Who is Psy, and How Could he Attract Worldwide Attention?

With his hits 'Gangnam Style' and 'Gentleman', Psy became a world-famous pop star. Well, His success was a surprise. PSY is not handsome or sexy, and is even fat! Let's talk about the fullstory of his life.

Psy, whose birth name is Park Jae Sang, was born in 1977. He entered Boston University after graduating high school, and as taking up his father's suggestion, he majored in international business. However, his talent was not about it, and he later decided to enter Berklee college of music.

He dreamed of being a album producer, but nobody was interested in his songs, which made him decide to be a singer himself.

Psy made a debut by releasing his first album 'Psy From the Psyho World' in 2001. The title track 'Bird' caused sensation, and people fell in love with Psy's funny, easy and exciting songs.

However, in 2001, he was faced with an unexpected difficulty by smoking marijuana and becoming the focus of a public censure. He had to restart his career in 2002.

2002 Worldcup became the favorable factor for him. His new song 'Champion' and 'Entertainer' exactly fit the enthusiastic mood of Korea in 2002, and made a big hit. He showed off his undiminished power as a Korean pop star. The below video shows Psy's 'Entertainer' performance at his Seoul Plaza Live Concert in 2012.

But he was faced with another unexpected difficulty. From 2003 to 2005, He has served his military duties at a national defense, but after that, He was picked up on suspicion of being indolent at a national defense.

Well, taking public criticism, he had to reenlist. And at this time, he had to join the army instead of working at a national defense.

After being discharged from the army in 2009, he met a turning point. He made exclusive contract with YG Entertainment in 2010, and made a comeback with his 5th album 'Right Now'. I'm sure that the strongest support that Psy has is YG.

Finally, PSY hit the jackpot with 'Gangnam Style' in 2012, and consolidated his position in world pop industry with another hit 'Gentleman'.

Then, why is Psy so hot around the globe? Psy was also surprised at his own success.

"I really don' t know how 'Gangnam Style' became so popular globally. I'm bewildered at winning success I wasn't expecting."

Here are some reasons for his success.

Psy's songs contrast sharply with those of ordinary Kpop idol stars. PSY calls himself 'Ddanddara' which means 'clown'. He entertains people. As you can see from 'Gangnam Style', it has unique charm. It's not pretentious. It's really funny, easy to sing along to, which can draw welcome attention from people.

His comic dance is another reason for global popularity. 'Horse Dance' with 'Gangnam Style' has been the latest fashion all around the world. Many people did spoof of horse dance, and on Youtube, you can watch many videos which show people from diverse cultures dancing horse dance in their own way.

And his passion. His passion for stage performance is just amazing. Have you ever been to his concert? He shouts his head off at the concert, and treats the crowd with energetic performances. Everytime I watched his performance, I was impressed by his sincerity. Check out his comments below.

"To me, it may be just one of the ordinary days that I sing and dance on the stage. However, to the audiences, it's totally different. It is indeed a special day for them. They treated themselves to come here, and I think that I have to satisfy them."

Besides, He is critical-minded about social issues. Although it is not known to foreigners that much, Koreans already know how he is awake with social issues. This helped Psy tighten his grip on Kpop scene. His lyrics are hard-hitting and do things to people. He writes the lyrics you might be able to sympathize. He talks about memories and reminiscence.

You can say his ordinary appearance is another reason for popularity. He doesn't look like a super star, but people can be more familiar with him for some reason.