Will PSY suffer for dissing our country? As in a boycott?
—B.W., Kansas, via Twitter
Right, right. All those U.S. citizens who were planning on spending their weekends horse-dancing in elevators are totally rewriting their calendars, so angry are they.
Yes, PSY once expressed anti-Yankee sentiments at a 2004 protest concert, and aired some lyrics that seemed to encourage killing citizens of the good old U.S. of A. But the rapper has since apologized, and if history—and Gwyneth Paltrow—are any indication, that'll probably be the end of it.
Remember when Gwyneth Paltrow was quoted in 2006 criticizing our American way of life? No? Well, she was quoted by the Portuguese newspaper Diario de Noticias as saying, "The British are much more intelligent and civilized than the Americans."
She denied having said that, but she did also tell the Guardian that, "I love the English way, which is not as capitalistic as it is in America."
How about Johnny Depp? A German newspaper cited him as saying, "America is dumb, is something like a dumb puppy that has big teeth—that can bite and hurt you. Aggressive."
Depp also insisted that his remarks were taken out of context. But the point is this: You probably don't recall either of these instances. The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise went on to make more than $3 billion worldwide. Paltrow is still telling people how to roast turkeys. People just tend to forget stuff like this.
The only notable exception to this rule may be the Dixie Chicks, who faced a huge firestorm in 2003. Back then, during the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, singer Natalie Maines announced during a concert that, "we're ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas." The backlash against the group was massive and lasted for years.
Their recovery only started to gain momentum in 2007, when they won all five Grammys in which they were nominated; they toured with the Eagles two years ago, but their popularity never reached the heights it once enjoyed.
As for PSY, don't be surprised if it all blows over. Remember, he's only had one major hit in the United States!