12:37 am - 12/08/2012
South Korean rapper and Internet sensation PSY is apologizing to Americans for participating in anti-U.S. protests several years ago.
Park Jae-sang, who performs as PSY, issued a statement Friday after reports surfaced that he had participated in concerts protesting the U.S. military presence in South Korea during the early stages of the Iraq war.
At a 2004 concert, the "Gangnam Style" rapper performs a song with lyrics about killing "Yankees" who have been torturing Iraqi captives and their families "slowly and painfully." During a 2002 concert, he smashed a model of a U.S. tank on stage.
"While I'm grateful for the freedom to express one's self, I've learned there are limits to what language is appropriate and I'm deeply sorry for how these lyrics could be interpreted," he wrote in the statement. "I will forever be sorry for any pain I have caused by those words."
The 34-year-old rapper says the protests were part of a "deeply emotional" reaction to the war and the death of two Korean school girls, who were killed when a U.S. military vehicle hit them as they walked alongside the road. He noted anti-war sentiment was high around the world at the time.
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On the real tho, why is Psy going to be at a Xmas concert? I can do without Gangnam Style for the 20439832nd time, with additional Santa costumes.
Obama Oppa Doesn't Care About Psy's Anti-U.S. Military Past
South Korean rapper and Internet sensation PSY is apologizing to Americans for participating in anti-U.S. protests several years ago.
Park Jae-sang, who performs as PSY, issued a statement Friday after reports surfaced that he had participated in concerts protesting the U.S. military presence in South Korea during the early stages of the Iraq war.
At a 2004 concert, the "Gangnam Style" rapper performs a song with lyrics about killing "Yankees" who have been torturing Iraqi captives and their families "slowly and painfully." During a 2002 concert, he smashed a model of a U.S. tank on stage.
"While I'm grateful for the freedom to express one's self, I've learned there are limits to what language is appropriate and I'm deeply sorry for how these lyrics could be interpreted," he wrote in the statement. "I will forever be sorry for any pain I have caused by those words."
The 34-year-old rapper says the protests were part of a "deeply emotional" reaction to the war and the death of two Korean school girls, who were killed when a U.S. military vehicle hit them as they walked alongside the road. He noted anti-war sentiment was high around the world at the time.
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Source
On the real tho, why is Psy going to be at a Xmas concert? I can do without Gangnam Style for the 20439832nd time, with additional Santa costumes.
Really? lol okay, you're one of those. Eat your hatred and choke on it.
But as for the others , you know ONTD is fickle and some of them defending him without good reasoning probably just don't want to see racist.
But this was totally blown up more than it should cause of the media. It happened a little under a decade ago at a very different time for the world. Lyrics were much, but his anger is understandable. The song as a whole (not just Psy's stanza) according to my friend who speaks/understands Korean was condemning Bush's foreign policy, American imperialism and calling out the US on its hypocrisy.
It wasn't mistranslated, but he wasn't literally saying that every American deserves to die. It was a hyperbole written out of emotion.
Insulting/blaming not only the offending person but his family is a cultural thing, so a lot of people don't understand this part and take it extremely offensively.
In the past, not only would a Korean criminal receive punishment, but his family would also suffer from his actions. Obviously, this doesn't happen in South Korea today, but this practice still exists in North Korea.
Korea is a very collectivist country. A common hyperbolic phrase a Korean parent would say to their misbehaving child is "We'll die together." There's also a substantial amount of people who have committed suicide and taken their own families down with them. etc etc
TL;DR - That part of the song is cultural and goes over many people's heads.
Anyone that gets butthurt about Psy protesting it probably just watches Fox News. No it does not matter that he's a foreigner. America talks smack about other world leaders and civilizations all the time tbqfh. I've lost count how many times I've seen people say we should just bomb the whole middle east off the map for example.
But really, if you gonna be stupid on the world stage, the world's gonna call you out for it, no matter what country/leader/whatever you are.
Edited at 2012-12-09 07:57 am (UTC)
I am not holding those lyrics against him but I completely understand why he apologized , he is a celebrity and when the media is trying to bring you down ofc you won't be dismissive. He clarified the situation and I think he did the right thing.
Also he is performing for the president .... Ummmm yeah you going to the white house you pretty much have no choice to comment on the situation.
I see some madness coming from both sides in this post lol never change ONTD