The Sunday Times in 2013 about his alcohol intake.
His attitude about drinking proved to be shocking, particularly in light of the constant positive
press surrounding his name.
Psy explained:
"If I'm happy, I'm drinking, if I'm sad, I'm drinking...if it's raining, I'm drinking,
if it's sunny, I'm drinking."
He claimed the only time he's not attached to booze is, quote, "when [he's] hungover."
The interview also exposed his constant smoking habit, something that's thought to ruin a
singer's voice.
It's important to note that a writer for Kpop Starz revealed the singer-rapper's perceived
drinking problem may be a matter of, quote, "cultural misunderstanding" in the West.
Citing a 2012 World Health Organization report which found that South Korea had the second-highest
rate of alcohol consumption at the time, they wrote,
"Why would a man whose fame and success depend on his likable personality admit to the world
that he is a raging alcoholic?
Simple.
He didn't…Throughout his career he has been rather outspoken about his patriotism and
undying love for his motherland.
This also means that Psy embraces all aspects of his heritage and culture, and yes, that
includes excessive drinking."
When Psy was interviewed by The Daily Beast in 2017, tensions between North and South
Korea were at a high.
Kim Jong-un was ramping up his anti-South and anti-American rhetoric at the time, so
the North Korean leader inevitably came up during the conversation.
Psy refused to be drawn into a political debate, telling the website that he wanted everything
to be figured out in a, quote, "very calm and safe" fashion so tragedies could be avoided.
He stated:
"As a Korean citizen, I want peace.
That's all I can say.
I want permanent peace.
I want the North and South to be good."
It was a sensible response from a man who isn't exactly known for his diplomacy, but
it wasn't enough to convince his own government that sending him to the North was a good idea.
In 2018, a host of K-pop Star crossed the DMZ for a landmark concert in Pyongyang, watched
by Kim Jong-un in person.
Despite the fact that "Gangnam Style" is the most successful K-pop song in the US in terms
of platinum awards, Psy wasn't invited.
A South Korean government rep explained via Korean Portal:
"There is an image that this side [North Korea] is imagining…and he would stand out too
much from that image."
After putting South Korea in the international spotlight, the country tapped Psy to be its
tourism ambassador in 2013.
Instead of a hefty payday, the music star accepted the minimum payment.
Psy's appointment replaced Kenny G, who oddly enough was the face of South Korean tourism
in 2012.
At the time, Psy wasn't a stranger to important duties, as he had held the same honorary title
for Seoul's Gangnam district in 2012.
His appointment also opened doors for other business deals, most notably his ambassadorship
for Asiana Airlines for 2013.
In December 2015, Psy released his long-awaited seventh studio album, the title of which translates
to This is Psy’s Seventh Album.
Aware it would be nearly impossible to top his previous record, the musician reportedly
felt immense pressure to succeed and fell into a dark depression.
He told Entertainment Weekly at the time:
"I'm not an Adele...After 'Gangnam Style,' I was really happy, but sometimes I was not
happy, because that's my lifetime biggest song and I'm not going to top that song forever.
For a while, I kind of felt a little bit of pressure, like, 'How can I top that one?
I thought about being me, not the 'Gangnam' guy, or whatever.
I was focused on finding myself."
Though the album didn't top his past successes stateside, Psy's new K-pop singles were very
well received at the 2015 Mnet Asian Music Awards.
Psy may not be the household name he once was in the US, but elsewhere in the world
and online, his dance tracks and signature capri pants are still tapping toes and turning
heads.
The video for his 2015 smash single "Daddy" attracted hundreds of millions of YouTube
views and a spot on the U.S. charts.
According to Billboard, Psy’s accompanying seventh studio album was his first to debut
on the top dance/electronic albums charts.
The project also showcased more A-list collaborations, including an Ed Sheeran remix and a feature
with will.i.am.
But Psy hasn’t been spending as much time in the U.S. and European markets.
Truth be told, there's more money to be made elsewhere.
BBC News reported in 2015:
"Having earned an estimated [$55 million] from his work in the West, Psy is now racking
up similar amounts from the lucrative Chinese market, where his collaboration with world-class
pianist Lang Lang is currently producing a run of consecutive number ones.
Psy's decision to focus on the Asian music market may be an indication of where the entertainment
industry turns over the highest profits for musicians, China's entertainment market was
last valued at [$95.7 billion.]”
How's that for a mic drop?
"Ahh?
Boom!
Drop the mic."
In 2015, NPR reported that the "Gangnam Style" singer became embroiled in a very public controversy
over an experimental coffee shop called Takeout Drawing.
Psy used his K-pop fortune to buy an entire building in the Hannam-dong neighborhood of
Seoul and decided he wanted to renovate and replace the art house cafe within it with
a franchise.
Choi Soyeon, who owned the cafe, explained:
"He's not a good building owner.
I like Starbucks, too, but it would be good to have different types of cafes, some that
manage the space like ours."
The battle between Psy and Choi raised fresh concerns about gentrification in South Korea's
capital city, but the musician's lawyer claimed that he was being more than fair.
Psy’s lawyer, K.S.
Chong, explained:
"Psy wanted them to leave very peacefully.
He offered some money to compensate for their moving, but they denied.
He was very, very frustrated."
In the end, the courts sided with Psy, which would have forced Choi to pack up and get
out.
According to The Korea Herald, she was ordered to pay Psy around $55,000… but Psy decided
to let the business stay after all.
By the time he started working on his eighth album, Psy was well and truly over the "Gangnam
Style" phase of his career.
He admitted that he'd started to actively avoid the swanky Seoul district during a 2015
press conference, and later revealed that he'd made an effort to get back to his musical
roots on 2017's 4x2=8.
Speaking to Reuters, the eccentric rapper-singer said he didn't want to, quote, "linger in
the past" with this album, saying:
"I'm not one to make two, three, four versions of ['Gangnam Style'] because I'm hung up on
its fame."
He went on to compare his global success to an addiction of which he was glad to rid himself:
"Like when you throw a party, it takes some time for that excitement to die down after
it's over.
I think it took a while for that exhilaration to subside."
Psy has learned to stop caring about YouTube views, but he still wants his videos to be
remembered.
He told Billboard while promoting 4x2=8:
"I have a dream that one day my music videos will be [known like] Jim Carrey movies or
the Jackie Chan movies of the music video industry.”
The dance featured in the video for lead single "New Face" was nominated for an award at the
2017 Mnet award, but it lost out to Taemin's "Move."
In 2018, Psy parted ways with YG Entertainment after eight years with the company.
YG gave Psy its full blessing, affirming that the relationship that existed between the
company and its former artist would, quote, "continue forever regardless of a contract."
YG also hinted that Psy could be starting his very own label since he was free to do
so, and that's exactly what he did.
In January 2019, Psy launched P NATION, which he promised would be:
"...a playground for passionate players chasing their dreams."
"You deserve more than this.
Go follow your dream."
Psy had been flirting with creating his own record label for a while, but he chose to
bide his time.
Speaking to Billboard in April 2019, the "Gangnam Style" singer said that he was ready to share
everything he'd learned with the next generation of K-pop stars.
Psy stated:
"As we're talking, K-pop is really huge and it's not domestic anymore.
Right now, a lot of young kids dream about being a K-pop star.
When I sign young kids these days, I meet their parents and they're really different
from my parents.
They're so supportive.
The world's been changing: K-pop has done a great job, and that's why so many parents
are so supportive."
The first artist Psy signed to P NATION was Jessi, a Korean-American idol who was raised
in New Jersey.
She rose to fame in Korea with appearances on reality TV shows like Unpretty Rapstar,
earning a reputation as an aggressive, no-nonsense rapper.
She told OSEN,
"I can see how people would get scared by the way I came across.
However, I'm not really like that...I'm human so I would lose my temper and get tired, but
I also have fun and take care of the younger ones."
Psy has seen her more sensitive side and intended to harness that once the pair took on the
American market together.
While speaking to Billboard, the P NATION founder and CEO hinted that Jessi, whose 2017
single "Gucci" racked up over 18 million views on YouTube, was capable of making commercial
pop music.
Psy said:
"She raps in English very well.
Not right now, but in the near future, I'm thinking of making some good U.S. songs as
well.
She's from the States and has a lot of global ideas...My job is choosing and concentrating
Jessi's big ideas into the best they can be."
Psy turned his attention to recruiting some more traditional K-pop idols to his new label.
HyunA had already been around the industry for a long time, debuting as part of Wonder
Girls in 2007 before joining five-piece girl group 4Minute.
She was able to continue as a solo artist when 4Minute disbanded, partly because of
"Gangnam Style.”
Psy told Billboard:
"After 'Gangnam Style' we were close friends and I have a habit that if I team up a friend,
I imagine, 'How would I work with them?’
I thought of a lot of projects for HyunA just by myself.
HyunA's a great performer."
HyunA became a free agent in 2018 when her relationship with labelmate E'Dawn became
public knowledge.
Dating is a big no-no in K-pop, so both idols were dropped by Cube Entertainment.
The company's loss was Psy's gain, as he signed them both.
As far as he's concerned, his artists are free to date whomever they like.
Psy stated:
"They were in love before meeting me.
That's a really delicate thing.
They are very good looking, I mean, every idol is very good looking.
They are young, they are so talented and, you know, it's human nature.
If you're good looking, talented men and women, you're inevitably going to feel good feelings
about each other."
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