I've been wondering that also, and have been getting into intense discussions about this. If I think that "Gangnam Style" will bring a bunch of people into the music, that won't really appreciate it like us Kpop fans do. I know a lot of my friends, that I tried to get to listen to kpop music never liked it. They told me they didn't know how I could listen to the songs when I didn't understand what they were saying. These were the same people who are now showing me their verison of the "Gangnam Style" dance. Yes it can be annoying as hell when you see someone telling you how awesome this song is, and be the same people that said "WTF" when you tried to get them to watch a Kpop video. Now it's cool, or at least Psy is cool. They still don't get it, and think they talk funny. They think "Gangnam Style" is awesome though. This is soooo annoying.
My country (America) loves novelty. They love songs that have their own dance that they can do at major events, and so on. So in that area, "Gangnam Style" is right in their wheel house. Plus add a wonderfully funny random video, and you have hit. The other thing about America is they enjoy One hit wonders. Do I think Psy is going to be an American One hit wonder? Yes very much so, because even though psy is an amazing artist. Americans won't be interested in anything he does if he isn't making all of his songs just like "Gangnam Style". Especially if he does it in Korean again, because they will get into that mode of saying they don't understand anything in the lyrics.
This makes me a little sad, because I really wanted people over here to see that wonderful that is Kpop. I see a lot of people talking about Kpop now in America, who are mainstream. They talk about it as if it is some odd creature in a horror movie. The things that appeal to so many American Kpop fans are the things that they find weird.
1. They say they don't like the way everyone is so perfect, looks wise. They don't understand why their dance moves are always polish. Why their hair is not only perfectly together, but almost in artistic designs. Again these are things that I love about Kpop. I enjoy the perfect look of everyone in the videos. How it's like a little prim and perfect moving picture. I love the dancing, and how it always looks beyond perfect. Even live when I see dances done by some of my favorite Kpop groups, I'm almost always in a state of shock when I see they are able to move each move by move flawlessly. My best example of this is when I saw Shinee on Mcountdown do Sherlock Live. I had always heard Shinee is considered to be the best Male dance group in kpop, but when I saw them dance live. I believe it. It was simple mind blowing.
2. The next thing I've heard people talk a lot about is how they don't understand how their system works over in korea for the bands, and how they are totally ran by their label. As all of us Kpop fans know, almost all the bands are formed by the labels. Meaning that the group doesn't know each other when they are first made into a group. They usually audition for the house that they would like to try out for, and the house decides if they want to sign them or not. Then usually they are put into an intensive training period. For example 2NE1's training period was 4 years before their first mini album release. This is another thing that I found fascinating about Kpop, but I know it's something that turns off most cultures to the music. Even though there are a fair share of those type of bands in America's history. They usually look down on them, and think that those people aren't really artist. I actually enjoy this for some reason, because it makes me think of the way our Hollywood system was in old Hollywood days that I've read about. . When studios owned the Actors/Actresses, and they had full control over everything they did or said. The image they brought out, and stuff like that. It was when Hollywood was a control environment. Which even though I read it was suffocating for an artist, it still seems very intriguing to me for some strange reasons. I also like the whole who is going to who, or who tried out for what label.
Lastly I know a lot of hardcore Kpop fans don't understand why "Gangnam Style" was the first to majorly cross over like it did. Well I pretty much summed that up above. America loves Novelity. I kind of had a feeling the first big mainstream song for Kpop was gonna be from YG. I still don't know how in the hell, "Fantastic Baby" or "I'm the best" didn't get as big as "Gangnam Style" is over here. I think those are songs that would defiantly appeal to the American market. Don't get me wrong those songs didn't go back, they are still climbing in views everyday. It's just no Kpop artist is even close to the views and popularity that Psy is pulling over here right now. Do I think that he will ruin Kpop. Honestly no, I think it will bring a lot of people that didn't give Kpop a chance. Then some of those people will continue to love Kpop, and find out as much as they can about it. Most will just move on the the next thing. I did hear that Psy has signed with Justin Bieber's management team. Which worries me a lot, I don't know if they are gonna know how to market Psy at all. We will see though. Either way, "Gangnam Style" is an awesome song, and fun video. Psy is also an amazing Artist. That won't change. Till next time.
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