‘Golden’ reaches No. 1 on UK chart

“Golden,” the original soundtrack from the Netflix animated film “K-Pop Demon Hunters,” has reached No. 1 on the UK Official Singles Chart. It is the first K-pop song to top the chart in 13 years, following Psy’s “Gangnam Style” in 2012.

“Golden” rose to No. 1 in its sixth week, according to the chart released August 1. It overtook pop star Justin Bieber’s “Daisies” and climbed three positions from the previous week. The track debuted at No. 93 in late June and steadily climbed the rankings to No. 31, No. 20, No. 9, No. 4, and now No. 1.

Additional tracks from the film also charted. “Your Idol” and “Soda Pop,” by the boy group Lion Voice, ranked No. 10 and No. 11, respectively, while “Takedown,” performed by K-pop group TWICE, reached No. 63.

The UK Official Chart is regarded as one of the world’s two leading music rankings, along with the Billboard chart in the United States. Martin Talbot, chief executive of the Official Charts Company, called it “another landmark for the globally influential Korean music genre.”

“Golden” is performed by Huntrix, a fictional K-pop girl group featured in “K-Pop Demon Hunters.” The track also topped South Korea’s Melon Top 100 chart and reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, underscoring its global popularity. It was written by Lee Jae, a composer trained at SM Entertainment, and features vocals by Korean American singers Audrey Nuna and Rae Ami. This marks the first time in three years that a song from an animated film has reached No. 1 on the UK chart, following “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” from Disney’s “Encanto” in 2022.


사지원 기자 4g1@donga.com