Wake up! If you haven’t heard or seen Gangnam Style, then it is time you do. Korean rapper PSY (read: sai) launched a new “dance-style” called Gangnam Style. Imagine sitting on an invisible horse and trying to gallop dance -it basically comes down to that. PSY is now a viral superstar; the fastest rising of its kind. The video on his own YouTube channel has been viewed over 200 million times (to date, and counting); and was only released a month back, on July 15th … of this year, yes! His Gangnam song is rising like mad on iTunes around the world, PSY being invited to all major talkshows, artists are copying him, t-shirts are being printed like mad … meteor impact! PSY is new to the world, but already a well-know rapper, songwriter and record-producer in South-Korea. I don’t think he deliberatly planned out a marketing plan with worldwide viral effect, but he’s there now (proves my point on how viral spreads; read here)! The only smart thing he might have conceived is that the song has no copyrights, so anyone can copy it and that helps the viral effect.
The video that changed the world:
The inspiration for PSY came from the Gangnam District in Seoul/Korea: noble, posh, luxurious and elite at daytime, but going crazy/wild at night! And that’s what the song is about: I am the man to fit that lifestyle (dixit PSY). Artists from around the world are learning Gangnam Style, Nelly Furtado already embedded the song in her Asia tour, Britney Spears performed it yesterday (11 SEPT) on the Ellen Degeneres show, Maroon 5 is endorsing it. Amongst others. Pretty soon, brands will jump on it if not in the cooker already.
Now, all flashmob will be going Gangnam Style (here’s a Sydney example):
Here’s how teenagers react to Gangnam style:
My few marketing lessons from Gangnam Style:
UNIQUENESS IS EVERYTHING
Like Lady Gaga, PSY cracked something never seen before, both in music style and in visual (video) style. It may look silly and stupid, but it stands out from the crowd.
HAVE A POINT OF VIEW
PSY has a certain (brand) attitude, a style, a personality. When you see him in interviews, he is not shy of speaking his mind openly. He has a view to the world.
HAVE FUN
Gangnam Style is contagious, addictive. Not over-choreographed, not sophisticated, just fun. People want to step into that kind of fun, and feel the vibe.
OPEN YOUR WORLD
Smart move: PSY is not too hung-up on protecting his “copyright” for the music style. He invites others to learn the dance, and to launch their own XYZ-style. In the end, he is still the origin, the source, the creator, and everyone knows that.
Watch this scene … you’ll hear a lot more on this, marketing-wise. Mark my words!
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
Here’s an interesting article: what GANGNAM STYLE means to South-Koreans: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/people/what-gangnam-style-means-to-south-koreans/545294
HAHAHA! Marketing software maker HubSpot also created a parody : http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=2aa8os53_Ac
Gangnam style breaks all records, and gets Guiness World Record recognition : http://mashable.com/2012/09/21/gangnam-style-guinness-world-record/, breaking previous records set by LMFAO’s Party Rock Anthem (1,574,963), Justin’s Bieber’s Baby (1,327,147) and Adele’s Rolling in the deep (1,245,641). (It should also be noted that Psy’s hit is edging close to 100,000 dislikes as well.) Gangnam also has racked up 227 million views, which puts it just outside of YouTube’s list of the 30 most-viewed videos ever.
And here is *drumroll* … our team version of it: OPPA PEPSI STYLE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TFPQjQJhEU&feature=youtube_gdata_player
The moment PSY crossed the 1 billion views: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/dec/21/gangnam-style-1bn-youtube-psy