Sticker is the third Korean-language and fourth overall studio album by South Korean boy band NCT 127. It was released on September 17, 2021, by SM Entertainment through Dreamus in South Korea and Virgin Music Label & Artist Services in United States. It follows their previous release, the Japanese-language EP Loveholic, released in February 2021, and their previous Korean studio album Neo Zone, released in March 2020.[6] On October 25, the group released Favorite, the repackage of Sticker, which features three new tracks, including the lead single "Favorite (Vampire)".[7]
The album and its repackage were a commercial success, both in South Korea and internationally, breaking several records after selling a total of 3.58 million copies.[8][9]Sticker became the best-selling album of all-time from SM Entertainment, one of the best-selling K-Pop album of 2021 after including reckpage sales, and the best-selling album by NCT 127 and by an NCT sub-unit.[10] On the Billboard 200 chart, Sticker debuted and peaked at number 3 and became the first K-Pop album in 2021 to chart for 12 consecutive weeks, and the longest-charting album in the chart by an SM Entertainment artist.[11] Critically, the album received positive reviews from music critics, with several publications naming it as one of the best K-Pop albums from 2021.[12]
On June 28, 2021, SM released a presentation on the future of the company and the comebacks of their artists during the "SM Congress" event. The presentation explained that NCT 127 was planning to release a third studio album and repackage before the year's end.[13] At a fanmeet for the group's fifth anniversary, they confirmed the album would have a September release window.[14]
Promotion[]
The album was teased with a concept trailer titled "Who Is Sticker", released on August 21, which depicted the members of NCT 127 as engineering students by day and computer hackers by night.[15][16] On August 22, SM announced the release of Sticker for September 17 on their social media accounts.[6] On September 10, NCT 127 released a playlist named "Welcome to NCT 127 Sticker, the Enhanced Playlist" exclusively on Spotify.[17]Sticker was officially released on September 17, and the group promoted the album and its title track on The Late Late Show with James Corden.
Commercial performance[]
Sticker[]
On August 24, 2021, after just one day of availability, it was reported that Sticker had surpassed 1,329,000 pre-orders,[18] and surpassed 2.2 million pre-orders on the day of release, breaking their previous record of 530,000 pre-orders for Neo Zone.[19]
On September 24, 2021, NCT 127 broke their own record and became a double million seller, with over 2.15 million copies of Sticker being sold in just a week.[20] As of November 2021, the album has sold a total of 2.4 million copies.[21]
The album debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200, selling 58,000 copies in its first week. [22] As of December 2021, it has sold 173,000 copies in the United States.
Favorite[]
On October 25, 2021, it was reported that Favorite had surpassed 1,060,000 pre-orders, making it the highest pre-ordered repackage album from SM Entertainment.[23] One week after its release, it has been reported that the album has sold 1.1 million copies, totaling the sales of Sticker to 3.58 million copies.[24]
^Hosted by the Hong Kong Asia Pacific International Group and Sunway Records, the Asian Pop Music Awards bases its winners on "Asian Pop Music Chart" which opened on September 2019.[26]
^Lee, Seung-hoon (October 25, 2021). ""또 사랑해" NCT 127, 비극 속 꽃 핀 환희 'Favorite'..후회는 없어(종합)[퇴근길 신곡]" ["I love you again" NCT 127, joy 'Favorite' bloomed in tragedy..No regrets (comprehensive) [New song on the way home]]. OSEN (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 25, 2021. Retrieved October 25, 2021 – via Naver.
^Yoon, Sang-geun (August 24, 2021). NCT 127 'Sticker' 예약 하루만 선주문량 132만장 돌파[공식] [NCT 127 'Sticker' pre-order exceeded 1.32 million copies in just one day]. Star News (in Korean). Retrieved August 24, 2021.
^Park, Seo-yeon (September 17, 2021). NCT 127, 美 '제임스 코든쇼'서 신곡 무대 최초 공개..'Sticker' 선주문 220만장 [NCT 127 first unveils new song stage at 'James Corden Show' in the US.. 2.2 million pre-orders for 'Sticker']. Herald Pop (in Korean). Retrieved September 21, 2021 – via Naver.
^Kim, Na-young (September 24, 2021). NCT 127, 정규 3집 '스티커' 발매 일주일 만에 음반 판매량 215만장 돌파 [NCT 127's 3rd full-length album "Sticker" sold 2.15 million copies in just a week.]. MKSports (in Korean). Retrieved September 24, 2021 – via Naver.
^Kim, Won-hee (October 25, 2021). "NCT 127, 정규 3집 리패키지도 선주문 106만장 돌파" [NCT 127's 3rd regular album repackage also surpassed 1.06 million pre-orders]. Sports Khan (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 25, 2021. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
^"2020亚洲流行音乐大奖结果出炉 林俊杰获5奖成最大赢家" [2020 Asian Pop Music Awards results are out JJ Lin won 5 awards as the biggest winner]. VCT News (in Chinese). December 28, 2020. Archived from the original on January 8, 2021. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
^【APMA 2021】亚洲流行音乐大奖2021年度获奖名单（完整版) [Asian Pop Music Awards 2021 Winners List (Full Version)]. Sina Weibo (in Chinese). November 30, 2021. Archived from the original on December 27, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
^【APMA 2021】亚洲流行音乐大奖2021年度入围名单 [(APMA 2021) Asian Pop Music Awards Shortlisted for 2021]. Sina Weibo (in Chinese). November 30, 2021. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
^Jang, Ah-reum (January 8, 2022). "스트레이키즈·NCT127, 음반 부문 본상 "올해도 변치 않고 열심히" [골든디스크]" [Stray Kids·NCT127 Best Album Bonsang "This Year, We Will Continue to Work Hard" [Golden Disk]]. News1 (in Korean). Retrieved January 8, 2022.
^Choi, Bo-yoon (January 11, 2022). "임영웅·이무진 '2021 한터뮤직어워즈' 특별상" [Lim Young-woong and Lee Moo-jin's '2021 Hanteo Music Awards' Special Award]. The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on January 11, 2022. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
^Caramanica, Jon; Pareles, Jon; Zoladz, Lindsay (December 2, 2021). "Best Albums of 2021". The New York Times. ISSN0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 2, 2021. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
^年間 アルバムランキング 2021年度 [Yearly album ranking – 2021] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on December 23, 2021. Retrieved December 30, 2021.
