[OSENWORLD] When Golden from Netflix’s animated hit K-Pop Demon Hunters hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on August 11 (U.S. time), it didn’t just make history — it joined one of the most exclusive clubs in all of K-Pop.
In the entire history of the Hot 100, only nine songs by K-Pop acts have ever reached the top spot: BTS’s Dynamite, Savage Love (Laxed – Siren Beat) [Remix], Life Goes On, Butter, Permission to Dance, and My Universe; Jimin’s Like Crazy; Jungkook’s Seven; and most recently, Huntr/x’s Golden, performed by EJAE, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami.
That’s right — every single Hot 100 No. 1 in K-Pop history was tied to BTS… until now. Golden is the only song to break that pattern, performed entirely by female vocalists and not connected to the BTS brand.
It’s also the first Hot 100 No. 1 by a girl group in 24 years — the last being Destiny’s Child’s 2001 smash Bootylicious. An OST from an animated film hasn’t topped the chart since Disney’s Encanto soundtrack in 2022, whose breakout hit We Don’t Talk About Bruno peaked at No. 4. Golden not only matched the rare feat of an animated film OST climbing the Hot 100, but surpassed Encanto’s chart record by reaching the very top.
The track — written by EJAE, Teddy, 24, and others — is a soaring dance-pop anthem with addictive hooks and a hopeful message. Performed by Korean American artists EJAE, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami as the voices of the fictional girl group Huntr/x (Rumi, Mira, Zoey), Golden became the emotional high point of K-Pop Demon Hunters, which premiered on June 20, 2025.
EJAE summed it up best: “It’s just… unreal to see ‘Golden’ at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200 and climbing into the Top 10 of the Hot 100. I’m so honored people are loving the songs, and I’m beyond grateful.”
With Golden topping both the U.S. and U.K. charts, igniting the viral “Golden Challenge,” and rewriting Billboard history, its place in K-Pop’s legacy is secured — not just as a chart-topper, but as the rare achievement that proved BTS wasn’t the only path to No. 1.
/k_inside@osen.co.kr
