What was the first music video to reach 1 billion views on YouTube?

“Gangnam Style” was the first music video to reach 1 billion views on YouTube. Psy’s video passed the milestone on 21 December 2012, only about five months after its premiere.

The video was released on YouTube on 15 July 2012 and directed by Cho Soo-hyun. Its choreography, especially Psy’s instantly recognisable horse-riding dance, helped turn a Korean-language song into a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The video humorously satirises the affluent, status-conscious image associated with Seoul’s Gangnam District.

At the time, the achievement was unprecedented. YouTube even displayed a special animated Psy icon to mark the billion-view milestone. “Gangnam Style” had previously become the site’s most-viewed video, later holding that position until Wiz Khalifa’s “See You Again” surpassed it in 2017.

The other options were also major YouTube successes, but they reached the billion-view mark later. “Baby” by Justin Bieber, “Roar” by Katy Perry and “Sorry” by Justin Bieber were not the first music videos to cross that threshold.