'Gangnam Style' Reaches 1 Billion Views; PSY Makes YouTube History
PSY's "Gangnam Style" reached 1 billion views on YouTube.
The South Korean rapper whose real name is Park Jae-Sang, reached the historic achievement on Friday, making his viral song the only video on YouTube to reach 1 billion views.
The song first appeared on YouTube on July 15 and has since made PSY a pop culture legend around the world.
The song hit the 1 billion mark at 10:50 a.m. EST, according to MSN.
YouTube celebrated the 34-year-old singer's achievement by placing a dancing doodle of PSY next to the site's logo.
"I didn't even imagine 'Gangnam Style' would get 1 million views, let alone 1 billion views! Is this the Tru-PSY show?" said a statement by PSY, as reported by Reuters.
PSY recently made another accomplishment last month when he overtook Justin Bieber's hit "Baby" as the most watched video on YouTube.
PSY has definitely cashed in on his recent success.
The pop star's hit song helped bring in around $8 million in 2012, according to The Associated Press. Most of his earnings this year were for advertisement deals in South Korea, but "Gangnam Style" helped launch the rapper's international stardom.
PSY used some a portion of his money to buy a new $1.25 million Beverly Hills condo completely in cash, according to TMZ.
The video, which pokes fun at a rich neighborhood in Seoul, has inspired plenty of copies, mash-ups and parodies by people around the world which have included massive flash mobs of people imitating PSY's horse dance.
The rapper also performed a Christmas-style version of his hit song at the 31st annual Christmas in Washington benefit concert that will air on TNT tonight at 8 p.m. The show is hosted by Conan O'Brien and proceeds of the event support the Children's National Medical Center.
