Craze over ‘Gangnam style’ video hits Singapore

By Melissa Aw

A Singaporean team has parodied the latest K-pop smash hit "Gangnam Style". (YouTube screengrab)

In the original four-minute music video of "Gangnam Style", K-pop singer Park Jae-Sang or "PSY", 34, performs the so-called "horse dance" that mimics the moves of riding a horse.

Since it was uploaded on YouTube three weeks ago, the video has gone viral, garnering a staggering 22 million views and drawing praises even from international pop stars such as Robbie Williams and Josh Groban.

In the video, PSY sings about the lifestyles of people living in Gangnam, an affluent district in Seoul.

It has also spawned parodies in different countries, including Singapore.

Titled "Singapore style", the local version was produced by Toxipen, a local-based Korean company that specialises in cinematography and photography.

According to Toxipen's owner Woo Sun Keun, the video took only a day to film and produce.

The video was also made on a low budget of less than S$10 as the team travelled to their locations via public transport, the 31-year-old said.

Filmed in Singapore's most famous and scenic locations, which includes Little India, Esplanade, Marina Bay Sands, Somerset and Orchard Road, the video sees the main actor — who bears a strikingly similar resemblance to the original singer — mouthing the lyrics and dancing its signature moves in public.

Woo also revealed to Yahoo! Singapore that he decided to film the local music video after his friend persuaded him to join an international contest held by none other than PSY himself.

The contest's primary requirement is for participants to parody the music video their own way so that "everyone [can] enjoy the song more broadly".

The winner will receive a pair of travel tickets to Saipan — the largest of the Northern Mariana Islands. However, Woo let on that his team had unfortunately failed to snatch the top prize, losing to a team from the United States instead.

But nonetheless, with or without the win, the video is already proving to be a smash hit as it has already garnered over 80 "likes" and 2,600 shares since it was uploaded on Facebook on 6 August.

Haven't seen the local version of "Gangnam Style" yet? Watch it here:

With additional reporting by Fann Sim