How Despacito and Gangnam Style transcended mere language barriers
Back when Park Jae-sang known professionally as PSY launched Gangnam style in 2012, nobody including him thought it would become the highest watched YouTube video ever. Till date it has 2,861,798,014 views and approx 12, 714, 734 likes. The word ‘Gangnam’ became a neologism to represent Korean lifestyle culture, just like Coke is referred to Coca-Cola.
If 2012 was the year of Gangnam, then 2017 marks the explosion of yet another bilingual song Despacito by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee. The song has placed itself on the top of the coveted Billboard Top 100 chart list for the fourth consecutive week. Within three months of its release it has crossed 1.5 Billion views and is still counting.
The astonishing viewership of Spanish and Korean song has left many bewildered, considering the fact that both the songs have been sung in their native language, and are highlighting their respective culture, tradition and lifestyle. The lyrics are hard to understand, but people understand music and feel the beats which gets them grooving.
The popularity of Despacito and Gangnam proves that music belonging to any language breaks bureaucratic walls and institutionalized norms and regulations, and foster peace and harmony. Both the songs have reached the places where Spanish or Korean isn’t the primary language and found a honest connection with the audiences.
For example, Descapito is a fun track that has a Latin feel, and Latinos are finding it a dance-able track which is creating a cheerful emotion among them. This happy feeling has transcended across demographics which is making people dance and rejoice.
The optimism and magnetism embedded in these songs have attracted millions of fans across the world and will continue to do so.
