There's little you can do to stop PSY going viral. The South Korean rapper's new single, 'Gentleman' has already registered 100 million views on YouTube within days of its release. Day one alone saw it garner 20 million hits and if the gods are on his side, it might even surpass 'Gangnam Style' that became YouTube's most-watched video of all time last year.
PSY isn't the first one to use the internet as his ticket to fame. Here are some other internet sensations...
Dhanush
Dhanush's unconventional style of asking, ‘Why this Kolaveri Di’ plucked him from anonymous to famous in no time. The 'Tanglish' (Tamil and English) lyrics sung in a drunken stupor earned the actor eyeballs, awards, parodies and even a visit to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh!
Justin Bieber
At its first breakout, the 'Bieber-fever' generated 400 million views for Justin Bieber's inimitable, 'Baby' in 2010. Since then, the world has been divided into two parts - Bieber fans and foes. Love or hate him, you can't ignore him. Seriously.
Shraddha Sharma
Touted as India's answer to Justin Beiber, Shraddha Sharma's channel Shraddharockin went on to become the third highest subscribed channel in India in August last year. Her most viewed video, the song 'Haal-E-Dil' from 'Murder 2', got over 8 lakh views.
Rebecca Black
One-song wonder Rebecca Black's infamous stint with her video 'Friday' generated about 30 million YouTube hits. The 13-year-old sank back into oblivion since then, though she did attempt a comeback with a new song, 'My moment'.
Charlie Bit My Finger
Two tiny-tots made for the most watched non-Gaga, non-Bieber YouTube video of all time! On December 22, 2011, the video reached 400 million views. The boys were since featured on T-shirt covers, calendars and have their individual blogs. In their list of YouTube's 50 greatest viral videos of all time, Time magazine ranked "Charlie Bit My Finger" as number one.
Fake IPL player
Started in 2009 around the same time as the Indian Premier League (IPL) Season 2, this blog written anonymously in the beginning garnered a lot of attention. Some felt it was a sulking IPL player spewing venom, while others thought the blog had the insider's scoop on the games. It was only in August 2010 that marketing specialist Anupam Mukerji revealed himself on TV and newspapers as the face behind the blog.
Govind Tiwari
An accidental celebrity, Govind Tiwari's blog made him a trending topic on Twitter for weeks. The blog is a mash up dedicated to himself and his fantastic views put up in flashy HTML. Tiwari stumbled on his popularity in social media only after newspapers reported the viral rage his website had become.
