Unless you decided to paint the town in Austin with Iggy Pop and the Chilli Peppers then you know Psy's "Gangnam Style" has pretty much swept the country up by storm much like the "Macarena" in terms of catchiness (and infuriation). Over the weekend, the popular EDM-fueled single did something even its biggest skeptics thought it be completely unbelievable.
It became the No. 1 rap song in the country.
Rewind:
The Top 10 Weirdest U.S. No. 1 Hits
HISD Staff Goes Gangnam Style: This Is Not a Joke
Yes, K-Pop decided to go ahead and crash the Billboard charts in some sort of horrible takeover where we're all wearing shiny suits with sunglasses indoors wanting to dance. Wait, that was Diddy back in 1997. Are we back in '97 again? If so, I really have to invest in crunk music; that will become a tidal wave of success.
Psy's chances of remaining on top of the rap charts will remain high considering that Billboard's recent changes to tracking music has effectively blown the doors off of genre-specific songs, targeting markets and then some.
For example, Psy's ascension to the top of the throne once held by Jay-Z -- and, to a lesser extent, Houston's own Kirko Bangz -- is based upon Billboard's inclusion of digital downloads and streaming services such as Spotify, as opposed to traditional means such as radio airplay and sales figures.
The move not only has caused major ramifications for who slots where on the genre-specific charts, such as rap, but in music in general. Miguel, owner of arguably the year's smoothest single in "Adorn," lost his spot as king of the R&B/Hip-Hop charts to Rihanna's new single "Diamonds". Rih-Rih, mind you, hasn't crafted a traditional R&B song since ... seven, eight tattoos ago?
The quirky move has most insiders and chart sponges such as myself looking on, wondering what next YouTube fad will replace Psy on the chart. It may possibly lead to the first-ever battle between RiFF RaFF and Lil B for chart supremacy.
May the swag Gods have mercy on our souls by then.
Follow Rocks Off on Facebook and on Twitter at @HPRocksOff.
