Despite the staggering over two billion views on YouTube, most people don’t know a word in the “Gangnam Style” music video. Nevertheless, it is possible to read the music video beyond the goofy horse dance.
The music video, released in 2012, features Korean pop star Psy (or Park Jae-sang), rapping about life in a Seoul neighborhood called Gangnam, creating an irony of the now famous "Gangnam style."
As Korean writer Euny Hong points out, life in Gangnam, or in the entire South Korea, is one ripe for irony. “First, one scrambles for wealth; then one luxuriates in mocking the effeteness that comes with it.”
Growing up in Gangnam, Psy is wealthy; at least his family is, according to Hong's book: The Birth of Korean Cool. He knows the swagger of the wealthy man: tuxedos in bright colors, neatly combed and greased hair, and a pair of round-shaped vintage sunglasses.
Wearing such a sleek look, he hops his signature horse dance in a stinky horse stable, nearly bursting his tight pants. The heavenly sun bathing, turns out, is but a cabana awkwardly set up next to a playground, where free sands can be found in a big city like Seoul. Flanked by two gorgeous women, he sports a Michael Jackson-style strut out of a garage, yet swamped by a storm of trash, dirt and fake snow. He waves his hands violently in the coolest gangster rap gesture, again tuxed up in dark, with the glossy sunglasses on, only to be seen, just a moment later, sitting on a toilet with his pants down.
All these juxtaposing, twists and turns, and unlikely mix-and-match of symbols create an irony. Tuxedo, cabana, beautiful women, and cool hand gestures are symbols of wealth, success, status and style, things that have become the trademark of the district of Gangnam. But all the glamour and fanciness is instantly ripped apart by contrasting symbols: nice beach vs. children’s playground, sleek tuxedo vs. stinky horses, and gangster glory vs. toilet.
The scenes are ruined on purpose. But why? Legend has it that Psy is an unconventional bad boy growing up, not doing well in school and talking back at his entrepreneur father. He was also arrested in Korea in 2001 for marijuana possession, which in a socially conservative society is a big deal. It therefore may come to little surprise that Psy is the antithesis of the neat, beautiful and sophisticated persona of mainstream Korean pop, and that he is meant to be different. Or he has to.
He is not particularly good looking, certainly not as lethally attractive as the boy bands such as T.V.X.Q! or EXO. But he knows how to take advantage of his look: if you cannot be lethally attractive, be ridiculously funny.
Meanwhile, growing up in the materialism satiated and appearance obsessed Gangnam district, he probably also has found such an ostentatious life style ridiculous. He therefore became the exact right person to do the mocking: using his ridiculous artistry to ridicule a life style, for all its hollowness, pretentiousness, haughtiness, and above all, irony. People may be rich in that place, or try all they can to appear so, but many are deeply in debt. Or, as noted by Max Fisher in an article, they would spend $2 to have a ramen noodle meal but buy a cup of Starbucks coffee for $6.
This clown, however, ended up the first Korean pop star to break big into the American entertainment scene. He scored national TV live concerts and allured celebrities, from Ellen DeGeneres to Kevin Hart to Hugh Jackman, you name it, to eagerly imitate his horse dancing, realizing a dream for which dozens of rigidly-trained, extremely good looking, and incredibly well dancing Korea pop groups have tried so hard for so long. What an irony.
The music video, released in 2012, features Korean pop star Psy (or Park Jae-sang), rapping about life in a Seoul neighborhood called Gangnam, creating an irony of the now famous "Gangnam style."
As Korean writer Euny Hong points out, life in Gangnam, or in the entire South Korea, is one ripe for irony. “First, one scrambles for wealth; then one luxuriates in mocking the effeteness that comes with it.”
Wearing such a sleek look, he hops his signature horse dance in a stinky horse stable, nearly bursting his tight pants. The heavenly sun bathing, turns out, is but a cabana awkwardly set up next to a playground, where free sands can be found in a big city like Seoul. Flanked by two gorgeous women, he sports a Michael Jackson-style strut out of a garage, yet swamped by a storm of trash, dirt and fake snow. He waves his hands violently in the coolest gangster rap gesture, again tuxed up in dark, with the glossy sunglasses on, only to be seen, just a moment later, sitting on a toilet with his pants down.
The scenes are ruined on purpose. But why? Legend has it that Psy is an unconventional bad boy growing up, not doing well in school and talking back at his entrepreneur father. He was also arrested in Korea in 2001 for marijuana possession, which in a socially conservative society is a big deal. It therefore may come to little surprise that Psy is the antithesis of the neat, beautiful and sophisticated persona of mainstream Korean pop, and that he is meant to be different. Or he has to.
 |
| T.V.X.Q! |
Meanwhile, growing up in the materialism satiated and appearance obsessed Gangnam district, he probably also has found such an ostentatious life style ridiculous. He therefore became the exact right person to do the mocking: using his ridiculous artistry to ridicule a life style, for all its hollowness, pretentiousness, haughtiness, and above all, irony. People may be rich in that place, or try all they can to appear so, but many are deeply in debt. Or, as noted by Max Fisher in an article, they would spend $2 to have a ramen noodle meal but buy a cup of Starbucks coffee for $6.
This clown, however, ended up the first Korean pop star to break big into the American entertainment scene. He scored national TV live concerts and allured celebrities, from Ellen DeGeneres to Kevin Hart to Hugh Jackman, you name it, to eagerly imitate his horse dancing, realizing a dream for which dozens of rigidly-trained, extremely good looking, and incredibly well dancing Korea pop groups have tried so hard for so long. What an irony.
No comments:
Post a Comment