Gangnam Denis - the Cork connection
Nobody batted an eyelid at the Cannes Film Festival last week when a portly South Korean gent in garish sunglasses rubbed shoulders with the stars at all the VIP bashes.
After all, this was Cannes, and he was K-Pop sensation Psy, architect of the Gangnam Style dance sensation.
Except he wasn't.
His name was Denis, and last time anyone checked, he was a sales manager in Cork.
The story of 'fake Psy' made worldwide headlines last week as it was revealed that the man Gangnaming his way around the French riviera resort was, in fact, an imposter.
The news was broken by Psy himself, who was thousands of miles away from the glitz and glamour of Cannes.
seems like there's another ME at cannes...say Hi to him @scooterbraun lol#PSYinSINGAPORE
— PSY (@psy_oppa) May 22, 2013
This was despite 'fake Psy' being photographed with stars including , below:
and , on the right in the below pic:
He even fooled French and international media into thinking he was the real thing:
After 'fake Psy' was busted by 'real Psy', GQ magazine managed to track down the man in the white-rimmed specs for an exclusive interview, in which he revealed a surprising Irish connection.
Born in South Korea (so that explains the Psy resemblance) but raised in Clermont, France by adoptive parents (handy enough to fool everyone in Cannes), Denis Carré came to Ireland to study music in 2000, first living in Limerick before taking up residence in Cork in 2005 where he worked as a sales manager for a regulatory compliance company in Little Island.
"I consider myself French, my history is in France but since I have been in Ireland for ten years, I would also feel a bit Irish as well," he told the Cork Independent in a 2010 interview.
But when opportunity knocked, Denis was ready for a change of direction, leaving Little Island behind for the bright lights of the big city.
Now calling himself 'Gangnam Denis', he has ditched his previous life for a full-time gig as a Psy impersonator, telling GQ that he now has a manager and a communications team, with whom he planned his Cannes stunt.
@PSY_oppa #Psy #kpop @PsyTV - We got what we expected, time to explain exactly who I am. My interview for #GQ... http://t.co/7F206gFpZt
— GangnamDenis (@GangnamDenis) May 27, 2013
"We did it to create the biggest buzz possible to raise awareness on my lookalike career," he wrote on Facebook.
"It worked, obviously!"
" The aim was to entertain," the 34-year-old added.
"Please be assured that I did not get a single penny for this as it was not the aim."
"The vast majority thought I was him (the real Psy)," he told GQ, adding that he "never worked hard" on looking like Psy.
"The only thing I did to imitate him was to remove my socks," he said.
"I read in interviews that he doesn't like wearing socks. So that's the only thing I had to get used to."
Having taken Cannes by storm, Gangnam Denis says his next step is to meet his hero.
"The next step is to meet the real Psy," he told GQ.
"We are trying to do that and I would love that, because he changed my life."
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