Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
There’s not much I can add to this that hasn’t already been said. But, the “Beavis and Butt-head” part of me couldn’t help but chuckle when I saw that the doctor’s last name was “Ablow.” The fact that two old men who know next to nothing about music are critiquing and dismissing an “unintelligible” song because they can’t understand it. Wow. Just wow.
So hey, did you know that only Americans — i.e. white people, wink wink — should be allowed to perform at the “American Music Awards”? Should I be surprised at how stupid these people are?
Too bad they didn’t quote me correctly. The sentiment is there, but this isn’t exactly what I said. How do I know? They asked for my answers via e-mail. And I saved that e-mail.
South Korean rapper PSY’s “Gangnam Style” video has more than 200 million YouTube views and counting, and it’s easy to see why. No Korean language skills are needed to enjoy the chubby, massively entertaining performer’s crazy horse-riding dance, the song’s addictive chorus and the video’s exquisitely odd series of misadventures.
What a difference two months make. For the past dozen years, PSY has been a popular rapper and entertainer in Korea. Then in July, he uploaded his video for “Gangnam Style” on youtube.com, and the song went viral to the tune of more than 161 million views. Katy Perry, Britney Spears and Nelly Furtado tweeted about the song to their followers. “Gangnam Style” charted at No. 1 on the iTunes Music Video Charts, topping Perry and Justin Bieber and cracked the Billboard Hot 100 chart at No. 64. PSY is now represented by Bieber’s manager, Scooter Braun.
“People are surprised — bewildered, really — at PSY’s popularity abroad,” says Susan Kang, chief evangelist for Soompi.com, the mammoth online site dedicated to Korean pop music. “You have people saying, ‘We have all these beautiful guys and girls that have tried to break through to the U.S. market with little success. So why PSY?’ But of course they are embracing it to the fullest, and it’s causing a renewed interest in and respect for his music.”