Psy debuted with his first studio albumPsy from the Psycho World! (2001), and rose to international prominence with the single "Gangnam Style" (2012). The song and itsaccompanying music video became a worldwideviral phenomenon following its release; the music video became the first video on YouTube to reach 1 billion views and was themost-viewed video on YouTube from December 2012 to July 2017,. His follow-up single, "Gentleman", was released in 2013; its accompanying music video was the most-viewed YouTube video in its first 24 hours at the time. In 2018, he founded his talent agencyP Nation.
Park attended Banpo (반포) Elementary and Middle Schools and Sehwa (세화) High School.[7] He disliked school and was known as theclass clown. In an interview on South Korea'sSeoul Broadcasting System, a former teacher of Park said: "I remember Psy making a lot ofsexual jokes during class. He had such a big influence that he would drive the entire class to his jokes. I disliked him at the time, but looking back, I see that he added a great energy to the class."[8][unreliable source?]
Park told CNN'sAlina Cho that when he was 15 years old, he watched a Korean TV programme that introduced foreign pop music. One particular episode showeda concert atWembley Stadium held by the British rock bandQueen where they performed their 1975 hit single "Bohemian Rhapsody". Park said it was this concert footage that sparked his love for music.[9]
Music career
1996–2000: Brief study in the United States and career beginnings
Psy with the Gangnam Style logo
As part of preparations to take over DI Corporation from his father, Park had originally planned to studybusiness administration atBoston University in 1996.[10] However, upon his arrival in the United States, he lost interest in his studies,[11] spending his remaining tuition funds on musical instruments and entertainment equipment, including a computer, an electric keyboard, and aMIDI interface.[12] After attending an English-language summer course and studying for one semester, Park dropped out of Boston University and applied to study atBerklee College of Music instead. During his time at Berklee, Park took core curriculum lessons in ear training, contemporary writing and music synthesis, but he soon dropped out and returned to South Korea to pursue a career as a singer, without having attained a degree from either Boston University or Berklee.[13][14][15]Psy was found by South Korean rapperzoPD and featured in the song "카사노바" from his second albumIn Stardom Version 2.0 in 1999.[16][17][18]In South Korea, Psy made his first appearance on Korean national television in 2000 after his dancing caught the eye of a TV producer.[19]
2001–2002:Psy from the Psycho World!, controversy, and domestic success
In January 2001, Psy debuted his full-length albumPsy from the Psycho World!, for which he was fined by South Korean government authorities due to his album's "inappropriate content".[20] Psy was a rookiehip-hop singer that stirred up the Korean pop music scene with very blunt lyrics, peculiar dance moves and an unconventional appearance that earned him the nickname "The Bizarre Singer" (엽기가수).[21][22][23]
His second albumSa 2 also created controversy upon its release in 2002, earning complaints from civil groups due to the potentially negative influence his album would have on children and teenagers. Since then, Psy has been thought of as a controversial artist, andSa 2 was banned in 2002 from being sold to the under-19 set. In September of the same year, Psy released his third album3 Psy. The album's title song, "Champion", saw great success partly due to the hype from theWorld Cup games held in Seoul. Despite the significant amount of controversy surrounding his music, Psy was awarded songwriting accolades at the annualSeoul Music Awards, marking his breakthrough in the South Korean music industry.[24]
2003–2009: Military service,Ssajib, and re-enlistment
In 2003, Psy was conscripted into theSouth Korean military as part ofmandatory military service imposed on all South Korean men aged 18 to 35.[25][26] Psy was excused from military duty due to working at a software development company (theSouth Korean government grants exemptions to those with technical expertise work in companies that serve the national interest). He was expected to be released from duties in 2005.[27] In 2006, Psy released his fourth albumSsajib, which won honors at the 2006 SBS Music Awards and Hong Kong'sMnet Asian Music Awards.[24]
In 2007, state prosecutors accused Psy of "neglecting" his work, holding concerts and appearing on local television networks during his period of prior employment.[28] On October 12, 2007, the Seoul Administrative Court decided that Psy must be redrafted, rejecting a lawsuit filed by Psy against the Military Manpower Administration (MMA) in August. Two months later, Psy was re-drafted into the military where he had held the rank ofPrivate First Class and served as asignalman in the52nd Army Infantry Division, before being released from duties in July 2009.[29][30]
2010–2012: Fifth studio album and debut performance in Japan
On January 7, 2012, Psy performed alongside K-pop bandsBigbang and2NE1 in front of 80,000 Japanese fans during theYG Family Concert inOsaka. His performance was broadcast byMezamashi TV (mezamashi meaning "wake-up alarm"), a Japanese news magazine show produced byFuji Television. This marked his first appearance on a foreign broadcasting network.[36][unreliable source?] During the concert, Psy introduced himself to his Japanese fans with a sign that read "I'm a famous singer well known for driving the audience wild in Korea, but here, today, I'm just a little chubby newcomer" and sang five of his hit songs while Japanese TV commentators expressed their approval in their astonishment at his humorous incorporation of the moves ofLady Gaga andBeyoncé.[37]
2012–2013: "Gangnam Style" and international breakthrough
In July 2012, Psy released his sixth albumPsy 6 (Six Rules), Part 1 and the song "Gangnam Style" appeared in broadcasting networks and newspapers outside Asia.[38][39][40] On August 14, "Gangnam Style" ranked first on YouTube's 'Most Viewed Videos' monthly chart;[41][unreliable source?] on August 21, 2012, "Gangnam Style" officially charted No. 1 on the iTunes Music Video Charts, overtakingJustin Bieber's "As Long as You Love Me" andKaty Perry's "Wide Awake"; this feat was the first for a South Korean artist. After the video went viral, celebrities quickly jumped on board, withKaty Perry,Britney Spears, andTom Cruise taking to Twitter to share their delight.[42] The Gangnam Style phenomenon has also popularized his older music videos, such as "Right Now".[43] On September 14, 2012, he appeared onThe Today Show on NBC in New York City, performing the song live and teaching dance moves to the anchors.[44] The following day, he also made a cameo appearance onSaturday Night Live during a skit featuring "Gangnam Style".[45] Commenting on his popularity among foreign celebrities, Psy said:
When I realized that some top stars like have imagined or tweeted about me, I thought, "That's joking. That's not gonna happen" ... I never expect things like this, not because they are top stars, but because this is the biggest market in the universe for pop music, right, so everybody's dreaming about having appearance in the U.S. so I'm still saying, "What going on here? This is beautiful."[46]
Riding high on the success of "Gangnam Style", Psy was signed byScooter Braun to Braun'sSchoolboy Records, a label distributed byRepublic Records.[47] In early September, theGangnam district awarded Psy with a plaque and named him an honorary ambassador.[48] On October 24, 2012, Psy was recognized by the United Nations as an "International sensation".[49] According toReuters, U.N. Secretary GeneralBan Ki-moon scheduled a meeting with Psy in the belief that music has great power to overcome intolerance.[50] On October 23, 2012, they met at theUnited Nations Headquarters where Ban expressed his desire to work with Psy. He remarked that Psy has an "unlimited global reach" and said, "I hope that we can work together using your global reach".[51]
On November 7, 2012, Psy held a speech in England at theOxford Union to discuss the inspiration behind "Gangnam Style" and his next album. He told the audience that due to the success of "Gangnam Style" he is now living in both a dream and a nightmare, as it will be difficult for his next song to equal "Gangnam Style"'s success. He also talked about his early life and the moment he realized "Gangnam Style" became famous. According toThe Independent, tickets for his speech were "in such demand they had to be assigned by ballot—a method not required when former presidential candidateJohn McCain spoke earlier that year, nor whenMother Teresa, theDalai Lama norMichael Jackson spoke".[53]
On November 12, 2012, Psy became the second South Korean music artist to appear at theMTV Europe Music Awards[55][unreliable source?] where he performed "Gangnam Style" and held off competition fromRihanna,Katy Perry, andLady Gaga to win the "Best Video" award.[56] The event was broadcast worldwide and hosted by the German model and actressHeidi Klum, who introduced Psy to the audience as the "undisputed King of Pop".[57] A few days later, American singer-songwriterMadonna performed a mashup of "Gangnam Style" and "Give It 2 Me" alongside Psy and her backup dancers during a concert in New York City atMadison Square Garden duringThe MDNA Tour. Psy later told reporters that his gig with Madonna had "topped his list of accomplishments".[58]
On November 24, 2012, "Gangnam Style" became the most viewed video in YouTube history, surpassing the previous most-watched video,Justin Bieber's "Baby". The number of views was achieved about eleven times faster than Bieber's.[59] Psy later won four awards at the2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards in Hong Kong on November 30, 2012. On December 21, 2012, "Gangnam Style" reached 1 billion views on YouTube, becoming the first video to do so in the website's history.[60] He met actor and stunt performerJackie Chan, who called him a role model that proved that "dreams do come true".[61] Also, he was selected asSinger of the Year in the public survey conducted byGallup Korea that year.[62]
In January 2013, Psy was announced as a winner of the 2013 Korea Image Awards, being awarded the Korea Image Stepping Stone Award for "his contribution to enhancing the national image".[63] Psy made his debut on South American television by giving an interview on the Brazilian news programFantástico.[64] It was announced on January 27, 2013, that Psy would perform at South Korea's presidential inauguration ceremony on February 25, 2013.[65]
2013–2014: "Gentleman", "Hangover", YouTube record
On April 12, 2013, the audio of Psy's follow-up single "Gentleman" was leaked onto the internet, a day before its official international release.[66] On the following day, the music video for 'Gentleman' premiered at Psy's 'Happening' Concert, which was attended by 50,000 people and live streamed on YouTube to an audience of 150,000.[67][68][unreliable source?] Guest performers of the concert includedLee Hi,2NE1 andG-Dragon.[68] He reportedly invested US$2.7 million into the production of the concert.[69][unreliable source?] Psy continued to promote Gentlemen throughout 2013. In May 2013, PSY appeared twice onLive! with Kelly and Michael and taughtKelly Ripa andMichael Strahan how to do the Gentleman Dance.[70][unreliable source?][71] Psy also appeared in the finale ofAmerican Idolseason 12 and sang "Gentleman".[72] Psy also performed his song "Gentleman" on the Finale ofDancing With the Stars, Season 16.[73] Five days later, Psy also performed at thefinal match of the2012–13 Coppa Italia.[74] On June 8, 2013, Psy and his troupe performed "Gentleman" on the Finale ofBritain's Got Talent, Series 7. Later that month, on June 8, Psy co-hosted the CanadianMuchMusic Video Awards, where he also opened the show with his worldwide hit "Gangnam Style" and ended the show with his "official last performance of 'Gentleman' on TV."[75]
Psy was slated to star in a South Korean remake of the Hindi filmABCD: Any Body Can Dance, taking over the role ofVishnu (Prabhu Deva) in the original film.[76] In April he became the tourism ambassador of South Korea for 2013.[77] On May 9, Psy gave a special lecture at Harvard University. In this lecture, he spoke about his passion and other reasons for his popularity.[78] On May 24, 2013, people began voting daily, at www.psygobibigo.com, for one of the Top Three Chefs, based on more than one hundred ninety video entries, in Psy's "Psy Needs a Chef" video contest.[79][80][81][82] The Top Three Chefs in this contest were Aaron Contreras,[83][84] Dj Park[85] and Ricardo Caput.[86] Voting ended June 10, 2013, at midnightGreenwich Mean Time. Aaron Contreras received 2,005 votes. Ricardo received 22,384 votes. Dj Park,[87] won the popular vote with 22,533 votes. Winners were to be announced June 14, 2013. However, Psy postponed his decision until June 18, 2013, and chose Ricardo to be his chef, in spite of the popular vote.[88]
On June 9, 2014, Psy released a new single, "Hangover", featuring American rapperSnoop Dogg, and announced his intention to release a new song titled "Father".
On December 1, 2014, the YouTube video for "Gangnam Style" garnered over231 − 1 views, overflowing the YouTube counter to a negative number, resulting in a public comment from Google/YouTube saying "We never thought a video would be watched in numbers greater than a 32-bit integer (=2,147,483,647 views), but that was before we met PSY. "Gangnam Style" has been viewed so many times we had to upgrade to a 64-bit integer (9,223,372,036,854,775,808)!" Hovering over the counter of the YouTube video triggered an easter egg.[89] A YouTube representative later revealed that the comment was a joke and that the company had already updated to a 64-bit integer months ago.[90][91]
2015–2018:Chiljip PSY-da,4X2=8, and departure from YG Entertainment
On March 28, 2015, he released a music video for his songFather.[92] On December 1, 2015, Psy released his seventh album titledChiljip PSY-da, with double title tracks "Daddy" and "Napal Baji".[93] The album included features from label mateCL as well asWill.i.am Promotions for the album included two performances onInkigayo, where the single "Daddy" won a triple crown,[94] as well as a performance onYou Hee-yeol's Sketchbook.[95] "Daddy" was also included in the dance video gameJust Dance 2017.
In May 2017, Psy released his eighth studio album,4X2=8, with lead singles "I Luv it" and "New Face". The album features collaborations from several artists including label-matesG-Dragon andTaeyang. The music video for "I Luv It" featured actorLee Byung-hun and comedianPikotaro while for the "New Face" videoApink'sSon Na-eun played the title role.[96]
On May 15, 2018, Psy officially left YG Entertainment after eight years.[97]
On April 29, 2022, Psy released his ninth studio album,Psy 9th, with its lead single "That That" featuringSuga ofBTS.[105]
On June 10, 2022, Psy released the official SNS afternoon tour schedule of 'Psy Soak Show SUMMER SWAG 2022', a domestic tour of 7 cities in the country until August 20.[106]
Following Psy's departure fromYG Entertainment in 2018, Psy founded his own entertainment company, P Nation.[107] Psy announced the first artist signed to his label in January 2019, the rapperJessi.[108] P Nation then signedHyuna andDawn, both formerly ofCube Entertainment.[109]
As of November 2022, the label had 10 artists signed to the label, including the six-member boy band,TNX.[110] The record label is located in the Gangnam area.[110][111]
Artistry
Park Jae-sang's stage name "Psy" derives from the wordpsycho. Explaining his stage name, he said in aBBC interview, "what I thought was, you know, crazy about music, dancing, performance, so that kind of psycho".[112]
Influences
In a 2012 interview withThe New York Times, Psy calledFreddie Mercury of the British rock bandQueen his biggest musical influence: "My lifetime role model and hero is Freddie Mercury of Queen. His songwriting skills, I cannot even approach, but his showmanship, I learned it from videos. I'm No. 1 in the U.K. right now, so if I have any chance to go there, I want to meet Queen and to tell them how much I got inspired by their music."[113] Psy also revealed that the one celebrity he wants to meet most is the American actorTom Cruise,[114] who helped popularize "Gangnam style" on Twitter and tweeted whether Psy would "make a good future co-star Gangnam Style?".[115][116]
Public image
Psy performing in Sydney, Australia
Psy is known for his sense of humor in his concerts, where he imitates female singers such asPark Ji-yoon,Lee Hyo-ri,Lady Gaga, andBeyoncé.[117]Although his music is part of theK-pop (Korean popular music) genre, Beth Hong fromThe Vancouver Observer noted that Psy doesn't fit the standardK-pop idol image of being "incredibly young, good-looking, and able to carry a melodramatic note".[118]
Lucy Williamson from theBBC recognized Psy as South Korea's "newest and biggest music star", but also described him as "unpolished, unpredictable and he doesn't look like your typical Korean idol".[119][120][unreliable source?] Sarah Charlton fromReuters called him a "chubby South Korean pop singer" that has found fame and popularity in a "sea of pretty K-pop stars".[121] In South Korea, some have called him the "Bizarre Singer"[122][unreliable source?] while others consider him to be "theantithesis of what is popular in Korean pop music".[123]
Chelsea Handler fromChelsea Lately jokingly described Psy as "Korea'sRicky Martin, as well as a sex symbol" during his introduction on the show,[124][unreliable source?] while Gil Kaufman from MTV described the singer as one of the "biggest pop sensations in the world".[58]
"Gangnam Style" – First video to be viewed more than 2 billion times on YouTube[125]
As a result of his achievements, Psy is considered to be the firstK-popartist to make a breakthrough in the Westernmusic industry.[126] In an interview withAgence France-Presse, Psy affirmed that "[i]t will be only a matter of time before K-Pop will produce many others like Psy".[127]
On May 25, 2017, Psy was presented with a Diamond Play Button from YouTube, in recognition of his surpassing 10 million subscribers to his YouTube channel,[130] making him the first Asian solo artist to ever do so.[131]
Personal life
On October 14, 2006, Psy married Yoo Hye-yeon, a cello major atYonsei University and his girlfriend of three and a half years. According to theKorean Broadcasting System, the couple were introduced by a mutual acquaintance.[132][133] They have twin daughters.[134][unreliable source?] Psy considers "Gangnam Style" to be the greatest achievement of his life.[135] Psy finalized the purchase of a condominium unit inWestwood, Los Angeles, California, in November 2012. Psy made the purchase to relocate to Los Angeles following his signing with US-based music manager Scooter Braun to further his career.[136][137]
In 2022, he moved back to South Korea to start a record label, located in Gangnam. He lives north of the river.[137]
Legal issues
In late 2001, Psy was arrested for smoking and possessingmarijuana and was sentenced to 25 days in jail.[139][140][141] As a result, he was unable to be at his grandfather's deathbed as he died of cancer, or attend his funeral. During an interview in 2012 Psy stated "I was very close to him. I was not there at the funeral: I will regret this for the rest of my life, because my grandpa loved me so much, and I couldn't be there for him on his deathbed."[142][143][unreliable source?] Psy was also fined in January 2002 for the marijuana incident.[144][unreliable source?]
Views on North Korea
In the early 2010s, South Korea'sSunshine Policy towards North Korea was downscaled as tensions between the two countries continued to increase. As a result, Psy was questioned by the media on several occasions regarding his views on North Korea.
On April 13, 2013, Psy attended a press conference where he expressed regret about his country's conflict with North Korea and described the situation as a "tragedy". He also expressed hope that North Koreans would one day be able to enjoy his music before elaborating that his job is to make everyone, including North Koreans, laugh.[145] Right before the start of a concert inSeoul, Psy added: "Tonight me and 50,000 Korean people... we are going to sing out loud. We are going to shout out loud and we are really close to them, so they [the North Koreans] can hear."[146]
In an interview withThe Daily Beast in April 2013, Psy was asked to give his take on North Korean leaderKim Jong Un's threats against South Korea and the United States, to which he replied: "Well, as an entertainer, I don't want to talk about politics. As a Korean citizen, I want peace. That's all I can say. I want permanent peace."[147]
Philanthropy
On August 11, 2022, Psy donated ₩100 million to help those affected by the2022 South Korean floods through the Hope Bridge Korea Disaster Relief Association.[148]
Controversies
Anti-American performances and subsequent apology
Psy in March 2012, during a press conference for a Korean television showSuperstar K4.
In 2002, Psy participated in ananti-American concert after aU.S. military convoy accidentally struck and killed two 14-year-old South Korean schoolgirls in theYangju highway incident. The soldiers involved in the incident were acquitted by U.S. military courts,[149] which fueled a significant amount ofanti-American sentiment in South Korea. Inspired by that incident, Psy lifted up a miniature model of an "American tank" and smashed it against the stage.[150]
In 2004, the South Korean translator and Christian missionaryKim Sun-il was kidnapped and beheaded in Iraq after the South Korean government refused to reconsider sending its armed forces to support theIraq War. Although initial protests were only directed towards the South Korean government and towards extremists in Iraq, anti-U.S. military protesters decided to seize the moment to trigger a much larger wave of anti-Americanism. During a concert, Psy admonished the Iraqi kidnappers, condemned South Korea's former presidentRoh Moo-hyun, and also sang along to lyrics of the song "Dear American" by South Korean rock bandN.EX.T, which criticizes the United States military for its actions in the Iraq war.[151] An initial translation of the lyrics was posted by an iReporter onto CNN'siReport site.[152] Some of the lyrics, referring to the guards who tortured Iraqi prisoners, were translated by CNN as follows: "Kill those fucking Yankees who have been torturing Iraqi captives and those who ordered them to torture" and "Kill [the Yankees'] daughters, mothers, daughters-in-law and fathers / Kill them all slowly and painfully."[152][153]
A few days laterThe Washington Post raised questions about the accuracy of the translation of the lyrics into English, which originated fromCNN's citizen journalism initiative iReport. Max Fisher ofThe Washington Post foreign staff reported that he solicited native Korean and English speakers, academics accustomed to the sensitivity of word-for-word translations, young Koreans familiar with the cultural connotations of the lyrics, and a professional interpreter to offer their translation of the lyrics, and found out that the lyrics may have actually slurred the American servicemen rather than calling for their deaths, although he did also go on to opine that, "using aracial slur to accuse Americans of killing Iraqis' family members is still pretty serious".[154][155] Fisher also states that the word translated "Yankee" in the CNN iReport was underplayed, with one Korean American describing the slur as a "nearly untranslatable" racist "epithet", perhaps best approximated as "foreign barbarian". Fisher notes that one translator indicates that the slur is meant as "a derogatory term for American", and that others have translated the slur alternately as "Yankee", "big nose", and "despicable Western women and men".[154]
Although Psy's actions did not receive any significant international media coverage at that time, this changed after the media reported about it in early December 2012. On December 7, 2012, Psy issued an apology directed towards members of the U.S. military and to the American people for his "inflammatory and inappropriate" language, and expressed hope that the American public would accept his apology.[156]
Despite initial public outrage,White House spokesmanJosh Earnest told the media that U.S. PresidentBarack Obama andFirst LadyMichelle Obama would attend Psy's performance at theChristmas in Washington charity concert as planned.[157] As a result of the controversy, a petition circulated on the website of the White House demanding that he be dropped from the concert, although the petition was deleted later in the day because the White House website claimed that the petition violated the website's terms of participation.[152]Time magazine's Nick Carbone asserted that it is "unlikely that these newly dug-up anecdotes will depose Psy from his king-like level of stardom" although Carbone did go on to write that the atmosphere at the White House concert would be "somewhat subdued".[157]
Malaysian political rally
Psy was invited to perform on February 11, 2013, inPenang, Malaysia for the rulingBarisan Nasional party in an attempt to reach out to young voters in the area. Media reports estimated a cost of at least US$300,000 for the performance.[158] Opposition backers called for supporters of theDemocratic Action Party to attend wearing opposition colors. Despite the controversy and calls by Malaysian citizens to cancel the concert,[159] Psy completed aChinese New Year open house performance at Han Chiang School[160] for a crowd of 100,000.[161]
Following the concert, a media report revealed that Psy received death threats prior to entering the country and this was the reason for the delay in Psy's on-stage appearance. Psy eventually performed for ten minutes to an excited crowd. The media report also reported on a press conference at the Jelutong Gerakan Chinese New Year open house that revealed that questions were raised over the financing of the event. StateBarisan Nasional (BN) party chief Teng Chang Yeow explained that the event "was sponsored by private sponsors who preferred to remain anonymous as they are afraid of being 'victimised' if their identities were revealed". Teng also stated that he was given the choice of aJustin Bieber visit, but chose Psy as he didn't know who Bieber was at the time.[162]
"Assarabia" revision
In March 2013, South Korean media reported that the title of Psy's upcoming single would contain the word "Assarabia",[163] a slang used by South Koreans to express thrills, or simply to describe something satisfying. There were numerous objections to that upcoming title, and worries have risen that people of Arabic descent might misinterpret the title and find it derogatory.[164]
After being questioned by a correspondent of theVoice of America about the upcoming track's potential to offend, Psy said that there has been some misunderstanding and his upcoming song will undergo a major revamp.[165] On March 19, 2013, he revised his song's title and lyrics over "worries it could offend Arabs".[164] Many people consider the change of his song title deliberate, aimed solely at building publicity for a strong follow-up to "Gangnam Style".[165] He subsequently renamed the song "Gentleman" and released it on April 12, 2013.
Reported earnings
According toThe Korea Times in 2013, Psy earned more than US$40 million in 2012 via sales through concerts, TV commercials, and social media revenue through his hit songGangnam Style, while his estimated personal income in 2012 was US$28 million under his 7:3 profit-sharing contract with YG Entertainment.[166]
^Harris, Mark Edward."Seoul music: K-pop in Korea's capital".Travel Weekly. RetrievedFebruary 12, 2013.Psy's mother, Kim Young-hee, is the owner of several restaurants in Gangnam, including Nekko Manma on Garosugil Street.
^Hwang Hye-jin (June 10, 2022).싸이, 7월 8일 '흠뻑쇼' 개막…7개 도시 투어[공식] [Psy's 'Drenched Show' opens on July 8th... 7 Cities Tour [Official]] (in Korean). Newsen. RetrievedJune 10, 2022 – viaNaver.
^abcde"PSY secures new YouTube world record with "Gentleman"".Guinness World Records. April 25, 2013. RetrievedApril 30, 2013.PSY's previous music video, "Gangnam Style", earned him multiple GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS titles, including Most viewed video online, Most "liked" video online, and First video to receive one billion views.
^"PSY says he hopes NKoreans enjoy his new single". Associated Press. Archived fromthe original on April 14, 2013. RetrievedApril 30, 2013.It's a tragedy. We are the only countries divided right now," PSY said at a news conference ahead of the concert. North and South Korea, which are divided by heavily fortified borders, are technically still at war, with the 1950–53 Korean War ending with a cease-fire, not a peace treaty. PSY said he hoped North Koreans would enjoy his new music. He said his job was to make all people, including North Koreans, laugh.
^Lee, Hyun-ah (August 11, 2022).싸이, 호우 피해 이재민 구호활동 지원 1억 전달 [Psy donates 100 million won in aid to victims of heavy rain] (in Korean).Ilgan Sports. RetrievedAugust 11, 2022 – viaNaver.
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