South Korean singer Psy performs his hit Gangnam Style
during a morning television appearance in central Sydney.
REUTERS/Tim Wimborne/Files
South Korean rapper Psy's infectious viral hit song,
"Gangnam Style," made history today as the first ever video on
YouTube to reach 1 billion views, adding yet another record to
the song's juggernaut journey into mainstream pop.
The song, first posted on YouTube on July 15, clocked the 1
billion milestone at 3.50am (NZT) and YouTube marked the
occasion with a dancing Psy doodle next to their logo.
The song also became YouTube's most watched video last month,
overtaking Justin Bieber's "Baby" video, which previously
held the title.
"I didn't even imagine 'Gangnam Style' would get 1 million
views, let alone 1 billion views! Is this the Tru-PSY show?"
the rapper said in a statement.
This has been a whirlwind year for rapper Psy, 34, who is the
first Korean pop (or K-pop) artist to achieve mainstream
success in the U.S. after "Gangnam Style," named after the
affluent Gangnam District in Seoul, captured viewers'
attention.
The rapper recently performed for President Barack Obama, met
with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and won the best
video award at the MTV Europe Music Awards in November.
The video shows the outlandishly dressed Psy rap in Korean
while performing an invisible horse-riding dance, which has
become a pop culture trend, spurring many copycat and parody
videos.
The popularity of the song has sparked growing international
interest in Asian pop music, throwing a spotlight on the
K-pop industry, which now aims to follow Psy into mainstream
Western pop music.
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