After K-pop's Gangnam Style, a Japanese song goes viral

Hong Kong police officers rewrite PPAP and shoot a video to remind people of driving safely. [Photo/Weibo]

And it's not just the general public that has fallen in love with the song. Quite a few celebrities both at home and abroad are now addicted to the song.

Chinese actress Hsu Chi adapted the music song and performed it with her pet cats in a creative way. The renowned swimmer Sun Yang cooperated with actor Jia Nailiang and made a duet-version PPAP, provoking a heated discussion on the internet.

Canadian pop star Justin Bieber supported the music video on Twitter, saying it was his favorite video on the internet.

Furthermore, Hong Kong police officers rewrote PPAP and replaced the words "pen" and "apple" with "belt" and "buckle" in the lyrics. At the end of the video, a slogan, "Buckle up, it could save your life" comes on the screen to raise the safety awareness of the general public.

According to an insider, simple melody, straightforward lyrics and humorous dance movements combined with the earworm effect, a phrase that describes a catchy piece of music that continuously repeats in a person's mind long after the song stops playing, led to the popularity of PPAP.

"We do not have to remember the lyrics and melody of the song because we can hum the song after hearing it. Also, the English words in the song are not hard to pronounce and people who cannot speak English can also say them smoothly after some practice which facilitates the promotion of PPAP," Chen Wei, a musical teacher working in Shanghai, added.

After becoming a global star overnight, Kazuhiko Kosaka continues to strike while the iron is hot. He released other songs including Romita Hashimikov, Kashite Kudasaiyo within a week.

"My final aim is to stand on the stage of NHK Red White Song Battle, Japan's highest singing competition, and Summer Sonic Concert and I will keep trying," Kosaka added.

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