EJAE on KPop Demon Hunters and Her Journey to Success - The Big Interview - WIRED
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Date: 2025-11-01
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Comments and reviews: 20
DerekLaugann
HUNTRIX is famous. Ejae is not. Not yet really. Even if she wrote Golden, it was Teddy Park of Black Label in Korea who actually arranged it to sound like that hit. And I think her team is rushing all of this publicity solely based on Huntrix and Kpop Demon Hunters. Even her new solo song is not as good as I hoped for her 1st song to be. KPOP is what made Golden a hit. She is now doing as if she is some singer-songwrirer which is extremelly harder without a POP-SOUNDING HIT! And her song IN ANOTHER WORLD isn't as radio poppy as I hoped, and obviously not KPOP either. That already leaves the US and billboard charts or the charts in Korea. What's left is some parts of Asia and Europe.
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HUNTRIX is famous. Ejae is not. Not yet really. Even if she wrote Golden, it was Teddy Park of Black Label in Korea who actually arranged it to sound like that hit. And I think her team is rushing all of this publicity solely based on Huntrix and Kpop Demon Hunters. Even her new solo song is not as good as I hoped for her 1st song to be. KPOP is what made Golden a hit. She is now doing as if she is some singer-songwrirer which is extremelly harder without a POP-SOUNDING HIT! And her song IN ANOTHER WORLD isn't as radio poppy as I hoped, and obviously not KPOP either. That already leaves the US and billboard charts or the charts in Korea. What's left is some parts of Asia and Europe.
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sarahhchan
That's WILD that fans would throw trash at child female trainees for even daring to go upstairs to where their favourite oppas were. I recall TVXQ had really really scary obsessed fans in their debut/prime era and like, one member Yunho got poisoned by a crazy woman who vibed the toxic if I can't have you, no one can/oh, he'll DEFINITELY never forget me now! (gosh, lunatics. They even had scary obsessed fans who would purposely crash their car into them so they'd have to get out and talk to them. These people are referred to as sasaengs, who are like fake fans cuz real fans would never terrorize their idols like that if they really cared about them. shudder scary stuff
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That's WILD that fans would throw trash at child female trainees for even daring to go upstairs to where their favourite oppas were. I recall TVXQ had really really scary obsessed fans in their debut/prime era and like, one member Yunho got poisoned by a crazy woman who vibed the toxic if I can't have you, no one can/oh, he'll DEFINITELY never forget me now! (gosh, lunatics. They even had scary obsessed fans who would purposely crash their car into them so they'd have to get out and talk to them. These people are referred to as sasaengs, who are like fake fans cuz real fans would never terrorize their idols like that if they really cared about them. shudder scary stuff
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alikaandrade3435
I know EJAE won’t see this comment, but I want her to know that I definitely appreciated hearing the Korean lyrics rhyme with the English. I love kpop and it drives me slightly nuts when the lyrics don’t rhyme. I know it must be hard so I don’t let it bother me too much, but I definitely noticed the effort! It keeps me immersed in the flow of a song even when I don’t know what a lyric means.
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I know EJAE won’t see this comment, but I want her to know that I definitely appreciated hearing the Korean lyrics rhyme with the English. I love kpop and it drives me slightly nuts when the lyrics don’t rhyme. I know it must be hard so I don’t let it bother me too much, but I definitely noticed the effort! It keeps me immersed in the flow of a song even when I don’t know what a lyric means.
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ingetout
7: 45 she is so right about the gukbap. It is like chicken noodle soup in the west where it is a comfort dish which is fitting for the scene because it’s a homestyle dish and isn’t like Korean bbq where you eat as a special occasion or celebration. It’s stuff like this that made me especially appreciate the movie and connected with me as a Korean person.
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7: 45 she is so right about the gukbap. It is like chicken noodle soup in the west where it is a comfort dish which is fitting for the scene because it’s a homestyle dish and isn’t like Korean bbq where you eat as a special occasion or celebration. It’s stuff like this that made me especially appreciate the movie and connected with me as a Korean person.
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boojoi
Her view on K-Pop now is the same for me. It’s not the K-Pop that I grew up with. The very unique concepts, melodies and beats, bold colors, it’s starting to fade away and they’re all sounding like ordinary pop songs (no offense to pop music lovers. It’s like they’re catering to the global fans now instead of the Korean fans if that makes sense.
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Her view on K-Pop now is the same for me. It’s not the K-Pop that I grew up with. The very unique concepts, melodies and beats, bold colors, it’s starting to fade away and they’re all sounding like ordinary pop songs (no offense to pop music lovers. It’s like they’re catering to the global fans now instead of the Korean fans if that makes sense.
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gustave-t8m
Great interview. It's a shame the movie plot is the most cookie-cutter, predictable thing to ever exist, but here's hoping that now that the hype is realised, they can make a better movie overall next time. Personally, I want to see a set of 8-episode series featuring the first singers, then those others through time.
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Great interview. It's a shame the movie plot is the most cookie-cutter, predictable thing to ever exist, but here's hoping that now that the hype is realised, they can make a better movie overall next time. Personally, I want to see a set of 8-episode series featuring the first singers, then those others through time.
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eduhigashi7425
SM hurt her deeply. In all her interviews, she refers to herself in the third person, little Ejae, as if the pain is no longer hers. Girl, you can cry rivers now, your pain is your pattern and it transformed you into the person you are today. You can embrace your pain and we will be feeling it together with you.
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SM hurt her deeply. In all her interviews, she refers to herself in the third person, little Ejae, as if the pain is no longer hers. Girl, you can cry rivers now, your pain is your pattern and it transformed you into the person you are today. You can embrace your pain and we will be feeling it together with you.
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topcatrox
So many interviews of EJAE lately I’m loving it and after each one I’m like this is the best one no this is the best one but this is the best most insightful one so far of just her sitting down. She’s very articulate and she does actually scream star whether she wants that or not lol. Great interview!
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So many interviews of EJAE lately I’m loving it and after each one I’m like this is the best one no this is the best one but this is the best most insightful one so far of just her sitting down. She’s very articulate and she does actually scream star whether she wants that or not lol. Great interview!
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Love2Run
EJAE is a great role model for young girls growing up. Perhaps a blessing in disguise she did not achieve success and fame until she became a mature woman, and she said as much in this interview. I love her authenticity and such a balanced approach to life despite her incredible talent and now fame!
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EJAE is a great role model for young girls growing up. Perhaps a blessing in disguise she did not achieve success and fame until she became a mature woman, and she said as much in this interview. I love her authenticity and such a balanced approach to life despite her incredible talent and now fame!
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LuLovesLemon
EJAE is very quickly becoming someone I full-out admire for her groundedness, intelligence and heart. Not only is she a fantastic singer and songwriter but the way she carries herself is nothing short of aspirational. I feel truly lucky that she is one of the faces of our time
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EJAE is very quickly becoming someone I full-out admire for her groundedness, intelligence and heart. Not only is she a fantastic singer and songwriter but the way she carries herself is nothing short of aspirational. I feel truly lucky that she is one of the faces of our time
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jeffyen
Fantastic interview. Really gives off the Gandalf vibe here with regards to relationship to fame, power, mental health etc. I haven't seen anyone speak like that before, especially the idea that 'you gotta watch yourself while you're trying to get successful' angle. Go EJAE!
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Fantastic interview. Really gives off the Gandalf vibe here with regards to relationship to fame, power, mental health etc. I haven't seen anyone speak like that before, especially the idea that 'you gotta watch yourself while you're trying to get successful' angle. Go EJAE!
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galenmarek7078
ejae talking about kpop mixing genres immediately brought to mind nmixx's latest song blue valentine. when i first listened to it i was like confused because of the mixed tempo, but hearing ejae talk about the korean's flair for mixing things up, i see it now.
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ejae talking about kpop mixing genres immediately brought to mind nmixx's latest song blue valentine. when i first listened to it i was like confused because of the mixed tempo, but hearing ejae talk about the korean's flair for mixing things up, i see it now.
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itdock
Ejae is the real deal. She's so intelligent, thoughtful, and human. She speaks so eloquently in a relatable way. As a fan of kpop, the idols are often portrayed as unnaturally superhuman. In today's world, we all crave authenticity and genuine talent. She's got it!
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Ejae is the real deal. She's so intelligent, thoughtful, and human. She speaks so eloquently in a relatable way. As a fan of kpop, the idols are often portrayed as unnaturally superhuman. In today's world, we all crave authenticity and genuine talent. She's got it!
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withoutathot
Good to see you holding the torch for the present moment. It gives a real insight of what happens in the kpop machine. I know there's lot more depth to the genre, so hopefully it resonates more in all different directions.
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Good to see you holding the torch for the present moment. It gives a real insight of what happens in the kpop machine. I know there's lot more depth to the genre, so hopefully it resonates more in all different directions.
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delbomackaroni
I've seen probably every EJAE interview so far. This interview is the first I've seen to try to bring a negative side out of EJAE. It was like listening to someone talk to a fake friend who is up to something conniving.
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I've seen probably every EJAE interview so far. This interview is the first I've seen to try to bring a negative side out of EJAE. It was like listening to someone talk to a fake friend who is up to something conniving.
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CoreyIsTheName
She's the output of the South Korean government funded soft power factory. Not original, not legit, just a manufactured product singing someone elses songs to someone elses tunes. She is essentially a robot.
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She's the output of the South Korean government funded soft power factory. Not original, not legit, just a manufactured product singing someone elses songs to someone elses tunes. She is essentially a robot.
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TheMaggietron
I’ve seen every EJAE interview and I swear no one sells excitement like her. She answers the same question again and again and still looks like it’s her favorite topic in the world.
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I’ve seen every EJAE interview and I swear no one sells excitement like her. She answers the same question again and again and still looks like it’s her favorite topic in the world.
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fairhavenpacific
When I first heard this song I literally thought it was AI because HUNTR/X and EJAE seemed like LLM acronyms or something. It took me hours to find out that she is a real person.
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When I first heard this song I literally thought it was AI because HUNTR/X and EJAE seemed like LLM acronyms or something. It took me hours to find out that she is a real person.
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vnxasian
I love the fact she brought up nirvana as a prime example of melodic songs. Kurt many time brought up the Beatles as his inspiration who were the kings of melody. All timeless superstars
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I love the fact she brought up nirvana as a prime example of melodic songs. Kurt many time brought up the Beatles as his inspiration who were the kings of melody. All timeless superstars
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thenaiam
This is a fantastic interview! Especially with how many interviews EJAE has had already, it's great that you were able to get stories, angles and layers beyond what's already out there.
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This is a fantastic interview! Especially with how many interviews EJAE has had already, it's great that you were able to get stories, angles and layers beyond what's already out there.
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