The group H1-KEY earned recognition for their musicality by repeatedly appearing on lists of "The best K-pop of 2025" compiled by major foreign media.
H1-KEY (Seo-i, Riina, Hwiser, Yel) ranked ninth on The Hollywood Reporter's "The 40 Best K-pop Songs of 2025" with the mini 4th album title track "It was summer," released on the 29th of last month (local time).
The Hollywood Reporter praised H1-KEY's "It was summer," saying, "It is a K-pop song that represents the summer of 2025. Musically it is close to perfect. It features a fresh, bright energy and is a song that belongs on every K-pop fan's playlist." It also said, "H1-KEY is like a hidden gem in the K-pop world," rating the group highly.
H1-KEY's summer song "It was summer," released in June last year, earlier placed sixth and tenth respectively on the "The 25 Best K-pop Songs of 2025" lists selected by British music magazine NME and U.S. Billboard. With The Hollywood Reporter joining in, the group achieved a triple top-10 in "The best K-pop of 2025," proving their influence as a global artist.
H1-KEY will make a comeback by releasing the new single "The world isn't like a movie" through various online music sites at 6 p.m. on the 5th. This is the group's first release in about seven months since the mini 4th album "Lovestruck" and is a new song presented on their fourth anniversary, drawing strong expectations from fans. In particular, it is a H1-KEY-style winter song containing messages of support and consolation, heralding the birth of another well-made seasonal song following "It was summer."
Receiving consecutive attention from major foreign media and further raising the comeback momentum, H1-KEY will meet fans with various music and activities starting with "The world isn't like a movie" in 2026.
[Photo] Provided by Choi Creative Lab.
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