K-Pop and Blues Dominate Music Categories at the 98th Academy Awards

Netflix’s ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ secures a historic Best Original Song win with ‘Golden,’ while Ludwig Göransson earns his third Oscar for the ‘Sinners’ score.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 16, 2026, 9:35 AM EDT

Source: AP News

A Historic Milestone for Global Pop

The win for "Golden" represents a watershed moment for the South Korean music industry. Written and produced by a powerhouse team including EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seon, and Teddy Park, the track is the first K-pop song to win an Academy Award.

KPop Demon Hunters has already established itself as a cultural juggernaut. According to Netflix data, it is the platform’s most-watched film of all time. The film’s soundtrack dominated the 2025 charts, placing eight songs on the Billboard Hot 100. During her acceptance speech, EJAE emphasized that the award was a victory for "resilience" and noted the profound impact of hearing audiences of all races singing lyrics that include Korean.

Ludwig Göransson’s Triple Crown

Composer Ludwig Göransson took home his third career Oscar for the original score of Sinners. Having previously won for Black Panther (2018) and Oppenheimer (2023), Göransson’s latest win cements his status as one of the most versatile composers in modern Hollywood.

In Sinners, Göransson leaned heavily into the history of American blues to score Ryan Coogler’s story of the Jim Crow South. Backstage, Göransson noted that the film is a tribute to the guitar and the foundational power of the blues, which he credits as the ancestor of almost all modern Western music.