Sticker (album)

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, distributed by Dreamus in South Korea and Virgin Music in United States. It follows their Japanese-language EP Loveholic, released in February 2021, and previous Korean-language studio album Neo Zone, released in March 2020. On October 25, the group released a repackaged version of Sticker, titled Favorite, which features three new tracks, including the lead single "Favorite (Vampire)".

The album and its reissue were commercially successful in South Korea, selling a total of 3.58 million copies. Sticker peaked at number 40 on the UK Albums Chart, becoming NCT 127's first appearance on said chart. On the Billboard 200, Sticker peaked at number three and became the highest and longest-charting album by the group. The lead single "Sticker" received mixed reviews from critics, although the album was generally praised. Several publications named it as one of the best K-pop albums from 2021. Sticker won Best Album at the 2021 Asia Artist Awards.

Background

On June 28, 2021, SM Entertainment released a presentation on the future of the company and planned comebacks of their artists during the "SM Congress" event. The presentation indicated that NCT 127 was planning to release a third studio album and repackage before the year's end. At a fanmeet in celebration of the group's fifth anniversary, they confirmed the album would have a September release window.

Promotion

Sticker 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. On August 22, SM Entertainment announced the album's release date as September 17 on the group's social media accounts. On September 10, NCT 127 released a playlist called "Welcome to NCT 127 Sticker, the Enhanced Playlist" exclusively on Spotify. 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, eventually surpassing 2.2 million pre-orders on the day of release, exceeding their previous career high of 530,000 pre-orders for Neo Zone and setting a new record for artists under SM Entertainment. On September 24, 2021, NCT 127 broke their own sales record to become a double-million seller, with over 2.15 million copies of Sticker sold in just one week. As of November 2021, the album has sold 2.4 million copies. Sticker debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200, selling 58,000 copies in its first week.

Favorite

On October 25, 2021, it was reported that Favorite surpassed 1,060,000 pre-orders, making it the most pre-ordered repackaged album from SM Entertainment. One week after its release, it was reported that the album has sold 1.1 million copies, bringing the total sales of Sticker to 3.58 million copies.

Critical reception

The A.V. Club's Shanicka Anderson reviewed the album and given it B writing "with the album’s jarring use of such abrasive samples—especially throughout its lead single—it’s hard to imagine a world where any of that works and sounds good. But by blending these unlikely sounds with rich, powerful harmonies and solid rap verses, NCT 127 strikes a sweet balance and delivers an album that is fiercely creative and incredibly self-possessed."

Lucy Ford writing for Clash, "'Sticker' has far less cohesion as you listen through, and whilst the whiplash of genres feels deliberate in regards to the overall message of the album (that the group can be a sticker, pulled and placed whatever way you want them to go) it’s not an entirely relaxing listening experience. But I’d argue that this isn’t a mishap or an overshooting of their own shtick, but a declarative statement that they’re in on the joke and will ultimately be the last ones laughing."

IZM's Jeong Da-yeol started that "as the taste was enhanced only with fragmentary techniques, it lost its original style. 'Sticker', which has simple instrumental compositions and no variation to speak of. The uses Taeyong and Mark's rapping just to the extent of driving the vocalists' elegance. Beyond the simple distribution of parts, hip-hop, the root of NCT's worldview, is not at the center. This situation extends throughout the album and even hinders the immersion of ballad tracks like 'Tomorrow's Me' where the piano gently flows. As a result, like the album cover, all the members lost their color," regardless, he praised the usage of the "cultural technology" and how the producers were not hesitate to "take on challenges to lead trends". Sticker was included in unranked lists of the best albums of 2021 by The New York Times and Nylon. The repackage Favorite was ranked among the best K-pop albums of the year by Harper's Bazaar (7th) and South China Morning Post (11th).