Red Flavor
"Red Flavor" is a song recorded by South Korean girl group Red Velvet for their first Korean special extended play, The Red Summer. It was released as the lead single from the EP on July 9, 2017, through SM Entertainment and was distributed by Genie Music, along with the accompanying fruit-infused music video. Written by SM collaborator Kenzie and composed by Daniel Caesar and Ludwig Lindell, it is primarily a dance-pop song with synths and percussion. The song reflects the summer funky vibe, while the lyrics hint towards a young relationship with summer references. A Japanese version, adapted by songwriter Kami Kaoru, was later included on the group's first Japanese EP, #Cookie Jar, on July 4, 2018.
"Red Flavor" was well received by music critics; it appeared on several year-end lists and won Best Pop Song at the 15th Korean Music Awards. In 2019, Billboard ranked it as the 2nd greatest K-pop song of the 2010s, and in 2023, Rolling Stone placed it 19th on its list of the 100 greatest songs in the history of Korean pop music. Commercially, the song was a major success in South Korea, becoming Red Velvet's first number one on the Gaon Digital Chart, their longest-charting single to date, and their fifth song to surpass one million downloads. It also peaked at number four on the Billboard World Digital Songs chart in the United States and became the group's first single to enter the Billboard charts in Japan and the Philippines.
Since its release, Red Velvet has performed "Red Flavor" for all of their headlining concert tours. The song was performed at the Spring is Coming concert in Pyongyang at the East Pyongyang Grand Theatre to an audience that included Korean Workers' Party chairman Kim Jong-un. Seen as an act of a wider diplomatic initiative between South Korea and North Korea, the group's appearance at the concert made them only the fifth idol group to have performed in North Korea and the first artist from SM in 15 years, since boy group Shinhwa. The song has also been adapted into an orchestral version by Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, featuring the arrangement of Park In-young.
Background and release
After the release of their fourth extended play Rookie in February, Red Velvet released the digital single "Would U" as the first release for the second season of the label project SM Station in March 2017. It was the group's first single as a quartet in years due to member Joy's filming schedule for her first drama The Liar and His Lover, in which she was starring as the female lead. Through Star-News and SM Entertainment's official press announcement on June 23, 2017, they were reported to have recently finished filming a music video. It eventually became Red Velvet's second comeback within a calendar year, which was later extended to a total of three times with the release of their second studio album Perfect Velvet in late November 2017. On June 30, the first batch of teaser photos were posted on the group's official social media accounts. The EP's title and its full tracklist, which included "Red Flavor", were revealed on the same day. The song had its official digital release on July 9, 2017, along with The Red Summer. The remix of "Red Flavor" by Mar Vista was released on August 31, 2023.Recording and composition
"Red Flavor" was produced by Daniel Caesar and Ludwig Lindell, who had previously worked with several South Korean artists in this name. In an interview with Tone Glow, the duo revealed that it had originally been written for the British girl group Little Mix with the title "Dance With Nobody". After deciding that the song could also work for the K-pop market, they recorded the demo with vocals by Ylva Dimberg whose voice is still heard in the background vocals in the pre-chorus. A low voice was featured in the intro and chorus of the song.Musically, Tamar Herman of Billboard characterized "Red Flavor" as an electropop song with "dramatic synths and a percussive melody". It is composed in the key of A major, with a tempo of 125 beats per minute. Hwang Sun-eob of IZM noted the "sensuous composition of the bassline or synthesizer". In addition, Chase McMullen of The 405 noted that the song includes a "clap-along groove". Its Korean lyrics, which were written by long-time SM songwriter Kenzie, Caesar, and Lindell focuses on the theme of "fruit-flavored summer love". Initially released in Korean, a Japanese version of the song was performed at their first Japan showcase on November 6, 2017. The Japanese version of "Red Flavor" was then included on Red Velvet's first Japanese EP #Cookie Jar, with the single of the same name. The Japanese version of the song was adapted by songwriter Kami Kaoru.
Critical reception and recognition
Following its initial release, "Red Flavor" was met with positive reviews from music critics. Tamar Herman of Billboard magazine called the track "dynamic in its jam-packed, but not overpowering production" and concluded that it is "sure to be one of the summer's K-pop earworms". Jeff Benjamin of Fuse described the song as a "super-simple-to-swallow piece of pop", giving credit to the "cheery-chanty melody", which he pointed to as one of Red Velvet's more accessible tunes. McMullen complimented the song as an "effortless pop glide", while Lee Gi-seon of IZM magazine praised the song's unique production and the group's vocals. Chester Chin of The Star labelled the song an "in-your-face summer jam" and added that it was "relentlessly catchy". Taylor Glasby of Dazed commented that the song "shouldn't be seen as merely a quirky fix", stating: "It's complex and intimidating and that it feels so immediate and identifiable on the surface is just emblematic of its greatness." With the mighty punch of its chorus, she claimed the song "completely won the summer".GQ Korea named "Red Flavor" its Song of the Year in the magazine's November 2017 issue. In December, IZM listed the song as one of its top 10 singles of the year. Dazed ranked the song at number two on its list of the 20 Best K-pop Songs of 2017. The song landed on Billboards 20 Best K-Pop Songs 2017 list at number four, with Jeff Benjamin praising its uplifting, addictive, deliciously bubblegum melody. The magazine later featured "Red Flavor" in their decennial staff list of The 100 Greatest K-pop Songs of the 2010s at number two, calling it an "undeniable hit since day one and remains ever-beloved by fans worldwide". The song also landed on Melon's domestic Top 100 Songs of the 2010s list at number 29. Billboard and NME ranked "Red Flavor" number 1 and 4 in their lists of best Red Velvet songs, respectively. Melon ranked it number 20 while Rolling Stone ranked it number 13 in their lists of the greatest K-pop songs of all time, with the latter publication praising its production and hailing it as the epitome of "summertime fun, adventure, and romance."
| Publication | List | Rank | |
| Billboard | The Best K-pop Songs of 2017: Critics' Picks | 4 | |
| Billboard | The 100 Greatest K-pop Songs of the 2010s: Staff List | 2 | |
| The Daily Dot | The absolute best K-pop of 2017 | Placed | |
| Dazed | The 20 best K-pop songs of 2017 | 2 | |
| GQ Korea | 2017 GQ Awards | Placed | |
| IZM | Top 10 Songs of 2017 | Placed | |
| Melon | Top 100 K-pop Songs of All Time | 20 | |
| Music Y | Top 10 Songs of 2017 | 1 | |
| Rolling Stone | 100 Greatest Songs in the History of Korean Pop Music | 13 | |
| SBS PopAsia | Top 7 K-pop songs of 2017 | Placed | |
| Weiv | The Best Tracks of 2017 | Placed |
Accolades
Following the group's initial South Korea music shows promotion, Red Velvet earned their first Show Champion trophy for "Red Flavor" on July 20, 2017, and continued to achieve a total of five trophies by the end of July 2017. It was nominated for the Song of the Year - July category at the 7th Gaon Chart Music Awards in 2018, but lost to labelmate Exo's "Ko Ko Bop". The song, however, won in the Best Digital Song category at the 32nd Golden Disc Awards, becoming the group's second time to win this category following "Ice Cream Cake" in 2016. "Red Flavor" also earned Red Velvet their first Korean Music Awards in their career in the Best Pop Song category. The song also received a nomination in the Song of the Year category at the 2017 Mnet Asian Music Awards, but lost to Twice's "Signal".| Year | Organization | Award | Result | |
| 2017 | Melon Music Awards | Best Dance Award – Female | Nomitated | |
| 2017 | Mnet Asian Music Awards | Best Dance Performance – Female Group | Nomitated | |
| 2017 | Mnet Asian Music Awards | Song of the Year | Nomitated | |
| 2018 | Golden Disc Awards | Digital Bonsang | Won | |
| 2018 | Golden Disc Awards | Digital Daesang | Nomitated | |
| 2018 | Korean Music Awards | Best Pop Song | Won | |
| 2018 | Korean Music Awards | Song of the Year | Nomitated | |
| 2018 | Gaon Chart Music Awards | Song of the Month – July 2017 | Nomitated |