Eh, sexy lady. Op op op op oppan Gangnam Style.

Almost all of us could easily recite the chorus of PSY’s infamous hit single “Gangnam Style,” but do any of us know the story behind the lyrics?

Junior Eugene Kim, a South Korean who spent 10 years of his life living in the town of Gangnam is able to directly relate to the song. Gangnam is a district in Seoul, the capital of South Korea. According to Kim, Gangnam is the wealthiest district in Seoul. Kim compares it to the way Americans view Hollywood: wealthy and full of stardom.

“Gangnam style is always ahead of any trends in different districts,” said Kim.

Because of Gangnam’s obvious wealth and good fortune, Kim admits that the song is a bit of a pretentious song, and that PSY is negatively showing off the riches of Gangnam.

“When I first heard the song, it was weird. Even though I understand the lyrics, they’re still weird. [The song] ‘Gangnam Style’ was very popular when I was in South Korea.”

Having such a strong South Korean background, Kim was surprised when the song made its way to America.

“Gangnam Style” is a song that falls under the K-Pop — otherwise knows as Korean pop — genre of music. Kim admits that that genre isn’t very popular in America, so hearing it on almost every single American radio station was strange for him.

“K-Pop isn’t very popular [here.] Everyone was talking about it and listening to it. I was very surprised to hear it.”

Kim was born in America, but he attended 1st through 6th grade in South Korea until he moved to Texas in 6th grade, Chicago in 7th grade, and then moved back to South Korea for another two years, before finally moving back to America.

Though Kim is comfortably living in America, his parents are still back in South Korea. He stays with a host family while his father continues to be a professor at a university in his hometown.

Kim’s parents were supportive of his decision. They gave him a choice, and Kim admits that while he was making the choice, he was very depressed and confused. His parents’  trust in him encouraged him to keep moving forward, and because of that, Kim strongly believes that ultimately, he made the right decision, though being so far away from his parents is still hard for him.

Despite the hardships that he has had to face, the one thing that kept Kim motivated was the differences in education systems.

He admits that the education in America is more relaxing and allows hi to actually enjoy the subjects that he studies.

“In Korea, everything is ahead. What 6th graders learn there is what 11th graders learn here,” said Kim.

The school days are also gruelingly long. It begins at 8 a.m. and doesn’t end until 11 p.m. due to mandatory after school study programs.

Although the school days and courses are more difficult, there is one major difference. South Korean students push themselves all throughout elementary school, middle school, and high school, but once they reach college, Kim admits that they get lazy because they believe that “they’re done, and they just stop trying.” One thing that Kim appreciates is that in America, after college, people actually study harder and try to make something of themselves in the Land of Opportunity.

Kim believes that he is ready for all of this since he has been forced to be responsible from a very young age; he is now thriving in America and hopes to study architecture or engineering with his brother at U of I, who also made the switch to get education in America at a young age.

Having his brother near while his parents are so far away is comforting for Kim, and he also Skypes/talks on the phone with his parents three days a week, as well as visits them every summer.

Though he is a world away from home, Kim still embraces his Korean culture. He doesn’t plan on moving back home anytime soon, so for now, he’ll just have to settle for listening to “Gangnam Style” to get that South Korean vibe back.