Fantasy K-Pop Collab: Psy + Cee Lo Green

This week Psy came back with a vengeance: new single, new music video, new dance, and an over-the-top solo concert in Seoul. It only seems right that Fantasy K-Pop Collab honors him this week and offers up what we think would be a winning collaboration for the ubiquitous Korean rapper - Cee Lo Green.

Since "Gangnam Style" first hit the internet last summer it spread throughout the world and is now the most viewed video on YouTube, by a long shot. Even if they don't understand the lyrics, the world over, everyone seems to know the song and invisible horse dance. "Gangnam Style" not only revolutionized how we think about music (even Billboard now takes YouTube views into account when making their lists), but also thrust Psy (born Jae-sang Park) and Korean pop music into the international mainstream. Not bad for a little satirical track about Korea's nouveau-riche.

But what does the world know about Psy aside from this? Not very much. He has been on the music scene for well over a decade and has penned a lot of catchy songs aside from his 2012 mega-hit. He's a talented lyricist and composer. People always talk about how friendly and approachable he is, even when one considers how eccentric he can be: the flashy suits, sunglasses, parodies, and out-of-this-world staging for his performances.

Who better, then, to pair him up with than America's own eccentric R&B singer, Cee Lo Green?

Cee Lo Green, born Thomas DeCarlo Callaway, has had his own career ups and downs. Originally a member of Atlanta hip-hop group Goodie Mob, Green broke away to develop a solo career with Arista. After two albums and low record sales, he was dropped - arguably because the world was not ready for his music.

Cee Lo then went on to form Gnarles Barkley with Danger Mouse, and the two found international success together, most notably with the hit song "Crazy." In 2010, however, the singer took a break from the duo to go solo again and with the release of "Fuck You!" a star was officially born.

As with Psy and "Gangnam Style," Cee Lo Green's worldwide popularity saw a sharp increase through the internet. The song was released on YouTube prior to the album's release, and "Fuck You" had over 2 million views in a less than a week; it was an instant viral hit.

All this sounds very familiar, no?

Aside from securing their places in pop culture history thanks to YouTube, both Psy and Cee Lo Green are well known for their outrageous live performances, flashy outfits, and unique styles of music. They also are not ashamed to lend their fame (and faces) to a host of endorsements. Both have also been satirized (and subsequently appeared) on Saturday Night Live. The both have a penchant for wearing sunglasses. It's almost as if they were cut from the same bizarre cloth.

Since "Gangnam Style" received worldwide attention, many artists around the globe have expressed an interest in working with Psy. He has even gone as far as to collaborate with a few (like MC Hammer and 2Chainz). But collaborations so far have been piggy-backed on the popularity of "Gangnam Style."

Now, especially with the new single "Gentleman," Psy fans have seen that there is definitely more to the Korean rapper than just the one hit.

A collaboration with Cee Lo seems so plausible, we are so curious to see what the two would come up with. It would definitely have to include a good, solid beat - something catchy that we could hear in a club. The lyrics would be very tongue-and-cheek, sticking with both artists' personal approach of being blunt and honest in their work, but hidden under a veil of sarcasm. Psy would rap, Cee Lo would belt out the hook. The stage performance would be incredible - flashing lights, scantily clad back up dancers, glitz and glam galore. The two of them would wear something with sequins... lots of sequins. Cee Lo and Psy have taken over the world individually already, imagine the power the two of them would have together.

Tags
Psy
cee lo green
collaboration
Gangnam Style
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