“Golden” is one of those rare songs that took the entire music industry by storm. The song, although from an animated movie, carries an inspirational message that anyone can resonate with. This, combined with some highly skilled vocal work by HUNTR/X group, propelled this song to become a global success.
From the movie ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ soundtrack, “Golden” by the fictional music group HUNTR/X charted at the top of over music charts of 30 countries around the world. It ranked #1 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and has been on the chart for over 30 weeks by now. The song was a massive commercial success with reaching ‘gold’ certification (over 500,000 units sold) in over 15 countries and certified platinum (over a million copies sold) in over 10 countries including the United States of America, Canada, the UK, New Zealand, Australia, Denmark, Japan, and more.
Along with this success and popularity, came the accolades. “Golden” won ‘Best Original Song’ for a movie at the 2026 Golden Globe Awards. It was recently nominated for the ‘Best Original Song’ category at the Academy Awards (Oscars). The song also received 4 Grammy nominations for ‘Song of the Year,’ ‘Best Pop Duo/Group Performance,’ and others. [source: Wikipedia]
HUNTR/X is not a mere fictional music group. The real singers who voice the song and respective characters int he movie are EJAE (Rumi), Audrey Nuna (Mira), and REI AMI (Zoey).
‘KPop Demon Hunters’ movie was a massive success as well. Releasing on Netflix, the movie made over $19 million on the opening weekend. The movie won ‘Best Animated Feature’ at the 31st Critics’ Choice Awards, and also at the 83rd Golden Globe Awards. Academy Awards honored the movie with the nomination in the same category.
Listen to “Golden” by HUNTR/X
What is the meaning of “Golden” song by HUNTR/X from KPOP Demon Hunters movie?
One of the many reasons for the success of “Golden” is its simple lyrics. However, combined with the lore of the movie, the lyrics run deeper than what appears on the surface.
The song starts with the only verse performed by all three members of the HUNTR/X group.
I was a ghost, I was alone
Rumi kicks off the song by mentioning about her upbringing. In the movie, Rumi is born half-human (mother’s side) and half-demon (father’s side), and as proof she has tattoos all over her body. This set her apart from the rest of the humans. So, she had to hide her true self from the entire world to survive and fit in. Having her mother died at Rumi’s birth and the father not in the picture (due to his demon nature), Rumi grew up with her aunt, Celine, the only one who knew Rumi’s true nature.
Given the throne, I didn’t know how to believe
Of the demon hunter trio, only Rumi was truly born to be a demon hunter. Zoey and Mira were chosen for the role to form the trio. Having no knowledge of her trueself for most of her life, Rumi did not believe that she could rise to the challenge.
Demon Hunters are a group of singers who use the powers of their vocals to keep the demons at bay in this universe. Their cause is both noble and entertaining. Of their music catalogue, “Golden” is one of the most powerful songs. It has very high notes in the chorus and hitting it gives the song more power.
Zoey, in the first verse, says that she found it hard to fit wherever she went. Torn between her cultural roots of South Korea and the United States where she lives, she did not find her balance. Trying to fit into both cultures at the same time is a losing battle, too.
Mira says that she was called a ‘problem child’ all her life because of her chaotic nature. But that same energy has now turned her into a powerful demon hunter.
I’m done hidin’, now I’m shinin’
In a nutshell, all three demon hunter members have had their own demons to overcome before they realized their full potential and took on their rightful places as saviours of the world. One of the song’s key themes is overcoming one’s own struggles to be the person you were meant to be.
Watch EJAY, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami Perform “Golden” Live
Gonna be, gonna be golden
Gold has a high significance in the context of the movie. It speaks to an era of paradise on Earth, with peace and love, and no demons in sight, ushered in by the powerful singing of the Demon Hunters. Being golden also means to be at the highest level of performance. It also signifies that one is on the correct or moral path towards success. In the real world, gold is also perceived to be a mineral of high value with many countries opting to use the gold standard as means of preserving value.
Waited so long to break these walls down
In the bridge of the song, Rumi sings about breaking the walls down. This explicitly talks about her personal walls that kept her locked in and not realize her full potential. She was ashamed of her demon heritage from her father’s side, and it would have been a glorious triumph to overcome this ‘scar’ and use the same thing that made her feel weak as her source of power.
No more hiding, I’ll be shining
Like I’m born to be
Once Rumi realizes that she could use her scars as her source of power, she has no more reason to hide her true nature. She realizes that she was born half-demon and half-human for a purpose – to be the most powerful demon hunter there is. No other human is going to care about her demon heritage once they realize what she is truly capable of — permenant peace and love on Earth.
“Golden” by HUNTR/X truly checks all the notes of a successful song – a powerful message, powerful vocals, and a catchy music. It has the real world in a golden spell for quite a long time as evident by its commercial success and accolades.
Let us hear what you think about this song in the comments below. Read the complete lyrics to the song on Genius.