K-pop is also aiming to win its first Grammy Award following K-Pop's "Golden" Globe..Face-to-face with Rosé's "APT."

*This content was translated by AI.

While Netflix animation "K-Pop Demon Hunters" has proved the power of K-content by winning two gold medals at the Golden Globe, OST "Golden Golden" is also raising the possibility of winning the Grammy Award "Song of the Year."

Kedeheon won two categories of best animated feature film and best original song at the Golden Globe Awards held on the 12th (Korea Standard Time). In particular, OST "Golden" once again proved K-pop's global influence by winning prominent competitors such as "Wicked" and "Avatar 3."

The Associated Press predicted the possibility of "Golden" winning a Grammy in an analysis article titled "K-pop might win at the Grammys for the first time" on the 9th (local time).

At the 2026 Grammy Awards, songs by K-pop or K-pop-related artists were nominated for four major categories for the first time. Blackpink Rosé became the first K-pop artist to be nominated for the Record of the Year category with her mega-hit song "APT." with Bruno Mars.

The Song of the Year category will feature Rosé's "APT." and Kedeheon Huntrix's "Golden" (Lee Jae-Ejae, Audrey Nuna, and Ray Ami). In addition, KATSEYE, a girl group created by Hive, who produced BTS, was nominated for the Best New Artist category.

K-pop is indispensable in global pop culture, but it has not been properly evaluated for a long time at prestigious awards ceremonies such as the Grammys, the Associated Press said. "K-pop artists have never taken trophies even though they have been on stage."

"Golden" has already reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100, setting a record for the first time as a female K-pop artist. After writing a new history of K-pop by maintaining its No. 1 ranking for six consecutive weeks, it further solidified its status by winning the Golden Globe.

First Grammy Award, Is It a New History of K-pop?

However, this article questioned the identity of K-pop, asking, "Is this a historical moment for K-pop?" even if it won the award.

The AP reported, "The answer depends on who you ask."

Professor Arum Jung, an assistant professor of Korean studies at Arizona State University and author of "K-pop Fandom," analyzed, "Most of the nominations are more of a K-pop concept mixed across borders than recognized K-pop itself."

Professor Chung said, "Rose was trained in the K-pop system and although 'APT.' contains Korean drinking game motifs, it doesn't feel like a pure K-pop song. KATSEYE was also created in Hive, but it was marketed to Western fans.

Mathieu Verbighier, an assistant professor of Korean studies at Carnegie Mellon University, cited the "mainstream popular music element" as a difference from the past. They include Netflix's masterpiece ("Kedheon"), collaboration with Bruno Mars ("APT"), international membership of KATSEYE, and Netflix series ("Pop Star Academy: Katseye").

Professor Verbigier said, "It means that K-pop is no longer a genre only for enthusiasts," adding, "Now when I think of popular music, K-pop is naturally included in it."

"Seo-gu District still doesn't like non-English lyrics"

Until now, the Grammy has turned away from K-pop groups that have broken records such as BTS, Seventeen SEVENTEEN, and Stray Kids, Professor Chung said. "The biggest reason is that the West still has a reluctance to non-English lyrics."

He added, "It is not surprising that 'APT.' and KATSEYE music, which have less K-pop colors, were nominated mainly for English lyrics."

Professor Verbigier said, "It reflects the recent K-pop trend," adding, "Korean is decreasing and English is increasing."

"The U.S. music industry's poor performance makes K-pop pay attention"

Tamar Herman, a music journalist and running the "Notes on K-pop" newsletter, analyzed more directly.

"Many critics and industry figures evaluated that the performance of new U.S. songs in 2025 was not good," Herman said. "It was also confirmed in the interim report of Luminate, where streaming new songs was reduced compared to the previous year and there was a lack of megahits to dominate the charts."

"It's definitely a big moment for K-pop, but it's too late," he said. "This recognition is more of a result of looking around because the U.S. music industry is sluggish this year than because K-pop is great."

Herman said, "The U.S. music industry's recognition of Korean entertainment is not because K-pop is great, but rather that its dominance in American culture is weakening."

He added, "In the end, we acknowledge that our ability to produce global content and lead taste has improved."

Will K-pop be able to win the Grammy Award for the first time this year

Bernie Cho, an expert in the Korean-American music industry and head of the DFSB Collective, said, "The question is not whether or not you get it, but who gets how many."

Professor Verbigier cautiously predicted, "It is difficult to predict, but it seems more likely that 'Golden' will receive it."

"Huntrix is a virtual girl group in an animated movie that has not gone through the K-pop industry system," Herman said. "If 'Golden' wins, will that be a victory for K-pop? Everyone will have different opinions, he added.

The 68th Grammy Awards will take place Feb. 1 at the CryptoCom Arena in Los Angeles.

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*This content was translated by AI.