‘Golden’ and Daniel Pemberton Win at World Soundtrack Awards

“Golden,” the breakout song from KPop Demon Hunters, added another major honor to its awards run by winning Best Original Song at the 2026 World Soundtrack Awards in Ghent, Belgium. Daniel Pemberton and Jeff Russo claimed the ceremony’s top composer prizes as the event closed three days devoted to music for film, television and games.

The winning song was written by Kim Eun-jae, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seo and Teddy Park. It was performed by HUNTR/X members EJAE, Audrey Nuna and REI AMI. The track had already become a chart force, spending eight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Daniel Pemberton takes the film honor

Pemberton was named Film Composer of the Year for a body of work spanning Project Hail Mary, The Drama, The Bad Guys 2 and Masters of the Universe. It is his second win in the category, following a 2021 victory, and continues an association with the awards that began with his Discovery of the Year honor in 2014.

Jeff Russo earned Television Composer of the Year for his work on Alien: Earth, Cape Fear and the second season of Citadel. Hannah Peel received Discovery of the Year for her score to Midwinter Break, while Kevin Smithers won the Public Choice Award for the music of the Mexican stop-motion feature Soy Frankelda.

A concert closes Film Music Days

The ceremony capped the World Soundtrack Awards’ Film Music Days at Music Centre De Bijloke. Brussels Philharmonic, conducted by Dirk Brossé, performed selections connected to guest of honor Hildur Guðnadóttir and lifetime achievement recipient Trevor Jones.

The winners also reflected the event’s broader reach beyond movies and television. Nicolas Garcia received the Game Music Award for Cthulhu: The Cosmic Abyss, and Margaret Hermant was named Belgian Film Composer of the Year. Spanish composer Xabier Doural García won the young-composer competition after participants were asked to create a new score for an excerpt from Ratched.

By placing a global pop hit beside orchestral, television and game composition, the 26th edition highlighted how screen music now moves between cinemas, streaming platforms, playlists and concert halls.