Which song from ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ is going to the 2026 Oscars?

Netflix’s KPop Demon Hunters has achieved viral success since its release on June 20, 2025. The animated film boasts an impressive 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and has topped Netflix’s global movie charts.

The film’s soundtrack ranked on the Billboard Hot 100 and the album debuted at number 8 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart. Producers of Kpop Demon Hunters are taking the film’s success to another level and entering one of its soundtracks for consideration in the Best Original Song category.

Golden, co-written by Kim Eun-Jae aka EJAE, and Mark Sonnenblick, will be entered by Netflix for an Oscar nomination. If the upbeat pop song is eventually nominated for an Oscar, it becomes the second song from an animated film to achieve the feat after Encanto’s Dos Orugitas written by Lin-Manuel Miranda and nominated four years ago.

It would also make EJAE the second songwriter of Korean parentage to receive an Oscar nomination after Karen O. who was nominated in 2013 for The Moon Song.

More details about the Golden soundtrack from the Kpop Demon Hunters animated movie

Golden was performed by the fictional K-pop girl band Huntr/X in the Kpop Demon Hunters animation. Golden tells the story of band member Rumi’s fight with her inner demons as she struggles to come to terms with her true identity.

The chorus which is voiced by EJAE encourages listeners to embrace who they are and shine:

“We're goin' up, up, up/ It's our moment/ You know together we're glowing/ Gonna be, gonna bе golden/ Oh, up, up, up/ With our voices/ Yeongwonhi kkaеjil su eomneun/ Gonna be, gonna be golden”

After Golden’s release on July 4, 2025, as the second single from the film’s soundtrack album, the song debuted at number 52 on the Billboard Global 200 and is set to enter number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100.

According to Billboard, Golden will also make a leap from number 52 to 2 on the Global 200 and from number 51 to number 5 on the Billboard Global Excl. US charts respectively.

In an interview with MAEIL Business Newspaper, EJAE described Golden soundtrack from Kpop Demon Hunters as an inspirational song, stating that she hoped to win a Grammy Award for composition:

"My mother used to say, 'Words become seeds,' but I hope this song will give hope to those who listen." "I no longer want to be a famous singer, but I want to win the Grammy Award for Composition someday to show that Asians can succeed in the American music industry,"

Trending

Also read: Mama Mosie Burks dies at 92: A look back at her professional journey and career

×

Was this article helpful?

Thank You for feedback