KPop Demon Hunters is a movie about confronting our inner darkness, and the song Free carries an important message: let’s explore its lyrics.
The new sensation on Netflix is KPop Demon Hunters, especially for fans of pop music. The new movie, released in June 2025, has managed to bring together lovers of music, anime, and touching stories about the darkness that lies within each of us. The protagonists—a girl trio called Huntrix—are more than just K-pop singers: they’re demon hunters who use their voices to protect the world from darkness. And yet, none of us is purely black or white, and that’s exactly what comes through in the film and in the lyrics of its main songs.
KPop Demon Hunters: the meaning of the movie
In a simple world, demons would just be straight-up evil, gross monsters, and the good guys would be perfect, confident heroes. But in real life, even the brightest heroes can get pulled toward the dark side, and the strongest fighters aren’t always so sure of themselves. One of them even has a huge secret—her skin shows demon-like patterns because she’s actually the result of a mistake, the union between a demon and a hunter.
That’s how KPop: Demon Hunters kicks off. At first, no one can touch the trio of badass hunters—Rumi, Mira, and Zoey. They’re on top of the world. But then the Saja Boys show up—a super hot boy band with way too much charm for their own good. What no one knows is that they’re actually demons working for Gwi-Ma. No one except the Huntrix, of course. Problem is, even though they know the truth, the girls can’t seem to stop the Saja Boys from taking over the spotlight. While the boys come off as smooth, respectful, and clever, the only idea the Huntrix come up with is a diss track that lays out all their anger toward the darkness surrounding the band.
But Rumi just can’t get behind that angry song. She feels like the Huntrix should be sending a different message. And indeed, by the end of the movie, good actually wins thanks to the song What It Sounds Like, which is all about accepting your dark side and how the world could be a way better place if we just learn to be cool with who we really are—flaws and all. You can listen to What It Sounds Like below.
Before getting there, though, Rumi spends days wrestling with her doubts. She develops a complicated relationship with Jinu, the leader of the Saja Boys: they meet privately several times and seem to start having particular feelings for each other. Rumi sees a good side in Jinu, a part he’s been denying to himself his whole life. And that’s how, pretty naturally, the song Free is born—a duet they sing during one of their secret meetings. It’s a song about facing your demons together and breaking free from the cages we build for ourselves.
The lyrics of Free: a song about beating the darkness together
Free has lyrics with a deep meaning. At first, Rumi sings about her struggles dealing with the patterns she’s hidden her whole life — a secret that was starting to destroy her voice and her ability to fight evil, like we see at the beginning of the movie.
I tried to hide but something broke
I tried to sing, couldn’t hit the notes
The words kept catching in my throat
I tried to smile, I was suffocating, though
But here with you, I can finally breathe
Since Rumi met Jinu, things started to change. Talking to him is like dealing with your own dark side. It’s a life lesson with many points of contacts with modern psychology: all the things we’re ashamed of—our flaws, our shadows—if we keep pushing them away or pretending they are just bad, they can mess with our head. But once we start accepting those things as part of who we are, even the dark parts can actually help us come out on top.
Why does it feel right every time I let you in?
Why does it feel like I can tell you anything?
All the secrets that keep me in chains and
All the damage that might make me dangerous
You got a dark side, guess you’re not the only one
What if we both tried fighting what we’re running from?
The power of these lyrics even breaks through Jinu’s armor, revealing that he’s open to the message we hear in Free and its lyrics. Jinu is a guy who sold his soul to evil and has been living with overwhelming guilt ever since. In many ways, he’s just a human who just made a big mistake, regrets it, and wants to make amends. But Gwi-Ma won’t let him, forcing Jinu to live under the constant shadow of his demonic voice. What if Rumi could actually be his salvation?
You’re breaking through all the dark in me
When I thought that nobody could
And you’re waking up all these parts of me
That I thought were buried for good
When Rumi and Jinu sing together, they find out they’re stuck with the same deal: voices that drag them into a dead end. But just being able to open up to each other and actually get each other turns out to be their biggest strength:
Between imposter and this monster
I been lost inside my head
Ain’t no choice when all these voices
Keep me pointing towards no end
It’s just easy when I’m with you
No one sees me the way you do
This is the big meaning behind Free and its lyrics: stop demonizing yourself. Learn to love who you are, without hate—no hate for yourself, no hate for others. That’s the only way we can get better and actually change the world.
Who sings Free, the song from the movie KPop Demon Hunters?
This article on Netflix Tudum reveals all the artists involved in the soundtrack of the movie K-Pop: Demon Hunters. The song Free was written by three artists from completely different backgrounds: Canadian singer Jenna Andrews, producer Stephen Kirk, and songwriter Mark Sonnenblick. You can learn more about them through the links we’ve included.
The song in the movie is performed by EJAE, a songwriter who works with several current K-pop groups, and Andrew Choi, a South Korean singer known for competing in K-pop Star Season 2.
Read other popular song lyrics and their meaning on Auralcrave
Free: the complete lyrics
Below you can find the complete lyrics of the song Free, from the movie:
I tried to hide but something broke
I tried to sing, couldn’t hit the notes
The words kept catching in my throat
I tried to smile, I was suffocating though
But here with you, I can finally breathe
You say you’re no good, but you’re good for me
I’ve been hoping to change, now I know we can change
But I won’t if you’re not by my side
Why does it feel right every time I let you in?
Why does it feel like I can tell you anything?
All the secrets that keep me in chains and
All the damage that might make me dangerous
You got a dark side, guess you’re not the only one
What if we both tried fighting what we’re running from?
We can’t fix it if we never face it
What if we find a way to escape it?
We could be free
Free
We can’t fix it if we never face it
Let the past be the past ’til it’s weightless
Ooh, time goes by, and I lose perspective
Yeah, hope only hurts, so I just forget it
But you’re breaking through all the dark in me
When I thought that nobody could
And you’re waking up all these parts of me
That I thought were buried for good
Between imposter and this monster
I been lost inside my head
Ain’t no choice when all these voices
Keep me pointing towards no end
It’s just easy when I’m with you
No one sees me the way you do
I don’t trust it, but I want to
I keep coming back to
Why does it feel right every time I let you in?
Why does it feel like I can tell you anything?
We can’t fix it if we never face it
What if we find a way to escape it?
We could be free
Free
We can’t fix it if we never face it
Let the past be the past ’til it’s weightless
Oh, so take my hand, it’s open
Free, free
What if we heal what’s broken?
Free, free
I tried to hide, but something broke
I couldn’t sing, but you give me hope
We can’t fix it if we never face it
Let the past be the past ’til it’s weightless
