Lee Jae: From 12 Years of Trainee Tears to Global K-Pop Success
Lee Jae: From 12 Years of Trainee Tears to World No. 1… “Now is K-Pop’s Golden Moment”
Once, there was a boy who dreamed of being on stage.
And now, that boy has become the star of a song that the whole world sings along to.
This is the story of Lee Jae, the composer and singer of ‘GOLDEN,’ the OST for the Netflix animation <K-POP DEMON HUNTERS>.
“I Cried in a Taxi During My Trainee Days”
In the preview for tvN’s <You Quiz on the Block> aired on the 21st, Lee Jae teared up as he recalled the 12 years he spent as a trainee at SM Entertainment.
He reminisced, “I practiced with Super Junior, Girls’ Generation, SHINee, and f(x) seniors. I worked really hard.”
But he didn’t get to debut.
Lee Jae shared, “Tears welled up in the taxi on the way back after my contract ended. I thought, ‘Even if I work hard, it doesn’t work out.’ I just felt so sorry. I hated myself for not achieving my dream of becoming a singer, which I had wanted for so long.”
“I Couldn’t Give Up on Music”
Going through a difficult time, he eventually chose ‘music itself.’
“Still, because I liked music, I thought I should try making it. From the opening to closing of the café, I kept making beats.”
His ‘relentless days’ eventually led to amazing results.
Lee Jae later made a name for himself as the composer of numerous K-Pop hits, including Red Velvet’s ‘Psycho’ and aespa’s ‘Drama’ and ‘Armageddon.’
“Seeing Kids Singing My Song in Korean…”
In 2025, Lee Jae’s OST ‘Golden’ for the Netflix animation <K-Pop Demon Hunters> achieved a great record of ranking No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for 8 consecutive weeks.
He teared up again, saying, “Fans all over the world were singing the lyrics ‘that can never be broken’ in Korean. I really felt proud at that time.”
“That song contains my 12 years of trainee life and myself who didn’t give up.”
“Now, as someone who has achieved my dream, I want to become someone else’s dream”
Lee Jae recently appeared on NBC’s ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’ and has established himself as ‘the new face of K-Pop.’
He laughed, “I was really nervous because my voice wasn’t coming out in the morning. But when I stood on stage, I thought, ‘This moment is real.’”
His story shows how powerful the resonance of ‘music by someone who didn’t give up’ can be.
The boy who was once a trainee is now a global K-Pop hitmaker.
Lee Jae Profile
Name: Lee Jae
Birth: September 3, 1993 (Age 32 as of 2025)
Occupation: Singer, Composer, Producer
Agency: J.MADE STUDIO
Debut: Debuted as a composer in 2019
Representative Works:
Red Velvet ‘Psycho’
aespa ‘Drama’, ‘Armageddon’
Netflix OST ‘Golden (K-Pop Demon Hunters)’
Awards: Nominated for the 2025 Billboard Global Songwriter Award
Special Note: Former SM Entertainment Trainee (12 years)
Source :https://blog.naver.com/rotoryhi
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