Netflix Anime “KPop Demon Hunters” OST Dominates Billboard and Spotify; Biggest Success for an Animated Film Ever

The original soundtrack (OST) for Netflix’s animated series “KPop Demon Hunters” has taken over global music charts, achieving the greatest success ever for an animated film. According to a Billboard release on the 9th, “Golden” by the female group HUNTR/X, featured in the movie, rose 58 places from 81st to 23rd, while “Your Idol” by the male group SAZA BOYZ climbed 46 places from 77th to 31st. This week, five additional tracks — “How It Dun” (42nd), “Soda Pop” (49th), “What It Sounds Like” (55th), “Free” (58th), and “Takedown” (64th) — entered the Billboard Hot 100, bringing the total number of songs on the chart to seven. This is the first time since “Encanto” in 2022 that multiple OSTs from an animated film have appeared on the chart simultaneously. The OST album itself also reached position 3 on the Billboard 200, up 5 places from the previous week, and is considered the highest-charting soundtrack of 2025. Streaming numbers on Spotify surged by 108% last week, marking the largest increase among all soundtracks in history. Notably, a fictional K-pop group surpassed records held by actual K-pop groups. “Your Idol” reaching number 1 on Spotify’s U.S. “Daily Top Song” chart on the 4th is the first time a K-pop group has topped this chart; previously, BTS’s “Dynamite” held the highest position at number 3. As of the 7th, four OST tracks — “Golden” (2nd) and “Your Idol” (4th) — are among the top 10 on Spotify’s Global Daily Top Song chart. The OST also claimed number 1 on Australia’s ARIA Album Chart, the first time an animated film soundtrack has reached the top spot there in over eight years. On the ARIA Single Chart, “Golden” rose from 8th to 2nd, “Your Idol” reached 8th, and “How It Dun” (11th), “Soda Pop” (12th), “What It Sounds Like” (16th), and “Free” (20th) all made it into the top ranks. With 77,420,000 streams in one week, this OST achieved the highest streaming week in two years since BTS’s “Bobby” soundtrack recorded 79,000,000 streams in August 2023. The U.S. entertainment outlet Vulture reported that “a fictional K-pop group has surpassed actual BTS’s records,” while AllKpop.com described it as “a true K-pop anthem.” The success of the OST can be attributed to strategic marketing and extensive involvement from Korean artists. Music was released shortly after Netflix’s release, drawing massive attention from fans, and dance challenges and fan art spread rapidly on social media. There are over 52 million videos on TikTok using hashtags such as #DemonHunters and #SodaPopChallenge, with real K-pop stars like BTS’s RM, TWICE, ZEROBASEONE, and MONSTA X also posting challenge videos, accelerating its popularity. Many K-pop figures contributed to the OST. TWICE’s Jeongyeon, Jihyo, and Chaeyoung sang a remix version of “Takedown,” and the duo Melomance’s “Maybe Love” was included in the series. Teddy, the producer behind BLACKPINK’s success, along with his team from The Black Label, worked on key tracks, and actor Ahn Hyo-seop, who played Baby in SAZA BOYZ, personally sang the duet “Free.” Lee Jae, the composer of “Golden” and the voice behind HUNTR/X member Rumi, is a Korean-American composer who was once a Trainee at SM Entertainment; this song was officially submitted as a nominee for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, with a win would make him the first K-pop artist to receive such an award.