Psy wins Viral Video of the Year award in Canada, renders 'Final Performance' of hit on TV

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

Korean rapper Psy was awarded the Viral Video of the Year for his global hit "Gangnam Style" at the MuchMusic Video Awards 2013 held in Toronto, Canada on June 16 (June 17 in Manila).

Psy, who co-hosted the awards, opened the show with "Gangnam Style" and closed it with "Gentleman."

Korean websites saddled with search-blocking code

When foreign fans type in “Psy” on major search engines, the results rarely include the Korean singer’s official homepage. The reason lies in a technical problem with Korean websites.

According to industry sources, many Korean websites, including Psy’s homepage, have taken steps that block tracking and indexing by foreign search engines and portals. In detail, such websites usually insert a code like “robots.txt” to keep outside parties from indexing the details of their pages.

Psy To Unveil Follow-up To 'Gangnam Style' On April 12

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - Can Psy produce another global hit like "Gangnam Style?"

The Korean rapper will release his follow-up song to "Gangnam Style" on April 12, a day before he holds a concert in Seoul, South Korea.

Psy performing at the Future Music Festival in Australia
(Photos courtesy of Future Music Festival's Facebook page)

Psy Nominated In Billboard Latin Music Awards + Complete List of Nominees

By JONATHAN M. HICAP

MANILA, Philippines - Korean rapper Psy got nominated in the 2013 Billboard Latin Music Awards, which will honor the best in Latin Music.

The awards ceremony will be held on April 25 at the BankUnited Center at the University of Miami in Florida.

Billboard Exec Impressed With K-pop Artists; Hyuna Talks About Her Rumored US Debut

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - The editorial director of Billboard is impressed with K-pop artists and says that the "right song" like Psy's "Gangnam Style," regardless of its language, can succeed in the US market.

Bill Werde said this as response to my question during Billboard's IAmA ("I am a") question-and-answer session on popular social site Reddit last Feb. 1.

Hyuna (Photo by www.newsen.com)

‘Gangnam Style’ Wins Song Of The Year

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines – Psy’s “Gangnam Style” won the Digital Daesang, or Song of the Year, on the second day of the 27th Golden Disk Awards held on Jan. 16 at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia.

Psy with former US President Bill Clinton (Photo courtesy of Psy’s Twitter account)

'Gangnam Style' In Top 10 Songs In US, UK In 2012

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - Korean rapper Psy's "Gangnam Style" is in the Top 10 biggest selling singles in the US and UK in 2012.

The viral hit sold 3.59 million downloads in the US last year, according to Billboard.

Psy with MC Hammer at the New Year's Eve event in the US. (Photo courtesy of Psy's Twitter account)

Rolling Stone, SPIN, MTV Choose 'Gangnam Style' As One Of The Best Songs Of 2012 | The Manila Bulletin Newspaper Online

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - Psy's viral hit "Gangnam Style" has been chosen as one of the best songs of 2012 by Rolling Stone magazine, SPIN magazine, and MTV.

Rolling Stone released its 50 Best Songs of 2012 and "Gangnam Style" is at No. 25.

(Clockwise from top left) Psy, Carly Rae Jepsen, Nicki Minaj and Taylor Swift.
(Photos courtesy of American Music Awards/www.amas365.com)

TIME Picks 'Gangnam Style' As Top 10 Song, Viral Video For 2012 | The Manila Bulletin Newspaper Online

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - TIME.com has released its Top 10 Everything of 2012 lists and it picked Korean rapper Psy's "Gangnam Style" as one of the Top 10 Songs and Top 10 Viral Videos of the year.

Psy was also chosen by TIME as the No. 1 Fleeting Celebrity.

Clockwise from top left) Usher, Psy, Carly Rae Jepsen and Taylor Swift.
(Photos courtesy of www.amas365.com, American Music Awards, Dick Clark Productions)

'Gangnam Style' Loses Steam, Slips On Billboard

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - Is the "Gangnam Style" craze waning in the US?

The latest Billboard charts showed Psy's viral hit further slipping down to No. 7 on the Hot 100 from No. 5 last week and No. 2 for the past seven consecutive weeks.

Madonna, Psy Heat Up New York Concert

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - Queen of Pop Madonna and the new King of K-pop Psy heat up New York City as the latter became a surprise guest at Madonna's MDNA tour concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City last Nov. 13.

Madonna and Psy (Photos courtesy of @evaum33  and @psy_oppa on Twitter)

Asia's Psy, Hangeng Win At MTV EMA 2012

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin 

MANILA, Philippines - Two Asian artists triumphed at the MTV Europe Music Awards held in Frankfurt, Germany, on Sunday night (Monday in Manila).

My exclusive story: RIAA In The US Denies Certifying Psy's 'Gangnam Style'

By JONATHAN M. HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) denied that it has awarded Korean rapper Psy's hit single "Gangnam Style" with a double-platinum or multi-platinum certification.

A report by a Korean news agency quoted YG Entertainment, Psy's Korean agency, as saying that RIAA has certified Psy's hit single with a double-platinum award.

Photos courtesy of Psy's Facebook page and YG Entertainment

Psy To Receive Korea's Order of Cultural Merit; Obama Says He Can Dance 'Gangnam Style'

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - Rapper Psy will be awarded the Order of Cultural Merit award by South Korea for his contribution to spreading hallyu, or Korean wave, through his hit song "Gangnam Style."

The announcement was made by Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, which will bestow the award on Psy and nine other personalities.

US President Barack Obama (top photo) and Psy (bottom) in Paris.
(Photos courtesy of  President Barack Obama and Cauet sur NRJ Facebook pages)  

'Glee' Goes 'Gangnam Style,' Psy Makes First Appearance In Canada

BY JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - The cast of the hit musical TV series "Glee" has been bitten by the "Gangnam Style" bug and they will cover the song in an upcoming episode.

"Glee" has released a teaser of the "Gangnam Style" number that will be featured in the show.

Psy Makes Cover Of Billboard Magazine

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - Korean rapper Psy will be gracing the cover of the Nov. 3 issue of Billboard magazine, thanks to his viral hit "Gangnam Style" raking in 531 million views since July.

Billboard's main story titled “500,000,000 PSY FANS CAN'T BE WRONG” spotlights on "How the K-Pop breakout star harnessed the power of YouTube, Ellen, SNL, The Today Show, and more to become music’s new global brand."

Psy on the cover of the Nov. 3 issue of Billboard magazine. (Photo courtesy of Billboard)

Gangnam Style' Achieves 500 Million Views, Dubbed As 'The Future'

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - Korean rapper Psy has set another milestone when "Gangnam Style" achieved 500 million views on YouTube.

With this, "Gangnam Style" has become the third most viewed video on the website's history.

Ex-Spice Girls' Mel B Dances 'Gangnam Style' With Psy

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - The "Gangnam Style" dance craze has hit Australia and former Spice Girls member Mel B did it with Psy himself.

Psy flew to Australia on Oct. 15 for a promo tour. His first appearance was on "X Factor" Australia on Oct. 16 where he showed judge Mel B how to do the signature horse-riding dance.

'Gangnam Style' Reaches 1 Million Downloads In US

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - Korean rapper Psy's viral hit "Gangnam Style" has achieved another milestone, getting 1 million downloads and 1 million on-demand streams in the US, according to Billboard.

Billboard.com says based on this week's Digital Songs chart, "Gangnam Style" has attained the feat.

Psy (www.newsen.com)

Psy's Appeal To Fans: Help Me Get No. 1 On Billboard

Psy is appealing to fans to help him get to No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100 as his "Gangnam Style" reaches 400 million views on YouTube

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines - Korean rapper Psy will not settle for second place as far as his ranking on the Billboard Hot 100 chart is concerned.