that they are "Gangnam Style" — so this song is actually poking fun at those kinds of people who are trying so hard to be something that they're not.
—Psy[17]
The song talks about "the perfect girlfriend who knows when to be refined and when to get wild."[18] The song's refrain "오빤 강남 스타일 (Oppan Gangnam style)" has been translated as "Big brother is Gangnam style", with Psy referring to himself;[19][20] "Oppa" is a Korean expression used by females to refer to an older male friend or older brother.[21]
The music was composed by Psy and Yoo Gun-hyung, a producer in South Korea who also collaborated with Psy in the past. Yoo also arranged the song while Psy was responsible for the lyrics.
Music video
The music video shows Psy performing a comical horse-riding dance and appearing in unexpected locations around the Gangnam District, such as an outdoor yoga session and a hot tub. He wears several distinctive suits and black sunglasses with a mindset of "dress classy and dance cheesy".[22] It features a "skewering [of] the Gangnam image" by the "non-Gangnam PSY"; this parody would be recognizable to viewers familiar with Korean culture.[23]
The music video shows Psy dancing at various locations in Gangnam.[24] Although there are more than ten different locations featured, only two of the scenes are actually filmed in the Gangnam district. The sauna scene, elevator scene and bathroom scene were filmed elsewhere in the greater Seoul region.[25] The video was shot over 48 hours in July.[26][27]
In K-pop, it is routine to have cameos by celebrities in a music video, such as in the dance scenes in the elevator and the parking garage.[28] Making appearances in the music video are:
4minute member Hyuna playing Psy's love interest and appearing in the two final dance sequences.[24][27]
Big Bang members Daesung and Seungri appear in the video as two old men playing a board game in the park; they are the two men flying in the background after the explosion.[29]
Hwang Min-woo, a 5-year-old boy who is seen dancing at the beginning of the video. During an interview with CNN, Psy stated that "the night before the music video shoot, I was watching Korea's Got Talent and saw him dance to Michael Jackson. His moves were ridiculous. So we called him up and asked him to be in the music video, which was shooting the very next day, and he came and it all worked out."[17][27] He has been praised for his eye-catching dance moves that has received a lot of attention from viewers.[30]
Comedian/television personality, Korea's Nation emcee Yoo Jae-Suk, in a dance duel with Psy.[24][27]
Comedian/television personality, No Hongchul, dancing in an elevator with his trademark pelvis-thrusting, with Psy rapping underneath him.[24][27]
According to The Guardian, Psy has waived his copyright to the music video. Although this has not been officially confirmed, it is likely that Psy has simply refrained from taking legal action against parodies of his video. "Gangnam Style" is therefore a video that is "born to spawn".[31]
Synopsis
Psy is lounging at what looks like a sandy beach, but the camera zooms out to reveal he is actually at a playground.[28] The video alternates between the playground, where a boy dances next to him, and a row of horses in stalls, where Psy performs his signature "invisible horse dance".[32] As Psy (and two girls) walk through a parking garage, they are pelted by pieces of newspaper, trash, and snow.[26] At a sauna, he rests his head on a man's shoulder, while another man covered in tattoos is stretching. He sings in front of two men playing chess, dances with a woman at a tennis court, and bounces around on a tour bus of seniors. The scenes alternate quickly until there is an explosion at the chess players. He walks towards the camera, exclaiming "Oppan Gangnam style". He and some dancers perform at a horse stable. He dances as two women walk backwards. He dances at the tennis court, a carousel, and the tour bus. He shuffles into an outdoor yoga session. He dances on a boat. The camera zooms on a woman's butt, then shows Psy "yelling" at it.[26][27]
At a car-park, Psy is approached by a man with a red Mercedes-Benz SLK-Class and a yellow suit; they have a dance duel. He appears in an elevator underneath a man who is straddling him and thrusting his pelvis. The man in the yellow suit gets in his car and leaves. In a subway cabin, he notices an attractive young woman dancing. At one of the train stops, he approaches the girl in slow motion, and she does the same. They start to embrace. He then tells the girl "Oppan Gangnam style", and they horse dance along with some others at the train stop. He also surfaces from a spa.[33][27][26]
Psy sings to the girl at a night club as people in all sorts of costumes walk behind them. He raps "seriously" in an enclosed space, but when the camera zooms out, he is actually sitting on a toilet with his pants down.[26] Psy and a large group of dancers do the horse dance and strike a final pose. After some additional footage of the dance duel, Psy says, "Oppan Gangnam style", and the video finishes with a cartoon graphic.
Reception
Main article: Reception of Gangnam Style
"Gangnam Style" caught the attention of media around the world. Maura Judkis of The Washington Post wrote, "'Gangnam Style' has made an extraordinarily stupid-looking dance move suddenly cool".[34] The German weekly news magazine Der Spiegel similarly attributed the growing popularity of "Gangnam Style" to its daring dance moves.[35] Mesfin Fekadu of the Associated Press wrote that Psy is "currently having a pop culture moment." Psy's dance moves are "somewhat bizarre" but the music video is full of "colorful, lively outfits." He also remarked that Psy "is excited his colorful style is being celebrated in the United States, and around the world."[36] Deborah Netburn of the Los Angeles Times called it "one of the greatest videos ever to be uploaded to YouTube."[37]
Matt Miller, a host from the business and financial news broadcaster Bloomberg Television, played "Gangnam Style" during his show, because "it's just a super hot video that has gone astronomically viral." He also said that PSY did say on CNN that he wants to make people laugh even in the midst of all these global economic slowdowns, "so that's the Wall Street tie-in" he needed.[38]
Although "Gangnam Style" has been met with largely positive reactions, some have found it wacky or even vulgar.[39] Matt Buchanan and Scott Ellis of The Sydney Morning Herald wrote that the video "makes no sense at all to most Western eyes" and it "makes you wonder if you have accidentally taken someone else's medication."[40] Paul Lester of The Guardian labelled it as "generic ravey Euro dance with guitars".[41] and Robert Myers of The Village Voice called it "an inspired piece of silliness".[42] Scott Adams, the creator of the Dilbert comic strip, claims that the seemingly bad elements of "Gangnam Style" all come together to create "an awesome whole".[43]
Appearances and live performances
Following the release of "Gangnam Style", Psy made several performances on television and at concerts in Korea. Among the first of such performances include his appearance on the weekly South Korean music program, The Music Trend.[44] Psy also performed at several concerts prior to his departure to the US, including during "The Heumbbeok Show"[45] and the Summer Stand Concert in Seoul.[46]
On August 20, Psy posted on Twitter "Bringing #GANGNAM STYLE to the Dodgers–Giants game this evening". Dodger Stadium presented a segment called "PSY Dance Cam" where they showed clips of the music video, followed by live shots of baseball fans dancing, and then Psy, who waves and does the dance.[47] Two days later, Psy appeared on VH1's Big Morning Buzz Live show, and taught television hosts Carrie Keagan and Jason Dundas how to dance "Gangnam Style".[48][49]
On September 6, Psy appeared on the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards performing his "Gangnam Style" dance alongside comedian Kevin Hart.[50] After the event, He would make several more appearances on US TV programs. On September 10, he appeared on the The Ellen DeGeneres Show in Burbank, California, introducing himself as "Psy from Korea", before teaching Britney Spears the dance. He described the dance as "pretending to bounce like riding on an invisible horse"[22][51][52] and when Ellen told Britney she would have to remove her high-heeled shoes to perform the dance Psy protested that no, the point was, 'to dress classy, and dance cheesy.' On September 14, he appeared on NBC's morning program Today in New York City for its Toyota Concert Series, where he performed the song and also taught the anchors the dance.[53][54] The September 15 season premiere episode of Saturday Night Live featured a sketch based on the song and its video. Bobby Moynihan portrayed Psy, but was joined mid-sketch by Psy himself.[55]
On September 22, Psy made an appearance at the iHeartRadio Music Festival to perform "Gangnam Style".[56] Psy would return to South Korea on September 25;[57] while the rapper was in the US, it was announced that he, as ambassador of the Formula One Korean Grand Prix, will perform "Gangnam Style" at the event during the 2012 edition.[58] On October 4, Psy performed "Gangnam Style" during a free concert that he held outside the Seoul City Hall. More than 80,000 fans attended the event, leading to the closure of a part of the city center and an increase in subway operations.[59][60]
Impact
The music video for the song has gone viral and is an Internet meme.[61] Hallie Sekoff of The Huffington Post quoted from the video's official YouTube video description that the song is characterized by its "strongly addictive beats", and wrote that this is not too far-fetched, considering "how obsessed we've found ourselves."[62] During VH1's Big Morning Buzz Live show, the television host Carrie Keagan said that everyone in our office is "completely obsessed" with "Gangnam Style".[48][49] Melissa Locker of Time noted that "it's hard not to watch again …and again …and again",[63] while CNN reporter Shanon Cook told the audience that she had watched "Gangnam Style" about 15 times.[64] as of September 28, 2012, the song's YouTube music video had been accessed by people from 222 countries.[65]
A view of Gangnam Station intersection
During the late night comedy talk show Chelsea Lately, the American stand-up comedian and actress Chelsea Handler told the audience she considers Psy to be a "revolutionary musician, dancer and sex symbol". She also compared him with the Latino pop singer Ricky Martin.[66]
Ju-min Park of Reuters mentioned that "a few of South Korea's normally staid presidential candidates are imitating Psy's moves in an appeal to voters".[67] The Korea Tourism Organization has launched an "One day Gangnam tour" that begins with some "gangnam styling" at a beauty salon, shopping at the Apgujeong & Cheongdam boutiques, coffee and brunch, followed by the casino and clubbing.[68] In September 2012, Korean grandmothers at the Palisades Park Senior Citizens Center in Bergen County, New Jersey were noted to follow the dance trend of Gangnam Style.[69] In Thailand, two local gangs provoked each other by dancing "Gangnam Style", eventually leading to a gun fight with more than 50 rounds fired.[70]
On September 7, the South Korean technology company Samsung Electronics announced that Psy would be one of the new faces promoting its Zipel line of refrigerators.[71] A commercial was recently released featuring Psy and the K-Pop singer Lee Seung-gi dancing to the music of "Gangnam Style" in front of an Internet refrigerator.[72] In early September, the Gangnam district awarded Psy with a plaque and named him an honorary ambassador.[73]
After the release of "Gangnam Style", the American talent manager Scooter Braun, who discovered Justin Bieber on YouTube, asked on Twitter "How did I not sign this guy (Psy)".[74] Soon afterwards, it was reported that Psy had left for Los Angeles to meet with representatives of Justin Bieber, to explore collaboration opportunities.[13][39] On September 3, Braun made a public announcement that was later uploaded onto YouTube, saying that he and Psy have decided to "make some history together. [To] be the first Korean artist to break a big record in the United States." On September 4, it was confirmed that Psy was signed to Braun's Schoolboy Records.[75]
"Gangnam Style" was also mentioned during a U.S. State Department briefing on October 3, 2012, when a reporter asked spokeswoman Victoria Nuland if she had heard about the song, to which Nuland replied: "No, but I bet you my daughter does. She loves Korean pop."[76][77]
Popular culture
Main article: Gangnam Style in popular culture
...it has taken over the world,
it has taken over the intrawebs,
and now it's time for it
to take over Times Square.
“
”
ABC News[78] during a "Gangnam Style" flash
mob in Manhattan, September 12, 2012.