"Golden," the original soundtrack from "K-Pop Demon Hunters," has made K-pop history by becoming the first song in the genre to win a Grammy Award, breaking through a barrier that even BTS, nominated three times, could not overcome. While the win quenched K-pop's long thirst for Grammy recognition, the failure to secure major awards once again confirmed the high bar set by the prestigious ceremony.
At the pre-ceremony event of the 68th Grammy Awards held in Los Angeles on February 1 (local time), "Golden" from "K-Pop Demon Hunters" was selected as the winner of Best Song Written For Visual Media.
This marks the first time a K-pop genre OST has been nominated for or won a Grammy Award. The category honors songwriters of the most outstanding works created for film, television, or animation. Korean producers and songwriting team IDO (Lee Yu-han, Kwak Jung-gyu, Nam Hee-dong) and 24 (Seo Jung-hoon), who composed "Golden," became official Grammy winners. Korean-American Jae Lee, Teddy, and American Mark Sonnenblick, who co-wrote the song, also received the honor. In his acceptance speech, Seo Jung-hoon said, "I dedicate this glory to my mentor and closest friend, Teddy, the 'pioneer of K-pop,' who participated in this entire process even though he couldn't be here with us."
As "K-Pop Demon Hunters fever" swept the globe last year, "Golden" became the first K-pop song to top both the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Official Singles Chart Top 100.
The win is seen as recognition of K-pop's mainstream appeal and its establishment in the American music market. Pop culture critic Kim Hun-sik said, "'K-Pop Demon Hunters' won the top award for animation music," adding that "the popularity of 'Golden' is a successful case of K-pop's creative system and a signal of the genre's expanding reach."
President Lee Jae-myung also congratulated the winners on X (formerly Twitter), saying, "I extend warm congratulations on this valuable achievement at the world's most prestigious stage that all musicians dream of. I will continue to firmly support our artists so they can showcase their talents on even bigger stages."
American media covered the win prominently. The New York Times noted that "the global genre of K-pop has finally quenched its long thirst," emphasizing that "K-Pop Demon Hunters" was the most powerful global cultural content of 2025. AP and Variety also highlighted "Golden's" global influence as "the first-ever Grammy win for a K-pop song." BBC stated that "the Grammy win for 'K-Pop Demon Hunters' suggests growing recognition of K-pop music's cultural and commercial influence."
"Golden" was nominated in five categories including Song of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance but failed to win in those categories. Rosé's "APT." was also nominated in three categories including Song of the Year and Record of the Year but went home empty-handed. HYBE's Korean-American girl group KATSEYE was nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance and Best New Artist but did not win.
At the ceremony, Rosé and Bruno Mars opened with a performance of "APT." KATSEYE, as Best New Artist nominees, performed their representative song "Gnarly."
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance went to Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande for "Defying Gravity" from the film "Wicked," while Best New Artist went to Olivia Dean. Song of the Year was awarded to Billie Eilish's "WILDFLOWER," making her the first artist to win the category three times following wins in 2020 and 2024. Record of the Year went to Kendrick Lamar and SZA's "Luther."
The ceremony also featured voices condemning the Trump administration's hardline immigration enforcement policies and recent mass shootings. Artists including Billie Eilish and Kehlani, winner in the R&B Song/Performance category, took the stage wearing "ICE OUT" badges calling for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to stop immigration operations, emphasizing that America has been a nation of immigrants from its founding.