In a little over a decade, France has become one of the world’s biggest consumers of K-pop music and, as such, an unmissable stop on the global concert tours of such iconic bands as BTS, Black Pink, or Stray kids. A success story that knows no bounds.
On 21 December 2012, YouTube broke an all-time record: it was the first time a single music video garnered over one billion views in the history of the platform. Only six months prior, the artist behind the record-breaking video, the South-Korean pop star known as Psy, was completely unknown outside his native country and neighbouring Japan. Intended as a playful satire poking fun at the Gangnam-Gu lifestyle (one of the snobbiest districts of Seoul), “Gangnam Style” transcended cultural and linguistic barriers with its relentless energy, catchy chorus, and viral choreography. For the first time, a Korean artist had truly gone global, his music played in homes around the world. In so doing, he became a national hero. According to the French National Union of Phonographic Publishers (Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique, or SNEP), “Gangnam Style” ranked 4th place in the top-selling singles of September 2012.
By 2013, the song had dropped to 16th place, but its remarkable staying power was bolstered by another Psy track, “Gentleman”, which climbed to 123rd place. Though Psy may be the most publicised and widely recognised ambassador of K-pop thanks to this summer hit, others in the genre have made their mark abroad as well.
Published August 26 2025