South Korean pop singer Psy once again proved himself a hallyu star, an accolade for South Korean celebrities followed globally, as he rocked Gangnam in southern Seoul on Sunday.
The K-pop icon, widely known for "Gangnam Style" and the horse-riding dance move, closed the four-day golden holiday as the last singer to perform at "C-Festival 2016."
The cultural event was organized by Gangnam District to dub the area as a cradle of hallyu culture and popular venue for global conventions and executive conferences. The K-pop concert, the highlight of the event, ran from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
With a 15-year singing career under his belt, the 38-year-old world star knew how to motivate the crowd, who bounced and rallied even in their most exhausted conditions till the last minute of the three-hour joint concert.
Psy sang some of his greatest hits, "Gangnam Style," "Napal Baji," "Daddy," "Paradise" and many more for slightly more than an hour.
Most of the 20,000 audience members were holding either red or blue glow sticks as an identifier of their favorite idol groups, iKON and WINNER of YG Entertainment. Yet, for Psy, there was no such divide. All glow sticks gleamed frantically in the dark in unison.
"I started out as a funnyman, and here I am, after these 15 long years," he grinned naughtily at the crowd.
The singer sang several songs and threw in hilarious comments that caused people -- from low teens to senior couples with gray hair -- to burst into laughter.
"Please be nice and careful when you take photos of me. My cheeks sometimes flap (when I dance too hard)," he said, pointing to his sweaty, chubby cheeks to the crowd.
The singer asked his fans, in Korean and English, to be mindful of safety issues when enjoying the outdoor concert. He also asked the staff to adjust the three jumbo screens so that the audience farthest away from the stage can enjoy the performance -- a manner that highlighted his long years as an experienced entertainer.
"Psy was definitely the best. He knows how to cheer people up,"
said Gabi, a 28-year-old from Ecuador, who first became acquainted with Psy from his first runaway hit song, "Gangnam Style."
Prior to Psy's appearance on the stage, the K-pop concert greeted some of the most popular idol groups, such as iKON, WINNER, IOI, Snuper and KNK.
Starting this year, Gangnam District plans to make "C-Festival" an annual event for music lovers from all around the world. (Yonhap)
