Golden from KPop Demon Hunters wins Grammy, first for a K-pop act

“Golden”, from Netflix’s hit animation KPop Demon Hunters (2025), won a Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media, marking K-pop’s first ever Grammy win.

The win was announced during the Grammy Premiere Ceremony on Feb 1 US time, held ahead of the main awards show. The category honours the songwriters behind songs written specifically for visual media in recognition of their excellence in composition and lyrics behind the nominated work.

“Golden” was

written and produced by a team of acclaimed K-pop producers

, including Ejae — who also sang for the role of Rumi in the Grammy-winning track — Teddy, 24 and producer collective Ido, consisting of Lee Yu-han, Kwak Joong-gyu and Nam Hee-dong.

“Although he couldn’t be here today, I’d like to dedicate the honor (of receiving the award) to Teddy — my greatest mentor and closest friend, and also the pioneer of K-pop — for being a part of every process that brought us here today,” said producer-composer 24 upon receiving the award.

Performed by Korean American artists Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami as the in-film girl group Huntrix, “Golden” made chart history by becoming the first K-pop song to simultaneously top both the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the UK Official Singles Chart. Its Grammy victory cements its place as one of the most influential K-pop crossover hits to date.

The song was also nominated for best pop performance by a duo or group, as were Rose and Bruno Mars’ “APT.”, and Katseye’s “Gabriela”, but the honour ultimately went to Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande’s “Defying Gravity” from the soundtrack to Wicked (2025).

This year’s Grammys was one that was most closely watched, as anticipation built over whether K-pop would be able to finally break through at a ceremony where the genre has yet to secure a win.

However, K-pop failed to build on the success of “Golden”, which remained its only win of the night.

“Golden” and “APT.” were also nominated for song of the year, which honors the composers and lyricists behind the nominated work. “APT.” was also nominated for record of the year — which goes to the best overall sound recording of a single, recognising the artist, producers and sound engineers involved in its creation.

In the end, song of the year was awarded to Billie Eilish for “Wildflower” and record of the year was handed to “Luther”, by Kendrick Lamar and Sza.

Multinational girl group Katseye, co-produced by Hybe and Geffen Records, was also nominated for the best new artist category, an honorable recognition the group received just two years since their debut. The win ultimately went to British singer-songwriter Olivia Dean.

Alongside performances made by mainstream artists such as Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber and Tyler the Creator, K-pop acts, including Rose and Katseye, sent the crowd into a frenzy of excitement through their performances.

Rose took the stage to open the Grammys with a performance of “APT.” with Bruno Mars, delivering a high-profile opening stage for the annual awards show. Katseye, on the other hand, performed in a medley stage with other best new artist nominees through its performance of “Gnarly”, a viral hit released by the group in April 2025.

While the win for “Golden” team is widely seen as a breakthrough for the genre, critics have offered a more nuanced assessment, pointing out that the recognition did not come from a general-field category and that the winning song was not a conventional K-pop release.

KPop Demon Hunters is a US-produced animated film directed by Korean Canadian filmmaker Maggie Kang, using K-pop as its narrative motif. “Golden” is closer to a K-pop-inspired pop track than a traditional K-pop release rooted in South Korea’s idol system, according to music critic Lim Hee-yun. He believes the achievement owed much to the film’s global reach.

“It is meaningful that K-pop songwriters won their first Grammy,” Mr Lim said. “While the category is not part of the general field and therefore carries less symbolic weight, the film introduced K-pop to audiences who may not have been familiar with or deeply invested in the genre. That exposure itself has positive value.”

However, Mr Lim questioned whether “Golden” should be considered K-pop.

“I see ‘Golden’ as an American pop song,” he said. “KPop Demon Hunters is a US-made project that incorporates Korean elements. Musically, it follows American pop conventions, and the structure — with Ejae as a lead vocalist rather than a traditional idol group dynamic — is not particularly K-pop-like.”

Cultural critic Jung Deok-hyun offered a similar interpretation, describing the Grammy win as a sign of K-pop’s transformation into a more globalised form of pop music.

“‘Golden’ shows how K-pop is evolving,” Mr Jeong said. “When you remove the ‘K,’ it becomes closer to pop. The song sounds more like American pop than K-pop, which likely made it more accessible and successful.”

Still, Mr Jeong cautioned that the genre’s growing alignment with global pop standards raises difficult questions.

“The positive side is that K-pop has reached a musical standard recognized by the Grammys,” he said. “The concern is whether K-pop’s distinctive identity and emotional characteristics are gradually being diluted in the process.” THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK