History Made, Then Marred
"Golden" from KPop Demon Hunters won Best Original Song at the 98th Academy Awards, setting multiple records:
- First K-pop song to win an Oscar
- First song with more than four writers to win
- First best song winner where all writers will not receive individual trophies (due to the number of credited writers)
The Songwriters
Seven credited writers: EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu-Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seo, and Teddy Park.
The Competition
| Song | Film |
|---|---|
| "Golden" (WINNER) | KPop Demon Hunters |
| "Dear Me" | Diane Warren: Relentless |
| "I Lied to You" | Sinners |
| "Sweet Dreams of Joy" | Viva Verdi! |
| "Train Dreams" | Train Dreams |
The Controversy
The acceptance speech became one of the ceremony's most talked-about moments for the wrong reasons. When Yu-Han Lee took the microphone, the orchestra immediately struck up, his mic was muted, and the spotlight went off. The songwriting team looked devastated. EJAE called out to let him speak, but production cut them short. Presenter Kumail Nanjiani had earlier quipped about the short film tie taking "twice as long," but the Original Song winners got less than half the usual time.
Cultural Impact
"Golden" topped music charts in 47 countries, dominated TikTok with over 2 billion views of related content, and became the most-streamed song from an animated film in Spotify history. The song's fusion of K-pop production, English and Korean lyrics, and demon-hunting energy defined the cultural moment of 2025.
Data Verdict
Best Original Song is notoriously unpredictable by data. Commercial performance of the song and cultural visibility tend to matter more than the film's overall metrics. "Golden" dominated every available commercial metric: chart performance, streaming numbers, social media engagement. Its win was supported by sheer cultural saturation. The seven-writer credit is unprecedented but reflects the collaborative nature of K-pop production.