The songwriting team behind Golden from the animated hit KPop Demon Hunters had more thanks to share after being cut off during their acceptance speech at the 2026 Academy Awards.
The song won Best Original Song at Sunday night’s ceremony, but producers began playing the team off before several of the writers had a chance to speak. The track was written by EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seo, and Teddy Park.
Speaking backstage after the ceremony, EJAE said the group was grateful for the recognition but wished they had been able to thank a few more collaborators. “We feel very grateful and very honored,” EJAE said. “We all worked so hard and this is such a collaborative effort. We just need to thank our directors. They created a beautiful film. Everyone was a part of it, and we are just so happy that the hard work paid off.”
She added that she had hoped to acknowledge additional performers who contributed to the track.“I needed to thank Rei Ami and Audrey Nuna onstage, but I didn’t get to because they cut us off,” EJAE said. “They killed it with their singing, and they’re just incredible people, and I love them so much.”
Co-writer Yu Han Lee was also interrupted as he approached the microphone, but continued his thanks backstage. “I would like to thank all our families, my fellow Idol members and Teddy Park,” Lee said. “This is an incredible honor.”
Mark Sonnenblick, another songwriter who did not have time to speak during the ceremony, reflected on the collaborative spirit behind the project.
“I’d like to thank my family, some of whom are here tonight, my husband Isaac, who is here tonight,” Sonnenblick said. “But also just to say everybody who worked on this movie, all the animators. It was a real collaboration across the board.”
He added that the message of the film and its music centers on empathy and unity. “Part of the movie is about looking at someone that you have been taught to hate and to fear and starting to trust, maybe even love them,” Sonnenblick said. “The lyric isn’t ‘I’m going up, up, up.’ It’s ‘We’re going up, up, up.’”
Golden beat out Dear Me from Diane Warren: Relentless, I Lied to You from Sinners, Sweet Dreams of Joy from Viva Verdi, and the title track from Train Dreams to take home the Oscar.
During the brief onstage speech before the music began, EJAE reflected on the personal meaning of the moment. “Growing up, people made fun of me for liking K-pop, but now everyone is singing our song with its Korean lyrics,” she said. “I’m so proud. I realize that this award is not about success, it’s about resilience.”
KPop Demon Hunters also won Best Animated Feature, with co-writer and co-director Maggie Kang delivering an emotional speech about representation.
“For those of you who look like me, I’m so sorry that it took so long to see us in a movie like this,” Kang said. “But it is here. That means the next generations don’t have to go longing. This is for Korea and Koreans everywhere.”
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