‘It’s Never Too Late to Shine’: EJAE Gives Inspiring Golden Globes Speech After K-Pop Smash Wins Best Original Song
The singer-songwriter opened up about rejection and "redirection" in a candid speech.
Ejae at the 83rd Annual Golden Globes held at The Beverly Hilton on January 11, 2026 in Beverly Hills, California.
KPop Demon Hunters isn’t done changing culture just yet.
On Sunday (Jan. 11) night at the 2026 Golden Globes, the film’s signature smash “Golden” became the first K-pop song to win the Golden Globes for best original song, motion picture. Performed by HUNTR/X (EJAE, Audrey Nuna & REI AMI) with music by Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seo and Park Hong Jun and lyrics by Kim Eun-Jae (EJAE) and Mark Sonnenblick, “Golden” won the Golden Globe for its aforementioned songwriters.
In her teary acceptance speech, EJAE (Kim Eun-Jae) opened up about rejection, “redirection” and finding her purpose. EJAE said she worked “tirelessly for 10 years” as a young girl to become a K-pop idol, but was “rejected and disappointed” when she was eventually told her “voice wasn’t good enough.”
“So I leaned on song and music to get through it and now I’m here as a singer-songwriter,” she continued. “It’s a dream come true to be part of a song that’s helping other girls, other boys and everyone of all ages to get through their hardships and accept themselves.”
EJAE added, “This award goes to people who had doors closed on them. I can confidently say rejection is redirection. It’s never too late to shine like you were born to be.”
“Golden” became one of the biggest surprise hits of 2025, topping the Billboard Hot 100 for eight weeks. Toward the end of 2025, the singers of HUNTR/X talked to Billboard about their pinch-me moments of their breakout year.
The Golden Globes are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.
