“Golden” is living up to its name: The “KPop Demon Hunters” track has nabbed three Grammy nominations, including a coveted nod song of the year. “Golden” — performed by Huntr/x (Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami) and written by Ejae and Mark Sonnenblick — also appears in the best pop duo/group performance and best song written for visual media categories.
The song of the year category is wide in range as “Golden” competes with “Abracadabra” by Lady Gaga, “Anxiety” by Doechii, “APT.” by Rosé and Bruno Mars, “DtMF” by Bad Bunny, “Luther” by Kendrick Lamar with SZA, “Manchild” by Sabrina Carpenter, and “Wildflower” by Billie Eilish.
“Golden” also competes with “Defying Gravity” (Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande), “Gabriela” (Katseye), “Apt.” (Rosé, Bruno Mars) and “30 For 30″ (SZA with Kendrick Lamar)” for best pop duo/group performance. In the visual media category, “Golden” is up against “As Alive As You Need Me To Be” (Nine Inch Nails), “I Lied to You” (Miles Caton), “Never Too Late” (Elton John, Brandi Carlile), “Pale, Pale Moon” (Jayme Lawson) and “Sinners” (Leonard Denisenko, Rodarius Green, Travis).
However, despite industry expectations and heavy awards buzz, the track missed a nod for record of the year, a category many believed it would secure. A nom there would have made history, marking Huntr/x as the first K-pop group ever recognized in that field.
Since its debut on Netflix in June, the film became the streamer’s most popular movie of all time. Meanwhile, three of its original songs — “Golden,” “Your Idol” and “Soda Pop” — have been mainstays on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart.
“KPop Demon Hunters” has been such a phenomenon that the theatrical-averse Netflix decided to bring a sing-along version of the film to theaters for fan events in August and October. During the first go-around, “KPop Demon Hunters” topped the box office with roughly $18 million over two days. Then around Halloween, the movie collected $5 million to $6 million, which is noteworthy considering it’s been widely available on streaming for months.