

The song went on to become one of the most viral videos in internet history–so popular that YouTube had to upgrade its hit counter to accommodate it in 2014. While only Korean music news sources covered the song just after its release, Gangnam Style and its video had skyrocketed to worldwide popularity by the end of summer 2012. The nut job's credits feature the gangam style song and a cg psy dancing to it /exzI5ZvUnx The song’s music video featured a distinctive dance which the artist has called the “horse dance,” which is done by shuffling the feet with knees slightly bent and the hands crossed at the wrist. The song details the singer’s search for a woman who’s his type, (and why he himself is a good catch) and the chorus boasts of his association with a luxurious, fashionable Gangnam lifestyle.

The area’s flashy wealth makes it a symbol of materialism for many South Koreans, and the topic of Psy’s hit song. According to the Guardian in 2012, it accounts for almost 10% of the country’s land value, and is full of upmarket shops. Gangnam is also one of the richest and most glamorous places in Seoul. Gangnam means “south of the river”–in this case, south of the Han river. They knew their customers wanted them before they even got there.Released in July 15, 2012, Gangnam Style is named after Gangnam, a district of Seoul, South Korea. And that's how the record labels knew where to tour their acts. YouTube videos by Korean record labels were so good, they got tons of views overseas.

So early on in their development, record labels had to get good at YouTube. They were watching their music.ģ) Korea is one of the most wired countries in the world. That means the moment Koreans started listening to Korean pop music, they were listening through their screens. From the beginning, new songs debuted on national television, not on the radio, like was done traditionally over here. So music moguls in the country created hit factories, turning young singers into pop stars and sending them on tour around Asia.Ģ) Korean record labels transformed the way music was released. South Korea is a relatively small country - any industry that wants to get really big has to look outside. Here are three reasons South Korean pop music is taking over the world:ġ) Korea decided to produce pop music like it produces cars.
