00:00Congratulations to the recipient of the 2026 Women of the Year, E.J., Ray Ami, and Audrey Nuna.
00:19Wow. Oh my god, guys. Thank you, guys. Thank you, Billboard, for this incredible honor.
00:27And to even just be in this room with so many incredible women, working across industry is the real honor
00:35here, seriously.
00:37Working in music is not easy. And as an Asian woman, the lack of representation was obvious to me.
00:45Growing up in the U.S., I rarely saw artists who looked like me on Western stages.
00:51So I pursued becoming a K-pop idol. And when that didn't work out, I thought I was done.
00:57But when I found songwriting, I realized that music isn't, music itself never questioned me.
01:04Because music doesn't see race or gender. It only asks for the truth.
01:08And when I brought my full truth into it, my voice, my Korean-ness, my women-ness, everything began to
01:16shift.
01:17I realized that as a woman, our power has never been in fitting in, but it's in our resilience to
01:23speak our truth.
01:25So I just want to say to every woman who may feel unseen, your voice is something to honor.
01:31Your story is not something to dilute. It's something to amplify.
01:34And your identity is not a barrier. It's your power.
01:39Because when we create without apology, take up space and lift each other up, we don't just make music.
01:46We can change what it sounds like.
01:48I also like to acknowledge some of the amazing women behind K-pop Demon Hunters.
01:53Of course, our director Maggie Kang, Spring Asper, Michelle Wong, Donna Sano, Sunny Park, and so many others.
02:02And of course, these lovely, beautiful ladies, Audrey, Nuna, and Raeul.
02:07I love you guys so much.
02:10It makes this journey super worth it, guys. Seriously.
02:13And of course, our moms.
02:15Our heroes, guys, right?
02:18Shout out.
02:21Thank you for this incredible honor.
02:24I want to thank God. I want to thank my mom, these two incredible, beautiful women beside me.
02:29Thank you, Billboard. Thank you, Republic Records, my incredible team, family, friends, and fans.
02:35Being a woman in this male-dominated industry is honestly ass sometimes.
02:40We have to work twice as hard with a smile on our faces
02:43as the world nitpicks every part of our being.
02:47First, we're too skinny, and then we're too fat.
02:49It goes from, oh, she's giving nothing, to why is she being so extra?
02:54It seems utterly impossible to exist.
02:57Oh, and God forbid you're confident they'll crucify you for that.
03:00But I think that's why they're so obsessed.
03:03Because, well, there's nothing more intimidating than a confident woman who knows what she wants.
03:12Our ability to persevere and show up is an absolute superpower.
03:17So thank you to all the women in this room for using your superpowers to inspire, lead, and protect.
03:25We are not too much. We are not too loud.
03:28We are exactly who the fuck we think we are.
03:38Wow.
03:41I'm very emotional tonight.
03:44I've been known to be the emotionally constipated one out of this group.
03:47And tonight I really feel so much.
03:51So thank you so much, Billboard, for that.
03:53Thank you to my fellow women in music.
03:57It's honestly an honor to just stand in this room.
04:01Women who bring leadership, light, boldness, excellence, and change to our community.
04:08From when I first started releasing music back in 2019 to this moment now,
04:12I really never identified with the boxes that Korean-American women were expected to fit into.
04:20And quite frankly, I didn't even know how to even begin to try to fit into those boxes.
04:26I mean, I'm literally wearing shoes that are boxing gloves right now.
04:32So to receive this honor and represent a song and a film that affirms this notion
04:42that the world needs women to show up as their fullest, most whole selves,
04:48their weirdest selves, you know, their smelliest selves,
04:51whatever it is, it's rewarding beyond words.
05:03They have never seen me cry in real life, so it's not going to happen tonight.
05:07Yes, it is.
05:09I think we all grow up being fed ideas of what our role is supposed to be as a woman
05:14in this world.
05:16And something that navigating this industry in particular has shown me firsthand
05:21is that women are natural-born leaders, and they are the best at it.
05:25Sorry, I'm just going to say it.
05:27And when women genuinely support one another from the heart, deep in their core,
05:34you know, I was fangirling over Ella Langley earlier because that shit was fucking amazing.
05:40It is one of the most transformative, effective, and boundary-breaking forces in this world.
05:46And that being said, I want to dedicate this award to my team of visionary women,
05:50Paola Park, who's also being honored tonight.
05:52Woo!
05:53Paola!
05:55Truly, I could never do this without you.
05:57Love you so much.
05:59Nina Lee, Ashley Chu, Sarah Tarani, Carolyn Massey, Mary Hannon, Grace Lee.
06:05Literally, my team is basically all women at this point,
06:08and it's probably why I'm winning so hard.
06:11Thank you, EJ.
06:12Thank you, Ray.
06:13You guys are my muses, and truly some of the purest souls I've ever met.
06:18Thank you to my mom.
06:20Thank you to my aunt, who are here tonight.
06:23You guys show me what it means to be an empathetic but also powerful woman.
06:29Thank you to the women execs, who are constantly fighting for more equity.
06:36It really means a lot.
06:38And I love what Zara Larsson said about being the only woman in the room.
06:41You guys do that for us, and we see you, and we appreciate you.
06:44Our empathy is an asset.
06:45Our humanness is a catalyst and portal for change.
06:48Thank you so much.
06:50Thank you so much.
06:52Thank you so much.
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