Biography of Psy

Psy is the stage name for Park Jae-sang. He is a South Korean singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his viral hit single ‘Gangnam Style’, which was released in 2012 and became the most-watched music video on YouTube, with over 1 billion views.

He was born on 31 December 1977, in Seoul, South Korea. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Korean Wave, or “Hallyu”, which refers to the increased global popularity of South Korean pop culture, including music, television dramas, and movies.

He has released numerous albums and has collaborated with many artists throughout his career. He has also been recognized for his unique sense of humour and entertaining performances, which often feature his signature horse-riding dance.

Early Life and Education

Psy revealed to CNN’s Alina Cho that he used to watch a Korean TV programme when he was young that featured foreign pop music. When he was 15 years old, he first became interested in music after seeing a performance by the British rock group Queen. He views ‘Gangnam Style’ as his best career accomplishment. He was formerly well-known in his native country as a contentious and satirical hip-hop musician. His comical pop song “Gangnam Style” music video went on to garner a record-breaking one billion views on the video-sharing website YouTube, propelling him to eventual global recognition in 2012.

In addition to being a global phenomenon, he established his own entertainment company in 2018 called “P Nation”, which represents well-known performers like Jessi, Hyuna, Dawn, Crush, and the upcoming boy group TNX.

In November 2012, he completed the acquisition of a condo in Westwood, Los Angeles, California. Following his agreement to work with US-based music manager Scooter Braun to advance his career, he took the decision to buy a moving truck and go to Los Angeles. He also acknowledged having a drinking problem in a 2013 interview with The Sunday Times, stating that the only time he abstains from drinking is when he is already drunk.

Career and Achievements

He has been active in the music industry since the late 1990s and has released several albums, including “Psy from the Psycho World!” (2001), “Ssa 2” (2002), “Ssa 3” (2003), “Psy Five” (2012), and “4X2=8” (2017). He is known for his unique blend of pop, hip-hop, and dance music and his comedic music videos.

In addition to his music career, he has also been involved in various television and film projects, including the South Korean variety show “Infinite Challenge”. He has won numerous awards and accolades, including the YouTube Diamond Play Button for reaching 10 million subscribers on his YouTube channel.

Overall, his success with “Gangnam Style” has made him a prominent figure in the K-Pop scene and a global ambassador for Korean pop culture.

Musical career

He began his musical career in 2001 with the publication of his debut album, “Psy from the Psycho World!”. Following its release, he released Ssa Jip (“Cheap House”) in 2006 and started becoming increasingly well-known by making appearances on chat and game shows on television. After that, he joined YG Entertainment, one of the biggest talent agencies in South Korea, whose record label he later released on his next album, ‘Psy Five’, in 2010.

In July 2012, he released ‘Psy 6 Part I’, his sixth studio album, which featured the hit “Gangnam Style”, a fun dance song. The song made fun of those who wanted to be identified with that part of Seoul. A deadpan he was shown in the song’s music video doing a characteristic comedy “horse-riding” dance in a variety of oddly unstylish settings, such as a horse stable and a parking garage, despite the fact that more mainstream South Korean groups like ‘Girls Generation’, ‘Rain’, and ‘Big Bang’ had gained success abroad, none of them had managed to become household names.

His song surprisingly and swiftly became popular with a large audience. Throughout the summer and fall of 2012, online users spread awareness of the YouTube video using other social media channels, including Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr. Eventually, it surpassed all previous YouTube records for most views, and sales of the single and album also increased.

‘Gangnam Style’ became a worldwide success and its viral video reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100. He spent the second half of 2012 touring the globe, making public appearances, and performing live. In September 2012, he agreed to a record deal with the American company ‘School Boy Records’.

In April 2013, he released a new track called ‘Gentleman’, which went on to become another big hit around the world. He had previously played at Park Geun-hye’s inauguration in South Korea in February 2013. It peaked at number one on Billboard’s Korea K-Pop Hot 100 and number five on the Billboard Hot 100. With 38 million views in a single day, the ‘Gentleman’ music video broke a new record on YouTube.

Military Life

South Korean Government made an exception for Psy in 2003 by permitting him to work for the software development company. However, his active presence in the entertainment field by conducting concerts made the South Korean Government conscript him in the mandatory military service from 2007 to 2009.

Personal Life

Controversies

Anti-American Performances and Subsequent Apology

Psy took part in an anti-American performance in 2002 following the Yangju highway tragedy, in which two South Korean schoolgirls aged 14 were fatally struck by an American military convoy. U.S. military courts cleared the soldiers engaged in the incident, which significantly increased anti-American opinion in South Korea. He picked up a toy “American tank” and slammed it against the stage in response to the incident.

According to a number of sources in Korean media, he protested the terrible occurrence in June 2002 when a U.S. military vehicle ran over two Korean girls who were 14 years old by smashing a model of an American tank onto the stage at a concert. After the driver of the car was later found not guilty, there were months of anti-American government demonstrations.

The song ‘Dear America’, composed by the South Korean metal band N.E.X.T., was performed by Psy and other musicians two years later onstage at a protest concert. Along with the words, he also sung, “kill those Yankees who have been torturing Iraqi captives/Kill the Yankees who ordered them to torture/Kill their daughters, mothers, daughters-in-law, and fathers/Kill them slowly and brutally”.

Malaysian Political Rally

The Malaysian government hired K-pop superstar Psy to energise the youth vote before elections in which it will face very formidable opposition.

Following the Prime Minister onto the stage at a government-sponsored Chinese New Year celebration in opposition bastion Penang, he danced right into Malaysia’s increasingly acrimonious politics. His two performances of his iconic song ‘Gangnam Style’ were the high point of a hot morning in the west coast city. The National Front, the ruling party in Malaysia, made an appeal for local and youth support ahead of elections that are predicted to be the most closely contested in the country’s history.

Just before he took the stage, Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak announced plans for 20,000 new homes and a new monorail system for Penang, an island in Malaysia. He questioned “Are you ready for Psy?”, as he concluded his speech. He received a sea of jubilant applause. The crowd responded less enthusiastically when he subsequently asked, “Are you ready for BN?”. He made a brief stage appearance in Penang, performing for the estimated 80,000 sun-baked spectators without making any political remarks.

The white-clad Korean joked that the audience wasn’t dancing the first time because they were too busy taking pictures of him when he returned to the stage for an encore. He yelled in English, “Don’t take any more pictures; This time, just dance!”.

Questionable Song Title and Revision of Lyrics

In March 2013, South Korean media reported that the word “Assarabia”, a slang term used by South Koreans to express pleasure or simply to describe something pleasurable, will appear in the title of Psy’s upcoming single. That impending title has drawn a lot of criticism, and there have been concerns raised about the possibility that people of Arabic heritage may misunderstand it and consider it insulting.

He acknowledged that there may have been some miscommunication and that his forthcoming single will undergo a significant revision after being questioned by a ‘Voice of America’ correspondent about the potential offensiveness of the song.

He changed the song’s title and lyrics to “worries it could upset Arabs” on 19 March 2013. Many believe that the artist intentionally changed the song’s title in order to generate exposure for a potent follow-up to “Gangnam Style”. The song was later renamed “Gentleman”, and it was released on 12 April 2013.

Legal Issues

Psy received a 25-day jail sentence after being found guilty of marijuana possession and use in late 2001. He was therefore unable to be present when his grandfather passed away from cancer or to go to his funeral. He said in an interview from 2012, “I was very close to him. I was not there at the funeral; I will regret this for the rest of my life, because my grandpa loved me so much, and I couldn’t be there for him on his deathbed”. In January 2002, he was also penalised for a drug incident.

Net Worth and Lifestyle

Awards

• MAMA Awards 2022
  Best Dance Performance – Solo (2022) – ‘That That’
  Best Collaboration (2022) – That That
  Worldwide Fans’ Choice Top 10 (2022) – Psy
• Gaon Chart Music Awards 2017
  Song of the Year (May) (2017) – ‘I Luv It’
• CICI Korea Awards 2015
  Star of the Year (2015)
• Gaon Chart Music Awards 2015
  Song of the Year (December) (2015) – ‘Daddy’
• World Music Awards 2014
  World’s Best Song (2014) – ‘Gangnam Style’
• Golden Disc Awards 2014
  Digital Daesang (Grand Prize) (2014) – ‘Gentleman’
  Digital Bonsang (2014) – Gentleman
• Gaon Chart Music Awards 2013
  Song of the Year (April) (2013) – ‘Gentleman’
• Golden Disc Awards 2013
  Digital Daesang (Grand Prize) (2013) – ‘Gangnam Style’
  Digital Bonsang (2013) – ‘Gangnam Style’
• Hall of Game Awards 2013
  Amped Up Anthem (2013) – ‘Gangnam Style’
• Korean Music Awards 2013
  Musician of the Year (2013) – ‘Gangnam Style’
  Song of the Year (2013) – ‘Gangnam Style’
• Melon Music Awards 2013
  Global Artist Award (2013) – ‘Gentleman’
• American Music Awards 2012
  New Media Award (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
• Capricho Awards 2012
  Viral Video of the Year (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
• Cyworld Digital Music Awards 2012
  Song of the Month (July) (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
  Song of the Month (August) (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
• Gaon Chart Music Awards 2012
  Song of the Year (August) (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
• MAMA Awards 2012
  Song of the Year (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
  Best Music Video (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
  Best Dance Performance (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
  Favorite International Artist (2012) – Psy
• Melon Music Awards 2012
  Song of the Year (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
  Best Music Video (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
  Top 10 Artists (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
  Global Artist Award (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
• Seoul Music Awards 2012
  Daesang Award (2012) – ‘Gangnam Style’
• Seoul Music Awards 2011
  Record of the Year (2011) – Psy Five
• MAMA Awards 2010
  Producer Award (2010) – Cinderella
• Melon Music Awards 2010
  Best Performance (2010) – Right Now
• Seoul Music Awards 2010
  Best Performance (2010) – Psy
• MAMA Awards 2006
  Best Music Video (2006) – Entertainer
• MAMA Awards 2005
  Best Video Performer (2005) – Delight

Interesting Facts about PSY

1. Psy’s debut single ‘Bird’ was released in 2001 and went straight to number one on the Korean charts.
2. Psy’s signature horse dance took some time to create, with other animals being tested out, including kangaroo, elephant and monkey dances.
3. Psy received a ‘Diamond Play Button’ from YouTube because he surpassed 10 million subscribers on his channel officialpsy.
4. His biggest musical influence is Freddie Mercury from QUEEN and the celebrity he wants to meet most is Tom Cruise.

FAQs

1. How much is Psy’s worth?
   PSY’s net worth is estimated to be $60 Million.
2. How old is Psy?
   He was born on December 31, 1977, and as of 2023, he is 46 years old.
3. How tall is Psy?
   PSY’s height is 1.70 m, which is equal to 5 ft 7 in.
4. What is Psy’s Instagram ID?
   @42psy42 is his Instagram ID.