Gangnam Style is on the verge of overtaking Justin Beiber's track Baby as the most-watched video ever on YouTube.
At time of writing, the the Korean pop mega hit had accumulated almost 795
million views since it was posted on 15 July this year. Baby, which has been
available since February 2010, had 803 million views.
With Gangnam Style attracting about 11 million views per day compared to
Bieber's one million, it is due to take the crown this weekend.
The song, which pokes fun at the fashion-conscious denizens of a wealthy
district of Seoul, has powered its singer, Psy, to global stardom. An array
of public figures including the sculptor Anish Kapoor, Zara Phillips and Ban
Ki Moon have copied his "horse riding" dance.
In October Gangnam Style also became the first Korean song to top the official
UK pop chart.
Jespite their YouTube rivalry, since achieving stardom in the West, Psy has
reportedly signed up with Justin Bieber's management company and said the
pair will work on a song together.
"Fashion
is the most intense expression of the phenomenon of neomania, which has
grown since the birth of capitalism. Neomania assumes that
purchasing the new is the same as acquiring value. If the purchase of a
new garment coincides with the wearing out of an old one, then obviously
there is no fashion. If a garment is worn beyond the moment of its
natural replacement, there is pauperization. Fashion flourishes on
surplus, when someone buys more than he or she needs."