Should Huntrix’s “Golden” be considered K-pop?
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I believe its success and status shouldn’t be considered within kpop because it’s not performed by a real Korean idol or artist, and almost all of its lyrics are in English. Actually, the question isn’t so much about whether the song is kpop, but more about measuring the impression it leaves on listeners and kpop fans.
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Arguments can be made both ways, but I think since the song is from a fictional group, and the fact that the song will probably not be nominated on any kpop music shows or award shows, it is unlikely that it will be considered kpop by the public or for any major achievements.
But hey, people find it fun to compare their achievements to real kpop groups either ways, no one is going to stop them
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Arguments can be made both ways, but I think since the song is from a fictional group, and the fact that the song will probably not be nominated on any kpop music shows or award shows, it is unlikely that it will be considered kpop by the public or for any major achievements.
But hey, people find it fun to compare their achievements to real kpop groups either ways, no one is going to stop them
that actually also how ı feel
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I believe its success and status shouldn’t be considered within kpop because it’s not performed by a real Korean idol or artist, and almost all of its lyrics are in English. Actually, the question isn’t so much about whether the song is kpop, but more about measuring the impression it leaves on listeners and kpop fans.
I think the people who do consider it kpop, say so mainly because of EJAE.
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ok, got it. after a quick research, I learned that she is more active in production and songwriting. While I understand your point , she still doesn’t really give me the impression of a real kpop artist.
She isn't a kpop artists but she HAS co-produced a lot of viral kpop songs and is pretty well known for it.
She was also an SM trainee.
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100% yes, I think the only argument against it would be the lack of Korean lyrics, but there are plenty of songs with majority English lyrics that we would not question whether or not they are kpop.
Teddy, one of the most well known producers in kpop history, worked on the song. Ejae is a Korean singer songwriter who is credited on some of the biggest songs in kpop and was an SM trainee for a while. Even if she never debuted, she is just as talented and as much of an artist as any idol, even more so I'd say. And the song is dominating the charts and is clearly beloved by Koreans.
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It should absolutely be considered K-pop. I want it to beat all K-pop artists who ever existed. We need to instill some humility and sense into all these vicariously living, armchair corporate, hateful, vile chart wankers.
A different perspective. to me, all these virtual idols and artists or those behind them feel very foreign. kpop isn’t just music for me , it’s also about forming a connection with the idols and artists, watching them perform live, and the way we listen to their music.
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A different perspective. to me, all these virtual idols and artists or those behind them feel very foreign. kpop isn’t just music for me , it’s also about forming a connection with the idols and artists, watching them perform live, and the way we listen to their music.
That's a fair opinion. There are good arguments to both sides.
Considering how the song was created with the intent of being a K-pop song, I'd consider it K-pop. It was also produced and written by people with ties to K-pop. The movie was meant to directly play into K-pop. If a film about rock music was made, its soundtrack would be considered rock.
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First, it’s worth noting that “Golden” may be a fictional release, but a large portion of the people behind Huntr/x and Saja Boys, vocalists, producers, and writers, have verifiable ties to the K-pop industry.
For example, Kevin Woo was active in U-KISS and is still recognized as a K-pop idol. Ahn Hyo Seop, while mainly known as an actor, originally trained under JYP as a K-pop trainee and has been active as a singer in Korea since 2015. Andrew Choi has composed for SM Entertainment artists like SHINee’s Taemin, NCT 127, and EXO. Neckwav is an established producer based in Seoul with credits on K-pop tracks. Even Danny Chung, a Korean-American lyricist, has worked under THEBLACKLABEL.
As for the Huntr/X vocalists: EJAE is a Korean-American vocal producer and songwriter who’s written for TWICE, Red Velvet, NMIXX, and more. Rei Ami and Audrey Nuna may lean more toward R&B/alt-pop, but they are Korean-American artists contributing to the growing fusion of global music scenes, and they bring stylistic and cultural proximity to K-pop.
Also, English lyrics alone don't disqualify a song from being considered K-pop. Many Korean groups release full English tracks (like BTS’s “Dynamite” or aespa’s “Better Things”) that are still categorized as K-pop due to their origins, production teams, and target audiences.
Now, if we’re talking about traditional K-pop success metrics, music show wins, album sales, fan votes, streaming charts..Golden probably won't compete in those areas, simply because it wasn't structured for that system. It’s a digital project, not backed by a typical idol promotion cycle in Korea. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t fall under the broader K-pop umbrella, especially when so many of its contributors are actively shaping the sound of K-pop behind the scenes.
I abstained from voting because whether Golden is considered K-pop really depends on how each person defines the genre. In one sense, it qualifies due to the people involved and the sound. But in another, it doesn’t fully align with the traditional K-pop release model, no Korean music show promotions, no idol system, and it's performed in English. So it straddles the line depending on what criteria you're prioritizing.
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First, it’s worth noting that “Golden” may be a fictional release, but a large portion of the people behind Huntr/x and Saja Boys, vocalists, producers, and writers, have verifiable ties to the K-pop industry.
For example, Kevin Woo was active in U-KISS and is still recognized as a K-pop idol. Ahn Hyo Seop, while mainly known as an actor, originally trained under JYP as a K-pop trainee and has been active as a singer in Korea since 2015. Andrew Choi has composed for SM Entertainment artists like SHINee’s Taemin, NCT 127, and EXO. Neckwav is an established producer based in Seoul with credits on K-pop tracks. Even Danny Chung, a Korean-American lyricist, has worked under THEBLACKLABEL.
As for the Huntr/X vocalists: EJAE is a Korean-American vocal producer and songwriter who’s written for TWICE, Red Velvet, NMIXX, and more. Rei Ami and Audrey Nuna may lean more toward R&B/alt-pop, but they are Korean-American artists contributing to the growing fusion of global music scenes, and they bring stylistic and cultural proximity to K-pop.
Also, English lyrics alone don't disqualify a song from being considered K-pop. Many Korean groups release full English tracks (like BTS’s “Dynamite” or aespa’s “Better Things”) that are still categorized as K-pop due to their origins, production teams, and target audiences.
Now, if we’re talking about traditional K-pop success metrics, music show wins, album sales, fan votes, streaming charts..Golden probably won't compete in those areas, simply because it wasn't structured for that system. It’s a digital project, not backed by a typical idol promotion cycle in Korea. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t fall under the broader K-pop umbrella, especially when so many of its contributors are actively shaping the sound of K-pop behind the scenes.
I abstained from voting because whether Golden is considered K-pop really depends on how each person defines the genre. In one sense, it qualifies due to the people involved and the sound. But in another, it doesn’t fully align with the traditional K-pop release model, no Korean music show promotions, no idol system, and it's performed in English. So it straddles the line depending on what criteria you're prioritizing.
I understand. I guess I lean more towards the traditional kpop listener side, focusing on music shows etc and the structural aspects you mentioned. But the points you raised are definitely valuable and worth considering.
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No. In the first place, the song is not owned and published by a Korean company, which is most important criteria to be considered Korean.
The same logic also true for Japanese releases of Korean acts. These belong to Japanese labels so not kpop too.
Yes, when you think about it, even though Korean-Americans are involved in this project, it’s still ultimately an American production.
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I just added “maybe” as an option to the poll.
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100% yes, I think the only argument against it would be the lack of Korean lyrics, but there are plenty of songs with majority English lyrics that we would not question whether or not they are kpop.
Teddy, one of the most well known producers in kpop history, worked on the song. Ejae is a Korean singer songwriter who is credited on some of the biggest songs in kpop and was an SM trainee for a while. Even if she never debuted, she is just as talented and as much of an artist as any idol, even more so I'd say. And the song is dominating the charts and is clearly beloved by Koreans.
There are two problems with the logic
- kpop song written and produced by Western producer must be Western pop?
- Japanese song published by Japanese labels is Kpop too? Just because a Kpop act sings it?
So clearly singers and producers' origins alone don't make anything XYX-Pop.
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There are two problems with the logic
- kpop song written and produced by Western producer must be Western pop?
- Japanese song published by Japanese labels is Kpop too? Just because a Kpop act sings it?
So clearly singers and producers' origins alone don't make anything XYX-Pop.
Afaik, in k-pop there is no clearcut definition of what is and isn't k-pop, there are people on here who will say Katseye is k-pop. So it's mostly just my opinion. This is unlike anime, for example, where most people draw a hard line on anime being animation produced in Japan.
To me, a song that had involvement from big names in the k-pop industry, performed by Koreans (or Korean-americans), being eaten up by Koreans and idols, and clearly intended to be considered k-pop since it's in the movie K-pop Demon Hunters is a k-pop song.
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No. In the first place, the song is not owned and published by a Korean company, which is most important criteria to be considered Korean.
The same logic also true for Japanese releases of Korean acts. These belong to Japanese labels so not kpop too.
What makes this any different than blackpink solos for example? 2/4 of the solos were published by an American company. Does that disqualify those albums from being considered kpop because published by an American company?
I think Golden blurs the line in what actually is kpop for some people. The answer might vary imo. I feel if the song is written, produced, and performed by a person that's been developed in the kpop system, then it's a kpop song imo.
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Afaik, in k-pop there is no clearcut definition of what is and isn't k-pop, there are people on here who will say Katseye is k-pop. So it's mostly just my opinion. This is unlike anime, for example, where most people draw a hard line on anime being animation produced in Japan.
To me, a song that had involvement from big names in the k-pop industry, performed by Koreans (or Korean-americans), being eaten up by Koreans and idols, and clearly intended to be considered k-pop since it's in the movie K-pop Demon Hunters is a k-pop song.
But labels should be the hard line, because they have right to do anything with the songs.
kpop has one thing unique, it's that they are mostly (or entirely?) owned by local labels. Korea is the music market where Big 3 have least share (about 10%). Golden is a song owned by Republic Records (UMG), one of the big 3.
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P/s: if just by involved from kpop big names, performed by Korean is kpop then why can't we listen to Japanese albums on Spotify and YTM like other kpop songs?
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But labels should be the hard line, because they have right to do anything with the songs.
kpop has one thing unique, it's that they are mostly (or entirely?) owned by local labels. Korea is the music market where Big 3 have least share (about 10%). Golden is a song owned by Republic Records (UMG), one of the big 3.
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P/s: if just by involved from kpop big names, performed by Korean is kpop then why can't we listen to Japanese albums on Spotify and YTM like other kpop songs?
I think if Koreans consider it to be k-pop then it is k-pop, all the finer details don't matter.
I'm not Korean, so I don't know if they consider it to be. But, since it's currently dominating Korean charts, being covered by tons of idols, was performed at KCON by idols, and is clearly to intended to be k-pop, I'd guess that even Koreans would agree that it is k-pop.
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I think if Koreans consider it to be k-pop then it is k-pop, all the finer details don't matter.
I'm not Korean, so I don't know if they consider it to be. But, since it's currently dominating Korean charts, being covered by tons of idols, was performed at KCON by idols, and is clearly to intended to be k-pop, I'd guess that even Koreans would agree that it is k-pop.
that’s a good point, but I don’t think Koreans would have embraced “Golden” if it were a failed project.
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So the movie makes it kpop?
If the movie was named "Female demon hunters" and no trace of kpop in the movie I guess it would not be called "kpop"?
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But labels should be the hard line, because they have right to do anything with the songs.
kpop has one thing unique, it's that they are mostly (or entirely?) owned by local labels. Korea is the music market where Big 3 have least share (about 10%). Golden is a song owned by Republic Records (UMG), one of the big 3.
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P/s: if just by involved from kpop big names, performed by Korean is kpop then why can't we listen to Japanese albums on Spotify and YTM like other kpop songs?
I get where you're coming from, and I actually think the comparison to J-pop is a useful one. As someone who’s a big fan of J-pop, I’ve noticed that a lot of Japanese music is region-blocked or not widely promoted globally, but that doesn’t make it any less J-pop. It's still defined by its origin, the people behind it, and its place in the industry.
The same logic can apply here. Just because Golden is released under Republic Records (which handles international distribution for a lot of K-pop acts, by the way) doesn't disqualify it from being K-pop. The song is tied to K-pop: Demon Hunters, involves producers and vocalists with deep K-pop ties, and was clearly made with a K-pop sound and audience in mind, even if it's not owned by a Korean label or promoted the traditional way.
Ownership is one factor, but I wouldn’t say it’s the hard line. Genre is often about context, intention, and cultural positioning, not just who owns the master.
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No........ because it was not sung by a girl group.
That doesn’t really make sense. Just because it’s not performed by a girl group doesn’t mean it can’t be K-pop. If a group of K-pop idols came together for a special collaboration or project, would that suddenly not be K-pop just because they aren’t an established girl group? That logic doesn’t hold up.
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It should absolutely be considered K-pop. I want it to beat all K-pop artists who ever existed. We need to instill some humility and sense into all these vicariously living, armchair corporate, hateful, vile chart wankers.
Love the attitude, but I don't think it's real Kpop.
If we remove "Kpop" from the title of the movie, what's the difference compared to any other Western song? The song only has like 2 Korean line, and yeah, the singers are Koreans, and some of the producers are also Kpop producers, but let's be real, if this is an OST of a normal animated movie no one would say it's Kpop, even if the same singers and producers work on it.
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Nah it should be C-POP because it is sung by Chinese singers and has Chinese lyrics inside, inspired by Chinese C-POP groups
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It's a TBL produced song, so yeah I guess it's kpop.
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It's a TBL produced song, so yeah I guess it's kpop.
But the entire production isn’t fully under TBL as a company; only Teddy and 24 from TBL were involved.
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We all know the people who is arguing against being considered Kpop is because their faves are getting floord by Huntrix
my faves aren't ı'm a flop stan
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