Play in this article ↓SEVENTEEN Face the Sun: HOT, Nine Group Songs and a New Chapter
Published:
- Category: Album guide
- Artist: SEVENTEEN
KPOP NO1 Editorial · Sources checked November 7, 2026
Seven years in, SEVENTEEN renewed their contracts and started a new chapter. Face the Sun, the group's fourth studio album, came out on May 27, 2022. It has nine songs, every one sung by all 13 members, and it's led by "HOT." It became the group's highest-charting album on the Billboard 200 at the time, at No. 7.
Here's the idea behind Face the Sun, the lead single, the English-language pre-release and the rest of the album.
The idea: sun and shadow
Face the Sun was SEVENTEEN's first full-length album in two years and eight months. It was also their first since renewing their contracts with PLEDIS Entertainment. "We expect the album will be more significant as it is our first LP following our renewal of contracts," leader S.COUPS said at the press conference. The Korea Herald
The group made a bold choice: no unit songs and no solos, only songs for all 13. WOOZI, who took part in the album's overall production, explained the message. The album, he said, is about overcoming the concerns inside them, symbolized by shadows, to become "a powerful being who can confront everything that we face without fear and stride forward."
The physical album has five versions, named like chapters: ep.1 Control, ep.2 Shadow, ep.3 Ray, ep.4 Path and ep.5 Pioneer. SEVENTEEN Japan official site
Start with HOT
HOT is the lead single, a hip-hop song with Western guitar sounds. It carries SEVENTEEN's passion to prove themselves and become irreplaceable, like the sun. "The song best resembles Seventeen," Joshua said. The sun, he added, was the element that could stand for their existence and passion at a new starting point, and for the goal they set with the album. The Korea Herald
Weverse Magazine described the video's members as a gang of biker cowboys reminiscent of the Mad Max films. Weverse Magazine The music video went up on HYBE LABELS on May 27, 2022 (Korean time).
The first teaser came four days earlier, on May 23.
Official video · HYBE LABELS / YouTube
Watch the original on YouTube ↗The teasers before it pushed the dark side of the concept. A series called 13 Inner Shadows spotlighted each member in a surreal situation, and the I'm NOT SEVENTEEN anymore teasers hinted at a group falling apart. Weverse Magazine
Darl+ing, the English pre-release
In April, ahead of the album, SEVENTEEN released Darl+ing, their first song with all-English lyrics. It's the album's first track. The Korea Herald The music video went up on April 15, 2022.
Official video · HYBE LABELS / YouTube
Watch the original on YouTube ↗Its teaser had gone up on April 13.
Official video · HYBE LABELS / YouTube
Watch the original on YouTube ↗
Archival photo: SEVENTEEN at the Be The Sun world tour concert in Singapore, October 13, 2022, on the tour that followed the album. Credit: Orangesclub, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0. Linked from Wikimedia Commons; no other edits by KPOP NO.1.
The 9 songs
Here's the official running order. SEVENTEEN Japan official site The notes on sound come from Weverse Magazine's review. Weverse Magazine
| # | Song | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Darl+ing | First all-English lyric track; pre-released in April |
| 2 | HOT | Lead single; Weverse Magazine hears Latin rhythm mixed with hip hop |
| 3 | DON QUIXOTE | A refreshing pop melody, per Weverse Magazine |
| 4 | March | |
| 5 | Domino | Starts as bubblegum pop and turns to EDM in the chorus |
| 6 | Shadow | Drum and bass at first, then rock |
| 7 | 노래해 ('bout you) | |
| 8 | IF you leave me | Pop ballad; the members' harmonies over a lone piano |
| 9 | Ash | Effects on all the vocals |
Our take: because every song uses all 13 voices, Face the Sun is the album to hear SEVENTEEN as one team. Shadow and Domino show how far they stretch a single song.
The chart: a goal and a new high
SEVENTEEN went in with a clear goal. "We've been knocking on the doors of Billboard since our last album 'Your Choice,' and we'd really like to nab No. 1 this time," Seungkwan said. He added that the members' one shared goal was to stay together for a long, long time. The Korea Herald
The album reached No. 7 on the Billboard 200, the group's highest spot at the time. Their previous EPs, Your Choice and Attacca, had reached No. 15 and No. 13. It sold more than 2.06 million copies in its first week, a record that year among albums released in Korea. It also topped the iTunes Top Albums chart in 22 regions, and HOT was No. 1 on the Top Songs chart in 26. The Korea Herald
The climb continued. The repackage SECTOR 17 reached No. 4 in July 2022, and FML reached No. 2 in 2023. The Korea Herald Our FML guide picks up the story.
Official Face the Sun videos
Dates are the YouTube publication dates in Korean time.
| Type | Official video | Channel | Published, KST |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teaser | 'Darl+ing' Official Teaser | HYBE LABELS | April 13, 2022 |
| Music video | 'Darl+ing' Official MV | HYBE LABELS | April 15, 2022 |
| Teaser | 'HOT' Official Teaser 1 | HYBE LABELS | May 23, 2022 |
| Teaser | 'HOT' Official Teaser 2 | HYBE LABELS | May 24, 2022 |
| Music video | 'HOT' Official MV | HYBE LABELS | May 27, 2022 |
| Lyric video | 'HOT' ENG Lyric Video | HYBE LABELS | June 5, 2022 |
Keep exploring
New to SEVENTEEN? The SEVENTEEN starter guide introduces the 13 members.
What came next: FML in 2023, then SEVENTEENTH HEAVEN.
The fans S.COUPS thanked at that press conference, CARAT, are in our CARAT fandom guide.
Sources
- SEVENTEEN Japan official site (PLEDIS), Face the Sun release page
- The Korea Herald, "Seventeen hopes for Billboard No. 1 with 4th LP 'Face the Sun'," May 27, 2022
- The Korea Herald, "[Today's K-pop] Seventeen ranks No. 7 on Billboard 200," June 13, 2022
- The Korea Herald, "Seventeen hits No. 2 on Billboard albums chart," May 9, 2023
- Weverse Magazine, "SEVENTEEN challenges themselves to face the sun"
- Official YouTube channel: HYBE LABELS