‘Gangnam Style’: PSY

In July, my Korean wife summoned to watch a newly released music video. My wife is a K-Pop fan, especially Big Bang, and I'm, well, less eclectic in my Korean pop music tastes.

I answered her call, expecting to see G-Dragon once more on her computer screen (all right, I admit that 'Fantastic Baby' is terffic, but 'Monster'?, what a waste). Instead, I watched a video that at the conclusion I pronounced, 'That's the greatest music video ever made.'

Turns out my judgment was better than usual. Since I first watched the video, it's had over 50 million views on YouTube worldwide to date.

The video was 'Gangnam Style,' by PSY. And, ever since I first saw it, I have been wracking my brain trying to find some China connection, however tenuous, so that I could legitimately bring this masterpiece to those benighted CHINA Debate readers who somehow missed it. Now, I have found the connection, sort of. Here it is.

While 'Gangnam Style' has become an international hit, it's found little enthusiasm in China. As Weibo microblogger, Ryoko Rabbit, put it: 'Today, a friend told that there is an "uncle" song that has swept the world (except for China), and even went to the top of US Billboard chart! Powerful "Uncle" PSY.' [emphasis mine]

So, in the interest of better understanding contemporary Chinese culture, I ask that you now watch 'Gangnam Style,' and muse about this: what's not to like?

Now that you seen 'Gangnam Style' you are ready to meditate on the importance of regional stability to China by watching the parody, 'Pyongyang Style,' starring Kim Jong-Il, below.

Could it be time for Mr. PSY and Mr. Dear Leader to join in a world tour?

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‘Gangnam Style, Dissected: The Subversive Message Within South Korea’s Music Video Sensation’: The Atlantic

A few days ago, I posted about the greatest music video every made, "Gangnam Style': PSY–Not Hot In China. Huh?' (By the way, when I wrote about this on Thursday August 23, the video has more than 50,000,000 views on YouTube; three days later, it has nearly 63,000,000 views.)

(Check here for the best English subtitles courtesy of U.S.-based Korean blogger Jea Kim, as mentioned in The Atlantic article, below, who uses stills so you're not distracted by the hard-not-to-watch action.)

I lived in Seoul for a couple of years many years ago and logged my hours in Gangnam. And, as I mentioned in the earlier post, I am married to a Korean woman. But, I can't say that I understand much about Korea. I don't speak the language, haven't immersed myself in the history, and don't follow local events closely.

So, when I, as a clueless foreigner, first watched 'Gangnam Style,' I just enjoyed the ride and the scenery. Then, my wife, upon seeing how much I liked the video, launched into a lengthy explanation of its social commentary. Interesting, even fascinating, to understand what the video is about, especially from a former Gangnam girl. But, the next time I watched the video nothing changed for me. Great song. Great video. Social critique? I'll think about sometime after it's over.

Now, for those readers who not as shallow as I am and who don't have a Korean friend or significant other to explain the subtext, The Atlantic presents, 'Gangnam Style, Dissected: The Subversive Message Within South Korea's Music Video Sensation,' subtitled, 'Beneath the catchy dance beat and hilarious scenes of Seoul's poshest neighborhood, there might be a subtle message about wealth, class, and value in South Korean society.'

The Atlantic is not the only major outlet to discuss this. 'Gangnam Style' is the first K-Pop song/video to fully cross-over to the U.S. market. Not surprisingly, U.S music blogs and websites have commented a lot; more is surprising is the great attention it has gotten in the mainstream American media (except notably the lamestream New York Times). Among this body of commentary, The Atlantic article does the best job.

Korean K-Pop fans are shocked if not downright horrified that its greatest ambassador so far is PSY, because, as the article notes:

Park Jaesang is an unlikely poster boy for South Korea's youth-obsessed, highly lucrative, and famously vacuous pop music. Park, who performs as Psy (short for psycho), is a relatively ancient 34, has been busted for marijuana and for avoiding the country's mandatory military service, and is not particularly good-looking. His first album got him fined for "inappropriate content" and the second was banned. He's mainstream in the way that South Korea's monolithically corporate media demands of its stars, who typically appear regularly on TV variety and even game shows, but as a harlequin, a performer known for his parodies, outrageous costumes, and jokey concerts. Still, there's a long history of fools and court jesters as society's most cutting social critics, and he might be one of them.

And, as for Gangnam:

Gangnam, [Adrian] Hong said, is a symbol of that aspect of South Korean culture. The neighborhood is the home of some of South Korea's biggest brands, as well as $ 84 billion of its wealth, as of 2010. That's seven percent of the entire country's GDP in an area of just 15 square miles. A place of the most conspicuous consumption, you might call it the embodiment of South Korea's one percent. "The neighborhood in Gangnam is not just a nice town or nice neighborhood. The kids that he's talking about are not Silicon Valley self-made millionaires. They're overwhelmingly trust-fund babies and princelings," he explained.

I won't go into the more subtle barbs hidden in 'Gangnam Style,' but here are the key points:

Psy hits all the symbols of Gangnam opulence, but each turns out to be something much more modest, as if suggesting that Gangnam-style wealth is not as fabulous as it might seem. We think he's at a beach in the opening shot, but it turns out to be a sandy playground. He visits a sauna not with big-shot businessmen but with mobsters, Kim points out, and dances not in a nightclub but on a bus of middle-aged tourists. He meets his love interest in the subway. Kim thinks that Psy's strut though a parking garage, two models at his side as trash and snow fly at them, is meant as a nod to the common rap-video trope of the star walking down a red carpet covered in confetti. "I think he's pointing out the ridiculousness of the materialism," [Adrian] Hong said.

And, what does PSY himself think:

Of course, it's just a music video, and a silly one at that. Does it really have to be about anything more complicated? "If I hadn't seen that behind-the-scenes, I would have said he's just poking fun at himself," Hong said of the official making-of video, which is embedded at right. It's mostly of Park or Psy having fun on set, but at one point he pauses in filming. "Human society is so hollow, and even while filming I felt pathetic. Each frame by frame was hollow," he sighs, apparently deadly serious. It's a jarring moment to see the musician drop his clownish demeanor and reveal the darker feelings behind this lighthearted-seeming song. Although, Hong noted, "hollow" doesn't capture it: "It's a word that's a mixture or shallow or hollow or vain," he explained.

All too deep for me. But, then, Let's Dance is my favorite David Bowie album.

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Minah