December 6, 2012

• “Oppa Gangnam Style” PSY in Singapore

  Last Saturday, I attended an exclusive press conference with K-pop sensation PSY at the Art Science Museum in Marina Bay Sands, and got to enjoy his showcase at the Event Plaza after

  

  

  Park Jae Sang, 34, better known as PSY, entered the room to the deafening sound of a hundred cameras flashing away. I thought it rather cute that he stood there like a self-aware monkey in the zoo,  with a sheepish, almost awkward smile, giving us a glimpse of the little boy within who seemed to still be grappling with a mixture of excitement and unbelief at his meteoric rise to international fame.

  

  
  Here’s what we learnt about PSY during a short Q&A:

  He is proud to have achieved success despite his chubby physique. ”Usually K-pop is known for boy and girl bands and most of them are skinny. But I am not skinny.”

  What does PSY mean? Psy is short for “psycho”.  (yes that music video was a little insane!)

  Is he sick of his horse-riding dance?  “Sometimes, honestly, yes I get tired or I get sick of it because I got so many requests to teach them, you know, like average let me say 50 requests per city, per country,” he continued, “I already taught the dance to so many people, so many times but still the dance makes me here, to make a press conference in Singapore, so of course sometimes I’m tired about it, but I got to do it, it’s my job.” 

  He adds, “I really like the dance still.” Truly the professional artiste.

  
  

  About his chances of topping the “People’s Choice” category of Time magazine’s “Person of the Year 2012” contest, Psy has this to say - “I feel really strange and weird why I’m there. It’s not going to happen, I think, and I don’t deserve that much. I just did my job.”

  Psy has been nominated together with other newsmakers such as US President Barack Obama, China’s Communist Party head Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, which is already a pretty big achievement. Congrats Psy!

  

  Psy says bye and leaves to prepare for his performance

  Students from Marina Bay Sands designated charity, O School, a performing arts centre for youth, participated as the opening act in the free public showcase at the Event Plaza. It was part of a special Marina Bay Sands initiative “Give Back to Singapore”.

  

  Psy with the students from O School

    
  
  Waiting in the special section and wondering whether I should practice my horse-riding dance in public.

    

  With the backdrop of the Singapore skyline, thousands of fans danced in rhythm with global sensation PSY, as he rocked the stage.

  
  
  

  

  The most in-demand artiste in the world right now – he talked about his 12 year long career and performed two of his previous songs- Champion, and Right Now. To my ears, they weren’t as catchy as the hit finale which everyone was waiting for…. Gangnam Style.

  “Gangnam Style” is the most watched item ever posted on YouTube with over 861 million views to date. It’s so popular it’s even spawned a sensational DIY Christmas light display by a home-owner in Perth, Australia!

  
  I view it as an amazing and a proud moment for us Asians, that an Asian artiste has achieved skyrocketing success on the global stage. Thanks to the internet, talent and creativity in all forms can be appreciated from all around the world. 

  The fascinating thing is Psy never set out to conquer the US market, much less go international, unlike many other artistes before him who tried so hard but failed. It’s perhaps testament to the power of “letting go and let God”; that the unorchestrated and spontaneous things in life can sometimes be the most brilliant.

  Do you think Psy is a one-hit wonder or no? Will he ever be able to top this?

  ♥ Dawn

  • 12:06 am
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