Korean rapper Psy performs “Gangnam Style” at Tao nightclub on September 22, 2012, in Las Vegas. Photo by Al Powers/Invision for Tao/AP
LOS ANGELES—South Korean rapper Psy can keep his shirt on after his goofy “Gangnam Style” failed for a second week running to conquer the summit of Billboard’s Hot 100 hit parade, albeit by a slight margin.
The K-Pop superstar had pledged — some might say threatened — to perform his signature horse dance “half-naked” in his home city Seoul if his catchy and kitschy ditty hit number one in the preeminent US popular music chart.
But alas, he remained stuck in second as Maroon 5 — bolstered by radio play — hung on to the top spot with “One More Night,” Billboard reported on its website, adding however that the race was “extremely close.”
“Clearly, Psy remains in contention for the Hot 100’s coveted No. 1 rank next week,” the music industry reference said. “Until then, however, because he’s just less than tops on the chart, he’ll have to keep his shirt on.”
The Hot 100 reflects CD sales, digital downloads and radio play — and while the gap in overall chart points between “One More Night” and “Gangnam Style” was about 3,000 last week, it narrowed to fewer than 500 this week.
Psy, a 34-year-old whose real name is Park Jae-Sang, shot to international fame when “Gangnam Style” went viral in July on YouTube, where it has notched up more than 355 million views.
Recent appearances at the MTV awards in Los Angeles and NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” lifted his US profile, adding to an American cult following for South Korean pop music and soap operas.