Rumi’s Vocalist EJAE Finds Inspiration in “Golden” from ‘KPop Demon Hunters’

KPop Demon Hunters, from its soundtrack to the film itself, has been a viral sensation on Netflix as one of the best original animated films to come out in some time. From breaking records to receiving praise from the fans for more, it’s clear they hit a breakout IP for this one, as having a girl KPop group battle a demon boy band is a pretty novel idea.

But the main hit single, “Golden,” along with South Korean singer-songwriter Kim Eun-jae, known as EJAE, could receive an Academy Award for best original song for 2026. Co-written by her, the vocalist for the main female character Rumi in KPDH, and Mark Sonnenblick.

“Golden” will be the only song potentially nominated for Oscar consideration, and if received, will be the first from an animated film since Encanto in 2021 with “Dos Oruguitas.” If nominated, it will be the first time since 2013 and the second time ever that a songwriter of Korean descent will receive an Oscar nomination ( Karen O from Her with the song “The Moon Song” with Spike Jonze).

“Golden” Single Seeking 2026 Oscars Nomination

In an interview with South Korea’s SUBUSUNEWS, EJAE talked about this sudden but massive support for her success in the film as the main character Rumi’s singing voice.

I’ve never expect this song to be such a big success. It’s so incredible but to be honest, all of us worked so hard. This movie wasn’t easy to make because no one has made this type of movie before. But I liked this movie because of the Korean culture that comes out of this mega production. It took a long time because we were trying to find out the best way to present the Korean culture.

The Korean American singer-songwriter has been involved with well-known KPop Groups before, like Twice, aespa, Le Sserafim, and Nmixx. Her first co-written single that kicked off her song-writing career in KPop as a demo was with Red Velvet called “Psycho,” which was certified gold in the United States in 2019.

But prior to that, when things didn’t work out with SM Entertainment (a major South Korean music label) after a decade of training from 2014, she never thought songwriting and composing could be a career path she could go down.

I thought of my self as a singer but never expected myself to be a composer or make money off of it. It wasn’t a career I have thought about. While I was still in training, I still wanted to go to college. My dream was to become music therapist. For me, making songs is a therapeutic tool, not just for a job.

How Vocalist EJAE Became Rumi’s Singing Voice

For KPop Demon Hunters, EJAE was a demo singer originally for the film, after signing with Prescription Songs, an independent music publisher. According to KPDH director Maggie Kang, she was a big part of why the film was greenlit after about nine years in production under Sony.

EJAE was the demo singer and co-writer for most of the songs, but after hearing them, both directors, Kang and Chris Appelhans, decided she didn’t need to audition for the singing voice for Rumi. Arden Cho was the voice actress lead counterpart, while EJAE was her singing voice for the soundtrack. Her former mentor is the male lead vocalist, Andrew Choi, for the character Jinu. Vocalists for the female characters are Audrey Nuna as Mira and Rei Ami as Zoey, both featured throughout the soundtrack.

However, there was some doubt from the singer about whether she could sing a tough song like “Golden”.

I had some lack of confidence going in for this song. I wasn’t sure if I could sing it well enough with its high pitch and wasn’t sure what the audience would feel about that loud part. But because of this success, my confidence came back through this.

In the movie, pretty early on, “Golden” is launched with a music video and is a viral sensation right away. That played out in real life as well, as EJAE connects Rumi when she is singing “Golden” specifically for a few reasons as inspiration when writing it.

I tried to put a bit of darkness and sadness as I have experienced in this idol song. But I wanted to make a song to encourage myself to give hope as well. My mom used to say to me, ‘What you say becomes what you are,’ so I believed I would write something that I want to be, then it will come true. I have always wanted to sing a song that says I can do it.

KPDH Soundtrack Crushing the Hot 100 Billboard

Golden by HUNTR/X is going up up up!

The original song from KPop Demon Hunters by EJAE, Audrey Nuna, and REI AMI has officially hit No. 1 on the Billboard Global Charts. pic.twitter.com/b3xZSZhQfh

— Netflix (@netflix) July 15, 2025

Many songs from this Netflix original animated film, which is trending to be the most-viewed in its category in its first four weeks consecutively, have charted on the Hot 100 in the United States and the Global Top 200 Billboard. Specifically, HUNTR/X’s “Golden” has been number one, and Saja Boys’ “Soda Pop” has also been in the top five and ten this past month. “This is What it Sounds Like,” “How It’s Done,” “Takedown,” “Your Idol,” “Free,” and “Strategy” by Twice make up one of the best soundtracks I have heard. You really can tell the directors know the KPop industry inside and out.

“Golden” is also the highest-charting song by a female K-pop group in U.S. Spotify history, as the third most ever. The fictional girl group HUNTR/X and the boy group with Saja Boys have rivaled the biggest KPop groups in the charts like Twice, BlackPink, and even BTS as a global phenomenon.

The movie has racked up over 80.3 million views (set to surpass 2023’s Leo) at the top for Netflix films in its stretch run after it dropped June 20, and came as a massive success right out of the gate. It draws some inspiration from things like recent Emmy-award winning Arcane (2021-2024) and is backed by the same team from Sony who made Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023) with its cartoon but anime-like animation style. It also dropped right after the depressing finale of Squid Game Season 3, giving South Korea another Netflix surprise hit.

With its incredible reception, a sequel series or theatrical movie will likely be in the works and should be announced in the near future.