On October 4, tens of thousands of citizens gathered in Seoul Plaza, Korea, to enjoy Korean singer Psy’s concert.

The chubby 34-year-old rapper, who recently became a global sensation with his song ‘Gangnam Style,’ held the concert for free in return for fans’ support.

According to Korean police authorities, about 80,000 citizens gathered, and it was the first time that the massive plaza was packed with this many people. His concert was also aired on YouTube, but many people had trouble with watching it because of too many simultaneous log-ins.

17-year-old student Huh Seung-ah said, “Usually, the concert ticket for a famous singer is really expensive. But, today, Psy is holding the concert for free! I didn’t want to miss this chance.”

Not only teenagers, but also middle-aged citizens attended Psy’s concert. 43-year-old house wife Kim Ji-hee said, “I see Psy’s news on TV every day. I wanted to see how fun his concert is.”

Foreign fans were also spotted. 24-year-old Valentina from Chile said, “I came to Korea to enjoy the Korean singer’s music, and today I’m so happy that I can enjoy Psy’s concert for free.”

The concert, which started around 10 pm, kicked off with Psy’s song “Right Now,” and reached the climax when Psy sang “Gangnam Style.”

Around 11:30 pm, Psy showed up with a bottle of soju, saying, “I promised that I will not drink on the stage, but, today, I’m so happy that I feel like I should drink.” He emptied the bottle after shouting, “Korea! Hooray!”

When 11:40 pm came, he took off his shirt and danced topless to “Gangnam Style.” He once said he would dance topless if he tops the Billboard Hot 100. Even though his song remains on second place of the chart as of October 5, he performed topless as he promised.

Because of the concert, the traffic of Seoul was controlled and guided by the police authorities from 6pm to midnight. Hotels and stores located around Seoul Plaza benefited from Psy’s concert.

Seoul Plaza Hotel, which is standing right next to Seoul Plaza, was all booked by people who wanted to watch Psy’s concert in the hotel. According to the hotel, some customers asked the hotel to change their room to higher floor to enjoy the concert.”

Convenience stores around the plaza also witnessed their sales volume increase. A part-time worker at Seven Eleven said, “Thanks to Psy’s concert, the number of customers was doubled.”

Image Courtesy of  KOREA.NET – Official page of the Republic of Korea

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Korean pop singer, Psy, who recently became a global sensation with his song ‘Gangnam Style’, has mentioned plans to release a new song or an album in the U.S.

At a news conference held in Seoul, Korea on September 25 (local time), Psy said, “I heard the sales volume of music album is increasing around Thanksgiving Day in the U.S. My agency asked me to release a new song or album by upcoming November. However, as you know, it is impossible to write new song in a short period, so I’m thinking to use songs I wrote before.”

He added, “Thankfully, my agency (Universal Republic Records) suggested me to release a new song or album in Korean language. I appreciate that people think my Korean rap sounds catchy, but I am now putting on my thinking cap before I start work. I think my first single song will be released around November, and a second single will be made in English.”

To spice up the climb of Gangnam Style on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, Psy has bet that he will perform Gangnam Style shirtless in front of as many audiences as possible if his song tops the legendary chart, saying, “I have seen some reports or news articles by music experts about the possibility that Gangnam Style’s topping the Billboard Hot 100 chart. I’m sure the song will place its name in top 10.”

At the end of the news conference, he made his exit with the “dancing horse” dance, making reporters laugh out loud.

Seventy foreign reporters and about 200 reporters from Korean media were gathered at the news conference, showing Psy’s soaring popularity.

Psy, who flew back to Korea on September 25, is planning to stay in Korea for three weeks. Psy is going to manage a tight schedule.

He is scheduled to perform at the universities’ festival, and about ten universities are waiting for Psy to visit their campuses. On October 2, he will perform at the “CY×PSY concert, Let’s Play with Psy” with an audience of about 10,000, and the concert will be offered for free. He will perform at the Pusan International Film Festival and a national athletic meet on October 6, and 11 respectively.

Since he is one of the judges of Korean singer audition show “Super Star K,” he will attend the show as a judge during his visit to Korea.

The schedules of filming commercials are also lining up for Psy. At least five advertisers are waiting for Psy to work with them, according to Psy’s Korean agency YG Family. The agency said, “As the popularity of Gangnam Style increases, Psy is dated up with many domestic and foreign schedules.”

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South Korea’s famous K-Pop star Psy, or Park Jae-sang, is grabbing the most attention in the U.S. with his latest song ‘Gangnam Style.’

His music video for “Gangnam Style” has already attracted about 59 million YouTube views, and stays at the number one spot on not only Billboard’s K-Pop charts, but also other Korean local music charts. The music video was introduced to viewers worldwide by global media such as CNN, ABC, LA TIMES, and the Wall Street Journal.

Psy recently visited the U.S., was on the U.S. TV show ‘Big Morning Buzz Live,’ on August 22, introducing his song to American viewers.

“Gangnam is an affluent area just like Beverly Hills in the state. But the funny part of my song is that a funny-looking guy like me is talking about Gangnam style in the song, because I don’t look like a guy from Gangnam,” said Psy on the show.

Psy taught his dance, the so-called horse dance, to the show hosts, making them laugh and excited.

The 36-year-old hip-hop singer, who graduated Berkelee college of music in Boston, debuted in 2001, winning huge popularity with his single ‘Bird’.

However, it did not take long for him to lose his fame and stand point.

His life has been just like a roller coaster over the past 12 years. He was convicted of smoking marijuana in the early 2000s. He was even accused of not properly fulfilling his alternative military service (In South Korea, men over the age of 18, need to fulfill their mandatory military service for two years), having the biggest crisis in his career and life in 2007.

Following several months of investigation by the prosecution, it turned out that Psy was neglecting his military duty, and he was ordered to serve the full two-year national service again in July 2007.

Because of all of these unfavorable factors for Psy, it seems that he has been gradually forgotten from the public’s memory. However, nothing could eliminate his passion toward music. He continues his music career by writing songs for other singers in Korea and holding concerts for his fans. His success with his latest song is not surprising.

It is reported that Psy has earned about ten billion won (about eight million dollars) so far with the song ‘Gangnam Style.’ He even was contacted by Justin Biber’s agency and flew to the U.S. to meet with him, implying that he might start his music career in the U.S. in the near future.

Image Courtesy of   PSY

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