Gangnam Style

So you know that this song is a parody right?

In Korea people know that, but the unexpected success of this song outside of Korea seems to be confusing a few people.

Gangnam is the wealthiest part of Seoul. A place where an apartment that you can cross in three steps can run you $450/m (a four bedroom apartment with a mountain view can run $900/m in most big Korean cities), a cup of coffee can cost you $5 and there is more plastic surgeons than dentists. Korean celebrities and the children of those who have built the Korean economic miracle play here.

Gangnam style refers to someone, usually under 25, who has an excess of money that they have inherited (as opposed to earned themselves through hard work) and who spends it doing frivolous/stupid things.

The people in the video represent real Korean celebrities and stereotypes of people in Gangnam from the guy in the bright yellow suit and expensive car who still looks like an idiot and must out dance Psy despite the fact that Psy is clearly a terrible dancer just because he must. The sauna that is actually full of mobsters (in Korea if you are decked out in tattoo's you are in to organized crime. No one else has a tattoo bigger than the palm of their hand or a small sentence written across their arm etc.). The whole thing ends with him meeting his dream girl on the subway after being passed over by many girls that fit the female Gangnam style.


Female Gangnam Style - Don Jang No - soybean girl. Will spend more on a cup of coffee than lunch.... Gong Ju byeon - a princess who spends all of her time looking in mirrors and talking about how hot she is. She probably takes excessive photo's of herself at coffee shops to post on her facebook or Naver page (cause we have never seen a cup of coffee before and frequently forget what our friends look like). Most have had the big three plastic surgeries (eye's, nose and chin) in an attempt to get bigger eyes with a western style fold, a pointier nose and a more defined chin. Though usually they just end up looking like mixed race kids who took a stroll through Fukushima. She is also a fashion major at Seoul or Sookmin Women's University. There's has been no gender divide in Korean education in fifty years but anyway.....

Male Gangnam Style - a ridiculous haircut is a must. The more homoerotic, messy or just plain comical the better. Try it as a perm. You must be able to dance, drive an expensive car (even though you only ever go two blocks, there is no parking in Seoul and the subway goes there anyway). It's better if all your money is inherited, as actual work causes wrinkles. You study business at one of the top universities in Korea (all located in Seoul) with the idea of working for your father's company and possibly entering politics, though career playboy is also a viable option.


The fact that this song has become so popular in Gangnam clubs is the funniest part of it. It's a little like Marie Antoinette enjoying Dunkin' Donuts. Anyway, don't make fun of Psy too much, it's a parody and he's one of the good guys.